Archived: Melton Court

Updated 11 November 2016

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

The inspection took place on 29 September 2016 and was undertaken by a sole inspector. We gave notice three days beforehand to ensure the registered manager would be available.

Prior to the inspection we reviewed the information we held about the service. This included questionnaires returned by some people who used the service. In addition, we received a ‘provider information return’ (PIR) from the service earlier in 2016. A PIR is a form that asks the provider to give some key information about the service, what the service does well and improvements they plan to make.

During the inspection we visited two people who received a personal care service and one of their relatives, who also received a housekeeping service. We also spoke with the member of staff who provided most of the personal care and with the registered manager. We reviewed two people’s care records, two staff files and records relating to the management of the service, such as quality assurance questionnaires, accident and incident forms and policies.

Updated 11 November 2016

This comprehensive inspection took place on 29 September 2016. We gave notice three days beforehand to ensure the registered manager would be available. We last inspected the service in December 2013 and found that it was meeting the regulations.

Melton Court provides housekeeping services, which CQC does not regulate, to the owners of the flats there. Six of these owners also receive personal care in their flats, such as assistance with showering and bathing. We inspected this personal care service only.

The registered manager responsible for the personal care service had worked at Melton Court for a number of years. 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.

People were pleased with the service they received. They told us staff knew them well, had a good understanding of the care they needed and provided this effectively, in an unhurried manner. Comments included: “The whole place makes us feel safe”, “They are experienced, they really know what needs doing” and “We can’t sing its praises enough – everybody’s so caring”. People told us that staff arrived when expected and stayed for the right length of time.

Some people were assisted with prescribed medicines, including skin creams. There was a safe system for administering and recording medicines, including regular staff training, to ensure that people had their medicines as prescribed.

Staff had the right skills and knowledge to provide people’s care. Safe recruitment procedures ensured that people were supported by staff with the appropriate experience and character to work in a caring role with older people. The staff had worked in the service for several years. They had regular refresher training in key topics; this was mostly provided through distance learning. They were also supported through supervision meetings with a line manager, at which they discussed their work and any training needs they had.

Quality assurance systems were in place to monitor the quality of service being provided. Managers visited people regularly to discuss their experience of the service, as well as having informal ad hoc conversations with them. Staff had spot checks periodically, where managers observed them at work and checked they were following the correct procedures. There was also an annual quality assurance survey sent out to people who used the service. The feedback from the last survey in January 2016 had been positive. Where people had expressed any uncertainty about aspects of the service, such as how best to contact the office, this had been followed up. There had been no complaints about the service since our last inspection.