Streets Meadow

Updated 5 November 2019

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. We checked whether the provider was meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Act. We looked at the overall quality of the service and provided a rating for the service under the Care Act 2014.

Inspection team

The inspection was carried out by two inspectors and an Expert by Experience on day one.

An Expert by Experience is a person who has personal experience of using or caring for someone who uses this type of care service. Day two of the inspection was carried out by one inspector.

Service and service type

Streets Meadow is a ‘care home’. People in care homes receive accommodation and nursing or personal care as single package under one contractual agreement. CQC regulates both the premises and the care provided, and both were looked at during this inspection.

The service had a manager registered with the Care Quality Commission. This means that they and the provider are legally responsible for how the service is run and for the quality and safety of the care provided.

Notice of inspection

This inspection was unannounced.

What we did before the inspection

We reviewed information we had received about the service since the last inspection. We sought feedback from the local authority and professionals who work with the service. We used the information the provider sent us in the provider information return. This is information providers are required to send us with key information about their service, what they do well, and improvements they plan to make. This information helps support our inspections. We used all of this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection-

We spoke with 16 people who used the service and six relatives about their experience of the care provided. We spoke with 13 members of staff including the registered manager, deputy manager, a unit manager, healthcare assistants, laundry and domestic staff, activities officer and assistant cooks. We used the Short Observational Framework for Inspection (SOFI). SOFI is a way of observing care to help us understand the experience of people who could not talk with us.

We reviewed a range of records. This included four people’s care records and multiple medication records. We looked at five staff files in relation to recruitment and staff supervision. A variety of records relating to the management of the service, including policies and procedures were reviewed.

After the inspection

We continued to seek clarification from the provider to validate evidence found. We looked at oral health support and quality assurance records. We spoke with two professionals who have regular contact with the service.

Updated 5 November 2019

About the service

Streets Meadow provides accommodation and personal care for up to 60 people. There were 57 people living there at the time of our inspection. The service is located in Wimborne and is a large detached building with bedrooms on both the ground and first floors.

All of the bedrooms have their own en suite bathrooms and there are several fully accessible showers and assisted bathrooms available for people. There is lift access to the first floor of the home. The home is divided into four separate units which each have 15 bedrooms, a lounge,

dining room and small kitchen area. People have access to a level garden to the rear of the home and use of a sensory garden, sensory room and sensory bathroom.

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

People felt safe living at Streets Meadow. Relatives were confident their family members were being looked after properly. Staff understood how to keep people safe from harm or abuse and knew how to raise concerns if they observed or heard about poor or abusive practice. Staff were confident they would be listened to by the management and appropriate action taken if they raised concerns.

People were supported to maintain their health and well-being via timely referral to relevant health care services such as GPs, district nurses and specialist dentists. Good oral health support was increasingly emphasised and seen as beneficial to people’s dignity, dietary intake and weight.

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.

People had the opportunity to participate in a range of group and 1:1 activities in the home and local community which were tailored to their interests and abilities.

The benefits of regular contact with family and friends was recognised and encouraged. Relatives told us they were made to feel welcome when visiting, were involved in decisions about their family member’s care and had got to know staff well.

Regular feedback was sought from people, relatives, staff and professionals with this used to determine what the home was doing well and what could be improved.

The management understood the importance of developing and maintaining good working relationships with other organisations. This included a community dementia alliance and a university. These connections helped the home discover and introduce new ways of supporting people with dementia and other life limiting conditions to stay well and thrive.

Rating at last inspection

The last rating for this service was Good (published 13 April 2017).

Why we inspected

This was a planned inspection based on the previous rating.

Follow up

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

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