Archived: Comfort Call - Hopwood Court

Updated 24 May 2017

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 the 11 April, 2017 and was carried out by one adult social care inspector. The provider was given 48 hours’ notice because the person overseeing the service held a similar position at another service and we needed them to be present to assist with the inspection.

Before the inspection we reviewed information we held about the service. This included the statutory notifications the CQC had received from the provider. Notifications are changes, events or incidents that the provider is legally obliged to send to us without delay.

We sought feedback from Oldham Healthwatch, Oldham’s Local Authority quality assurance and Safeguarding team and Oldham’s Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG). We reviewed the information we received during our inspection.

During our visit we spoke with the care coordinator, the branch manager for Comfort Call Oldham, the area manager for City and County Healthcare Group which is the parent company, four care staff and three people who used the service. Subsequent to our inspection site visit we spoke with four relatives on the telephone to get their opinion of the care that was provided.

As part of the inspection we reviewed three peoples’ care records, which included their care plans and risk assessments. We also reviewed other information about the service, including records of training and supervision, three staff personnel files and the complaints records.

Updated 24 May 2017

This inspection took place on the 11th April, 2017 and was announced.

Comfort Call Hopwood Court provides ‘Extra Care Housing’. Extra Care Housing supports people to live independently in their own homes within a community setting. Hopwood Court has 40 self-contained apartments, a number of communal spaces, a restaurant and a large garden. The maintenance of the building and grounds is managed by Housing & Care 21. This is a not-for-profit organisation which manages a number of sheltered and extra care housing schemes on behalf of Oldham Council. Care and support services at Hopwood Court are provided by a team of on-site care staff who are part of the ‘Comfort Call’ organisation. Day-to-day management of the building is carried out by a ‘court manager’. Overnight there is a concierge who looks after the building and responds to any emergency calls from people living there. Hopwood Court was originally built as sheltered accommodation and some of the tenants currently living there moved into Hopwood Court when it was sheltered accommodation and do not receive care and support from the on-site care team. Since the building was renovated to provide Extra Care Housing, all new residents can only move into Hopwood Court if they are in receipt of a care package provided by the on-site care team. At the time of our inspection 15 people living at Hopwood Court were receiving care and support.

At the time of our inspection the service did not have a registered manager. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the CQC to manage the service. Like registered providers, they are ‘registered persons’. Registered persons have legal responsibility for meeting the requirements of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 and associated Regulations about how the service is run. During our inspection we were told that a person was in the process of applying to the Care Quality Commission (CQC) to become the registered manager of this service and two other associated services, however the application process was not yet complete.

People who used the service and their relatives told us they felt safe and training records we viewed indicated that staff had received training in safeguarding vulnerable adults. Recruitment checks had been carried out on new staff to ensure they were suitable to work with vulnerable people.

Suitable arrangements were in place for the prevention and control of infection and there was an adequate supply of personal protective equipment (PPE) such as gloves and aprons.

Staff had undertaken a variety of training which equipped them with the skills and knowledge required for their roles. Staff received regular supervision.

The service was working within the principles of the Mental Capacity Act (2005). Staff sought consent before undertaking care and support.

People we spoke with were complimentary about the staff and were happy with the care and support they received from them. Care plans were detailed and were reviewed regularly to ensure they contained up-to-date information to guide staff.

There was a complaints procedure in place, although no recent complaints had been received. Accidents and incidents were recorded and investigated thoroughly.

There were a range of policies available to guide staff in their work. Regular staff meetings were held to discuss issues around the service and provide feedback to staff. There were systems in place, such as audits, to monitor the quality and standard of service provided.