We carried out a review of the data available to us about The Farmhouse on 6 July 2023. We have not found evidence that we need to carry out an inspection or reassess our rating at this stage.
This could change at any time if we receive new information. We will continue to monitor data about this service.
If you have concerns about The Farmhouse, you can give feedback on this service.
The Farmhouse is a residential care home providing accommodation and care to six people with a learning disability and/or autism at the time of the inspection. The service can support up to eight people.
The Farmhouse is an adapted house situated on a campus style service in rural Lincolnshire. There are several other houses located on the same site and a shared administration office. People living at The Farmhouse have their own room and access to a range of shared facilities. They can also use a range of facilities in the grounds of the complex.
The service follows the principles and values that underpin Registering the Right Support and other best practice guidance. This ensures that people who use the service can live as full a life as possible and achieve the best possible outcomes. The principles reflect the need for people with learning disabilities and/or autism to live meaningful lives that include control, choice, and independence. People using the service receive planned and co-ordinated person-centred support that is appropriate and inclusive for them
People’s experience of using this service and what we found
Staff received supervision and appraisal; however, they were not always up to date with their training requirements. Following the inspection the registered manager took immediate action to expedite the action plan they had in place to address this.
Staff were kind and caring in their approach and people were relaxed and happy in their company. Staff were very knowledgeable about the needs and preferences of the people they supported; they were skilled at interpreting people’s wishes when they were not able to express themselves clearly verbally.
Where people received support with their meals, staff did so effectively and in line with dietary requirements. People had access to ongoing healthcare support and staff liaised effectively with other services to achieve this.
Staff assessed risks to people’s health and safety and had the knowledge to protect people from avoidable harm and abuse. Relatives felt their family members were safe at the service. Safe processes were in place for the management of people’s medicines. Staffing levels were planned to meet people’s care and support needs.
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.
The service applied the principles and values of Registering the Right Support and other best practice guidance. The outcomes for people using the service reflected the principles and values of Registering the Right Support by promoting choice and control, independence and inclusion. People's support focused on them having as many opportunities as possible for them to gain new skills and become more independent.
Staff were clear about their roles and responsibilities. They felt well supported by the registered manager and the management team. They were committed to improving the service provided and to increasing the involvement of people using the service and independent organisations to obtain feedback and implement improvements.
For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk
Rating at last inspection
The last rating for this service was Good (published 25 October 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.
The Farmhouse is registered to provide accommodation and care for eight people who have a learning disability. At the time of our inspection visit there were eight people living in the service.
The service was run by a company. There was a registered manager in post. 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 2008 and associated regulations about how the service is run. In this report when we speak about both the company who ran the service and the registered manager we refer to them as being, ‘the registered persons’.
At the last inspection on 28 October 2014 the service was rated as being, ‘Good’.
At this inspection we found the service remained, ‘Good’.
Care staff knew how to keep people safe from the risk of abuse including financial mistreatment. People had been supported to take reasonable risks while also being helped to avoid preventable accidents. Medicines were safely managed. There were enough care staff on duty and background checks had been completed before new care staff had been appointed.
Care staff had been given training and they knew how to care for people in the right way. People were supported to contribute to making their own meals and they were helped to eat and drink enough. In addition, the registered persons had ensured that people received all of the healthcare assistance they needed.
People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and care staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible. Policies and systems in the service supported this practice.
People were treated with compassion and respect. Care staff recognised people’s right to privacy and promoted their dignity. People had been supported to access independent lay advocates and confidential information was kept private.
Care staff had involved people and their relatives in making decisions about the care that was provided. People had been supported to be as independent as possible and they were given reassurance if they became distressed. In addition, they had been helped to pursue a wide range of hobbies and interests. There were arrangements for quickly and fairly resolving complaints.
People had been consulted about the development of their home and quality checks had been completed. Good team working was promoted and care staff had been enabled to speak out if they had any concerns.
Further information is in the detailed findings below.
We inspected The Farmhouse on 28 October 2014. The inspection was unannounced. The last inspection took place on 5 April 2011 during which we found there were no breaches in the regulations.
The Farmhouse provides care and support for up to eight people who experience learning disabilities and needs within the autistic spectrum. It forms part of a larger complex of homes provided by Autism Care (UK) Limited, in the Scopwick area of Lincolnshire. Eight people lived at the home at the time of our inspection.
There was a registered manager in post at the time of the inspection. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission (CQC) 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 2008 and associated Regulations about how the service is run.
CQC is required by law to monitor the operation of the Mental Capacity Act, 2005 Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS) and to report on what we find. DoLS are in place to protect people where they do not have capacity to make decisions and where it is considered necessary to restrict their freedom in some way, usually to protect themselves or others. At the time of the inspection seven people who used the service had their freedom restricted and the provider had acted in accordance with the Mental Capacity Act 2005, DoLS.
People felt happy, comfortable and safe living in The Farmhouse.
People were involved in planning and reviewing their support wherever they were able to be. There were systems in place to protect their rights when they were unable to make a decision about their support. They could be assured their safety needs were met because there were clear systems in place for assessing and monitoring risk and staff were knowledgeable about those systems.
People were supported by staff who were well trained, supported and knowledgeable about their preferred lifestyles. Staff were aware of how to raise any concerns on behalf of the people they supported and felt comfortable and supported to do so.
People’s wishes, preferences and needs were responded to individually. We saw examples throughout our inspection of warm, respectful and dignified interactions between people and the staff who supported them. People were encouraged and supported to pursue the activities, hobbies and interests that had meaning for them. They also benefitted from good access to healthcare services and nutritional arrangements.
There was an open and supportive culture within the home which allowed every one to take part in the planning and delivery of services. There was a monitoring system in place which used a variety of ways to gather information about the quality of the services provided. The information was used by the provider, manager and staff to learn lessons and make improvements which would enhance people’s experience of the support provided.
Before we undertook our visit we reviewed all of the information we had about the service. During our visit we observed the support people received and spoke with staff about the work they did.
Throughout our visit we observed people were supported in a caring, respectful and dignified way. Staff responded to each person's way of communicating their needs, wishes and choices.
We found staff had been given the right amount of training and support which helped them understand peoples' complex needs. Staff told us they were confident in carrying out their roles.
People were provided with a variety of different food and drink that met their individual needs.
We looked at the statement of purpose and found this reflected the current service provision. Overall we found the service was well led and the home owner and manager had a system in place to respond to any concerns or complaints they received.
We saw that people who lived in the home received individualised care and support, from staff that were knowledgeable about their needs, wishes and preferences.
Staff clearly understood each person's way of communicating their needs and wishes. They supported them to make choices and decisions about their lifestyles wherever they could do so.
They live in clean and comfortable surroundings, and are able to personalise the surroundings with things that they like.