Penlee Residential Care Home

Updated 18 November 2022

The inspection

We carried out this inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (the Act) as part of our regulatory functions. This inspection was planned to check whether the provider was meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Act, to look at the overall quality of the service, and to provide a rating for the service under the Care Act 2014.

Inspection team

The inspection team consisted of two inspectors and a medicines inspector.

Service and service type

Penlee Residential Care Home is a 'care home'. People in care homes receive accommodation and personal care as single package under one contractual agreement. The Care Quality Commission (CQC) regulates both the premises and the care provided, and both were looked at on this inspection.

Registered Manager

This provider is required to have a registered manager to oversee the delivery of regulated activities at this location. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. Registered managers and providers are legally responsible for how the service is run, for the quality and safety of the care provided and compliance with regulations.

At the time of our inspection there was a registered manager in post.

Notice of inspection

The inspection was unannounced.

What we did before the inspection

We reviewed information we had received about the service since the last inspection. We also reviewed information that we held about the service such as notifications. These are events that happen in the service that the provider is required to tell us about. This information helps support our inspections. We used all of this information to plan our inspection.

The provider was not asked to complete a Provider Information Return (PIR) prior to this inspection. A PIR is information providers send us to give some key information about the service, what the service does well and improvements they plan to make.

During the inspection

We spoke with the registered manager, six care staff and a cook. We spoke with three people, two relatives, and a healthcare professional. We gained the views of one other professional.

We reviewed a range of records. This included four people’s care records. We checked seven people’s medicines records and looked at arrangements for administering, storing and managing medicines. We looked at records in relation to staff training and supervision. A variety of records relating to the management of the service, including audits, policies and procedures.

Updated 18 November 2022

About the service

Penlee Residential Care Home is a care home that provides personal care for up to 25 predominantly older people. At the time of the inspection 22 people were living at the service. Some of these people were living with dementia.

People’s experience of using this service and what we found

The inspection was prompted following concerns raised to the Care Quality Commission in relation to the management of medicines, consent, governance and staffing levels.

People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible and in their best interests; the policies and systems in the service supported this practice. We have made a recommendation for the service to ensure the newly introduced capacity assessments were completed.

People received their medicines in a safe and caring way. Where we identified some gaps in records and audits the registered manager took immediate action to address this. We judged there had been no impact on people.

We had received information that there were not enough staff to support people and staff did not have the time to allow for people to make choices about their activities. We did not substantiate these concerns. There were enough staff to meet people's needs and ensure their safety. Some people chose to go out into the community. One person told us, “I do like to go out. So long as the staff know there is no problem”. Appropriate recruitment procedures ensured prospective staff were suitable to work in the home.

Prior to the inspection we had received concerns that the service was not being governed well and restrictions were in place for people to make choices. We found evidence of the provider visiting the service regularly, speaking with all stakeholders to allay any concerns regarding the change of provider. The registered manager told us they spoke with the provider daily and resources were being made available to make changes or improvements in the home. Staff told us they were happy with the registered manager and provider. They told us, "It's been a big change, but I think it will be OK" and "I like the way the [providers name] has made the changes. They talk things through with us. We have contact if we need to speak with [providers name]".

Records of people's care were individualised and detailed their needs and preferences. Risks were identified and staff had guidance to help them support people to reduce the risk of avoidable harm. Some files contained a large amount of dated information and we advised the registered manager to address this as those records were difficult to navigate. They acted on this and told us it was anticipated the service will be moving to an electronic care planning system in the near future.

There was a relaxed and friendly atmosphere at the service. People made choices about where and how to spend their time. People told us they were happy with the care they received and believed the service was a safe place to live. People were positive about staff, and their caring attitude, and told us they were treated with kindness and compassion.

Where people were unable to tell us about their experiences we observed they were relaxed and at ease with staff. People’s behaviour and body language showed that they felt cared for by staff.

Staff told us that they had received the training they needed to meet people’s needs safely and effectively. The registered manager maintained oversight of training to ensure staff had the necessary training, knowledge and skills to provide consistent care.

People were supported to access healthcare services, staff recognised changes in people's health, and sought professional advice appropriately.

The building was clean, and there were appropriate procedures to ensure any infection control risks were minimised. The environment was safe, and people had access to equipment where needed.

People and their families were given information about how to complain. The registered manager and staff knew people well and worked together to help ensure people received a good service. People and staff told us the registered manager and the provider were approachable and listened when any concerns or ideas were raised.

For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk

Rating at last inspection and update

This service was registered with us on 7 July 2022 and this is the first inspection.

The last rating for the service under the previous provider was good, published on 14 December 2019.

Why we inspected

The inspection was prompted in part due to concerns received about governance, medicines, staffing and people’s choices. A decision was made for us to inspect and examine those risks.

We looked at infection prevention and control measures under the Safe key question. We look at this in all care home inspections even if no concerns or risks have been identified. This is to provide assurance that the service can respond to COVID-19 and other infection outbreaks effectively.

Follow up

We will continue to monitor intelligence we receive about the service until we return to visit as per our re-inspection programme. If any concerning information is received we may inspect sooner.