Carleton House Care Home

Updated 26 May 2021

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.

As part of CQC’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic we are looking at the preparedness of care homes in relation to infection prevention and control. This was a targeted inspection looking at the infection control and prevention measures the provider has in place.

This inspection took place on 27 April 2021 and was announced.

Updated 26 May 2021

About the service

Carleton House Care Home is a residential care home providing personal and nursing care to 20 people aged 65 and over at the time of the inspection. The service can support up to 27 people.

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

We have made a recommendation that the provider seeks advice and guidance on the development of formal quality monitoring processes. Care plans and other records relating to people's care also required further work as they did not always provide detailed information for staff on how to support people, this included information people’s wishes and preferences, Whilst further work was required in this area there was no impact on the quality of the service provided. Everyone we spoke with felt the service delivered a person centred service of good quality. There was a positive, open and homely culture and atmosphere. People, relatives, and staff were engaged and listened to. The management team and provider were committed to developing the service and worked with other external professionals to maintain and improve upon the quality of the service delivered.

People were supported to stay safe. Risks to people, including from the environment, were assessed and managed. Medicines were managed safely and people received them as prescribed. There was a good standard of cleanliness in the home and staff took action to reduce the risk of the spread of infections. People were supported by a consistent and stable staff group, there were enough staff to meet people’s needs.

People were supported by competent staff who understood their needs. Staff applied best practice guidance to achieve good outcomes for people using the service. People were supported to eat and drink enough. Staff took action to ensure the meals offered met people’s needs and preferences. People were supported to look after their health needs, this included staff working in collaboration with health care professionals. 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.

People were supported by kind and caring staff who knew them well. People were respected as individuals. People were supported to express their views and make decisions regarding their support. Staff treated people respectfully and supported their dignity.

People were provided with person centred care that met their needs and preferences. Staff encouraged people to engage in their hobbies and interests. People were supported to maintain relationships that were important to them. Communication with relatives was good and relatives, where appropriate, felt involved and consulted in the care provided. Regular planned activities in the home were provided to people. People and their relatives were supported sensitively and compassionately when people were at the end of their lives. The service had not received any complaints but people and relatives felt comfortable and able to discuss any concerns they had with the management team.

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 4 July 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.