Abbeyfield - The Beeches

Updated 22 February 2020

The inspection

We carried out this inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (the Act) as part of our regulatory functions. We checked whether the provider was meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Act. We looked at the overall quality of the service and provided a rating for the service under the Care Act 2014.

Inspection team

The inspection was carried out by an inspector and an assistant inspector.

Service and service type

This service provides care and support to people living in three ‘supported living’ settings, so that they can live as independently as possible. People’s care and housing are provided under separate contractual agreements. CQC does not regulate premises used for supported living; this inspection looked at people’s personal care and support.

The service had a manager registered with the Care Quality Commission. This means that they and the provider are legally responsible for how the service is run and for the quality and safety of the care provided.

Notice of inspection

We gave the service 48 hours’ notice of the inspection. This was because we needed to be sure that the provider or registered manager would be in the office to support the inspection.

Inspection activity started on 30 January 2020 and ended on 4 February 2020. We visited the location on 30 January 2020 and 4 February 2020.

What we did before the inspection

We reviewed information we had received about the service since the last inspection. We sought feedback from the local authority and professionals who work with the service. We used the information the provider sent us in the provider information return (PIR). This is information providers are required to send us with key information about their service, what they do well, and improvements they plan to make. This information helps support our inspections. We used all of this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

We spoke with six people who used the service and one relative about their experience of the care provided. We spoke with a professional who regularly visits the service and seven members of staff including the provider, registered manager, senior care worker, care workers, chef and activity co-ordinator.

We reviewed a range of records. This included four people’s care records and four people’s medication records. We looked at two staff files in relation to recruitment. A variety of records relating to the management of the service were reviewed.

After the inspection

We continued to seek clarification from the provider to validate evidence found. We looked at training data, meeting minutes and quality assurance records.

Updated 22 February 2020

About the service

Abbeyfield - The Beeches is a supported living service and registered to provide personal care. People using the service lived in flats which were all situated over three buildings on one site. People using the service had access to communal facilities including a lounge and dining facility. At the time of inspection 15 people were receiving personal care. Not everyone who used the supported living service received personal care. CQC only inspects where people receive personal care. This is help with tasks related to personal hygiene and eating. Where they do we also consider any wider social care provided.

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

People felt safe and received support from staff when they needed it. The service identified where people needed additional support and equipment to help keep them safe. Risks to people were usually assessed and managed although some information was out of date; the registered manager immediately reviewed and updated the relevant assessments. Staff and the management team were confident the service promoted an open culture and everyone was encouraged to report accident and incidents. Staff understood their responsibilities under safeguarding people from abuse procedures and were confident the management team would act swiftly and deal with any issues appropriately. Systems were in place to ensure medicines had been ordered, received, stored and disposed of appropriately.

Staff received appropriate induction, training and regular updates; they felt supported in their role. People received good support at meal times and had pleasant dining experiences when they chose to use the communal dining facility. 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. Systems were in place to meet people's health needs. A visiting health professional told us, “They have caring staff who know the residents well. I never have any concerns.”

Feedback from people was consistently positive. They told us they were well treated. One person said, “I’m happy with things. It’s reassuring someone is there when I need them.” People spoke with genuine warmth when sharing their experience about staff and management. Staff were confident people received good care; they understood how to promote privacy, dignity and independence.

The service delivered care that met people’s needs and preferences. New style care plans were being introduced which provided good instruction for delivering person centred care. The management team acknowledged some existing care plans were not up to date but were confident this would be addressed once the new plans were fully in place. The service offered people opportunities to engage in social and leisure activities. An activity calendar informed people of forthcoming events. One person said, “There is something every day.” People felt comfortable talking to staff and management and were confident any issues raised would be resolved.

People who used the service and staff told us the registered manager led the service well. Everyone was encouraged to share views and put forward ideas. Quality management systems were usually effective although some issues identified during the inspection had not been picked up by the provider. The management team were responsive and addressed issues promptly. They introduced measures to improve their systems and prevent the same shortfalls from recurring.

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 13 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.