Archived: London Borough of Greenwich - 75 Ashburnham Grove

There was a registered manager in post. 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. However, currently a new manager was in day to day management of this service.

People who used the service and their relatives told us they felt safe and that staff treated them well. The service had clear procedures to support staff to recognise and respond to abuse. The new manager and staff completed safeguarding training. Staff completed risk assessments for every person who used the service which were up to date and included detailed guidance to reduce risks. There was an effective system to manage accidents and incidents, and to prevent them happening again. The service had arrangements in place to deal with emergencies. The service carried out comprehensive background checks of staff before they started working and there were enough staff on duty to support to people when required. Staff supported people to take their medicines safely.

The service provided training, and supported staff through regular supervision and an annual appraisal of their performance to help them undertake their role. Staff prepared, reviewed, and updated care plans for every person. The care plans were person centred and reflected people’s current needs.

The provider ensured the service complied with the requirements of the Mental Capacity Act 2005 (MCA) and Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS) were followed.

Staff assessed people’s nutritional needs and supported them to have a balanced diet. Staff also supported people to access the healthcare services they required and monitored their healthcare appointments.

People and their relatives where appropriate, were involved in the assessment, planning and review of their care. Staff considered people’s choices, health and social care needs, and their general wellbeing. Staff supported people in a way which was kind, respectful and encouraged to maintain their independence. Staff also protected people’s privacy and dignity.

Staff supported people to take part in a range of activities in support of their need for social interaction and stimulation. The service had a clear policy and procedure about managing complaints. People and their relatives knew how to complain and told us they would do so if necessary.

There was a positive culture at the home where people felt included and consulted. Staff felt supported by the manager. The provider sought the views of people who used the service to help drive improvements. The provider also had effective systems in place to assess and monitor the quality of services people received, and to make improvements where required. Staff used the results of audits to identify how improvements could be made to the service.

We found that people's care and support needs were assessed and regularly reviewed. Staff understood people's care needs and knew how to protect them from risk and harm. However, some of the daily care records we saw were not completed as per care plan.

We found people were asked for their consent and the provider acted in accordance with their wishes. Care and treatment was mostly planned but was not always delivered in a way that was intended to ensure people's safety and welfare. People who use the service were protected from the risk of abuse and staff understood people's care needs and knew how to protect them from risk and harm. We found staff had followed correct procedures of medication and signed medication administration records (MAR) to show that people had taken their medication. We saw there were enough qualified, skilled and experienced staff to meet people's needs.

Some people who had communication difficulties told us by using gestures and sign language that staff behaved appropriately when providing care and support to them and were friendly and polite.