22 October 2014
During a routine inspection
The inspection was unannounced and took place on 22 October 2014.
Linford Grange is a care service designed to achieve independent living, for individuals with mental or physical health related needs. It is registered to provide accommodation and support for 24 people. On the day of our visit, there were 20 people living in the home.
The service has a registered manager. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. Like registered providers, they are ‘registered persons’. Registered persons have legal responsibility for meeting the requirements in the Health and Social Care Act and associated Regulations about how the service is run.
We found that the service was safe for people and that staff knew how to recognise abuse and responded appropriately if they were concerned that a person had been abused.
Some people who used the service did not have the ability to make decisions about aspects of their care and support. Staff understood the systems in place to protect people who could not make decisions and followed the legal requirements outlined in the Mental Capacity Act 2005 and the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS).
Staff we spoke with and our observations throughout the day, showed that staff were knowledgeable about how to meet people’s needs and how people preferred to be supported. We saw that people had their health needs met by trained staff who understood people’s likes and dislikes.
Staff received training to meet the needs of people using the service and could access additional training if required. They told us they were always looking to improve their knowledge so they could provide better care for people.
Staff were seen to treat people with respect and preserve their dignity at all times. We saw staff knocking on people’s doors and waiting for an answer before they entered.
People we spoke with told us they were happy with the service provided and how staff provided their support. There was a complaints procedure in place and staff and people knew who to speak to if they wanted to raise a concern. There were effective systems in place for responding to complaints.
We found that there were sufficient staff on duty to provide people with safe and appropriate care. Records showed that appropriate pre-employment checks had been carried out to ensure that suitable staff were employed to work with the people living at Linford Grange.
A variety of audits were in place to assess the quality of the service that was provided and were used in conjunction with involving people who used the service, their relatives, and health care professionals. We also saw that health and safety monitoring was carried out to ensure the safety of the environment for people who lived in the home.