Archived: Inglewood

Inglewood is a residential care home providing personal care for up to 40 people aged 65 and over. At the time of the inspection there were 28 people living or staying at the home.

The home has been adapted into four distinct units, one of which provides six NHS interim places and two respite places for people discharged from hospital who need arrangements put in place before returning home. The other three units provide permanent places for older people or people living with dementia.

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

Inglewood continued to provide an outstanding service. People and their relatives said the service was exceptionally caring and personalised. People had excellent support to lead the lives they wanted. Relatives said people’s well-being had “flourished” since moving there.

People continued to be treated with the utmost dignity, respect and compassion throughout their time in the home. People's abilities and choices were highly valued and staff worked hard to support people to live as independently as possible.

People and relatives were extremely positive about the way the service was run and had excellent relationships with the registered manager and staff. They described the care as “beyond outstanding”. Staff said they felt very valued and the home was like a “family”. The registered manager and staff continued to be fully commitment to providing high-quality, person-centred care.

The service had superb links with local healthcare services which benefitted people who lived there. The home was also a highly respected resource in the local community and was fully involved in local initiatives and social clubs.

People felt safe and comfortable with staff. Staff knew how to report any concerns and said these would be acted upon. The home was bright, warm and clean.

There were enough staff to support people and each day they were allocated to one of the four units. Staff responded quickly to calls for assistance. Staff were very knowledgeable about each person and how they wanted to be supported.

People’s needs were assessed to make sure their care could be provided by this service. Staff said they had good training and support to carry out their roles.

People said the meals were good and there were plenty of choices. Staff worked very closely with other care professionals to support people’s health needs. Staff provided sensitive and compassionate care to people when they reached the end stages of their lives.

People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff assisted them in the least restrictive way possible and in their best interests; the policies and systems in the service upheld this practice.

People received individualised support that matched to their personal preferences. There was a good range of activities and engagement in the local community to maintain people's social inclusion.

Rating at last inspection

The last rating for this service was outstanding (published 14 February 2020).

Why we inspected

We undertook this inspection as part of a random selection of services rated Good and Outstanding to test the reliability of our new monitoring approach.

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.

You can read the report from our last comprehensive inspection, by selecting the ‘all reports’ link for Inglewood on our website at www.cqc.org.uk.

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.

We found the following examples of good practice.

¿ The provider had good practices to prevent the spread of infection by visitors. Only essential visitors were allowed and they were screened for temperature and symptoms.

¿ The provider made sure staff had enough personal protective equipment (PPE) such as gloves, aprons and masks. Staff knew when to wear these to keep people safe.

¿ There was PPE at frequent places throughout the home. The home was divided into four distinct units with PPE stations at each crossing point.

¿ Staff had received appropriate infection prevention and control training. The provider made sure staff were aware of the latest national and local guidance about infection control measures.

¿ The premises were very clean and well-ventilated. Additional cleaning was taking place including frequently touched surfaces, such as handrails, and deep cleaning of rooms.

¿ Staff and residents had regular testing for Covid-19. Staff said the registered manager was very supportive of people and staffs’ emotional well-being.

Inglewood is a residential care home for up to 40 older people operated by Cumbria County Council. The home had three units for permanent residents including a specialist unit for people living with dementia. The fourth unit was for people in need of rehabilitation. There were twenty-eight people in the home during the inspection. People had single bedrooms, some with ensuite facilities. There were suitable shared facilities and a pleasant garden. The home does not provide nursing care.

People’s experience of using this service

Inglewood is an exceptionally well-led service with a commitment to quality. The manager had managed the home through a time of change, maintaining and enhancing the team’s commitment to a service that engaged fully with people. She had established a successful service for rehabilitation and continued to provide meaningful person-centred activities. Her position is in the process of ratification and her registration is underway.

The service provided an outstandingly caring approach where the staff team put the needs of people first and where person-centred care was fundamental. The care extended to the wider family and sensitive care delivery was an accepted part of the daily life of the home. People were treated with the utmost dignity, respect and compassion throughout their time in the home. Staff worked hard to support people to live as independently as possible. People’s needs, and wishes were recognised and met in an exceptional way.

The service was very much a hub of the local community, being involved in local initiatives like the stroke club and the local bowling club. End of life care was exceptional, and families felt they were supported at this time. Activities were outstanding in their far reaching and varied content. People told us they were always busy and that they had participated in activities that had enhanced their lives. One person said, “I have been too staid but now I am joining everything.”

People told us they felt very safe. Staff understood their responsibilities in protecting people from harm and abuse. New members of staff had been suitably vetted. Accidents and incidents were responded to appropriately. Staffing arrangements ensured that people got the best care possible.

Staff had an in-depth and far reaching understanding of individual needs and wishes. The staff team had suitable training and experience in their different roles. Good attention was paid to health needs and people had their nutritional needs met well. The staff team were aware of their responsibilities under the Mental Capacity Act 2005. People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives.

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

Rating at last inspection: Outstanding (Published 27 June 2017).

Why we inspected:

This inspection was part of our scheduled plan of visiting services to check the safety and quality of care people received.

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.

Inglewood is a residential home for up to 40 people. On the day of our visit there were 28 people living in the home. The home cares for older adults, some of whom may be living with dementia. The home is one of the services operated by Cumbria Care, the in-house provider for Cumbria County Council.

The property is a two storey building with a passenger lift to assist people to access the accommodation on the first floor. People live in small units, each with a sitting and dining area. One unit specialises in providing care for people living with dementia.

The service had 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 and associated Regulations about how the service is run.

The feedback we received from people living in the home was excellent; they expressed great satisfaction with the caring attitude and the support received. People were all very enthusiastic about how the way in which care was given made a real difference to their lives. One person told us, “There’s never a dull moment, everything’s on offer here if you want it. We’ve had visiting donkeys, owls, rabbits! We go out for meals, trips to the garden centre, you name it. We’ve done it!”

The home had a very strong leadership team who promoted clear values and an open culture. The registered manager demonstrated a very good understanding of the importance of effective quality assurance systems in delivering a high quality service. We found the home to be very well run in order to meet the needs of each individual living in the home and their views were highly valued and acted upon.

The culture of the service was positive, clearly person centred and inclusive. People, relatives and professionals consistently gave us positive feedback about how the home was personalised to meet people's individual needs. One person living in the home told us, “I cannot praise the management and staff highly enough. From the minute I arrived they couldn’t do enough for me.”

People and relatives said staff were exceptionally kind and caring. One relative told us, “My [family member] is very happy and cared for by wonderful people. I cannot praise the Inglewood family highly enough. They go above and beyond their remits. A special place indeed.” Another relative said, “An exceptional service providing love and care.”

A real feature of the home was how engaged and in charge people were made to feel. One person said, “Oh yes I’m definitely in control. I have a free reign to live my life here.” A visiting social care professional told us, “Inglewood is home like in how it looks and how it behaves.”

The home had become a community resource and hub for a wide range of community groups and this was a really positive feature for those living in the home. One person told us that this helped them to keep active and part of the local community. People joined in lots of activities and groups, such as a knitting group, The Stroke Club, a cake decorating club and a club for people with disabilities to meet and socialise.

Staff were very highly motivated and proud of the service. They were well trained, supervised and supported for their individual roles. The care and support offered to people living with dementia was exemplary with staff receiving training from Sterling University on current good practice in this field. Staff were skilful in translating this expertise in a way that was both professional and extremely caring.

People were protected as staff had received training about safeguarding and knew how to respond to any allegation of abuse. Thorough vetting checks were carried out on new staff to make sure they were suitable to work with people who needed care and support.

We found the home to be meeting the requirements of the Mental Capacity Act 2005 and Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS). People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible; the policies and systems in the service supported this practice.

People had access to health care professionals to make sure they received appropriate care and treatment. Staff followed advice given by professionals to make sure people received the care they needed. People were supported as appropriate to receive their medicines safely from staff assessed as competent to do so.

People also received exemplary end of life care at the home that was based on national best practice guidance and close links had been forged with health professionals to ensure continuity of care and treatment. People were treated with dignity, kept peaceful, and staff supported families and those that mattered to the person to spend quality time with them.

Thorough risk assessments were in place to promote people’s independence. These accurately identified current risks to the person in order to minimise or appropriately manage those risks. The emphasis of the home was to safely support people to keep as much independence as possible. A wide range of group and individual activities and entertainment were available. People were very well supported to carry on a hobby or to take up new interests.

Menus were very varied and a choice was offered at each mealtimes. Staff supported people who required help to eat and drink and special diets were well catered for. People told us the food was home cooked and of a high quality.

People had a range of ways to give their views about the service and to influence how the home was run. One relative also told us, “My [family member] is a changed person since residing at Inglewood. From the age of 88 she started a new career and is part of the 'recruitment team'. I've gone to visit only to be told that she was busy interviewing all day!”

Infection control measures in the home were good. The staff team had been suitably trained and had access to personal protective equipment. The home was kept clean and orderly while still keeping a homely feel. One person told us, “It’s always spotless.”