Archived: Widnes Hall

Widnes Hall is a residential care home providing personal and nursing care to 63 people aged 65 and over at the time of the inspection. The service can support up to 68 people.

Widnes Hall accommodates people across four separate units, each of which has separate adapted facilities. Two of the units specialise in providing care to people living with dementia.

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

Social interaction and activities were considered to be an important part in people’s day to day lives. Activity champions had an incredible passion for ensuring people were able to pursue their interests and hobbies, as well as taking part in new experiences. People had returned to their place of work and visited work related places, such as the local rugby club and aircraft museum.

The variety of activities provided was outstanding. There were many excellent examples of person-centred activities taking place, both in and out of the home, with holidays and activities with other care homes, encouraging new experiences and opportunities for new friendships. People said, “They do a lot of activities here, both inside and outside the home” and “The staff seem to be really good at helping people out and ensuring that no one is forgotten”.

People spoke highly of the care they received from staff who knew them very well. Staff were described as caring and people said they were treated as individuals with kindness and compassion and were encouraged to retain their independence. A person told us, “In my view this home is perfect, it is just a very caring place.”

The leadership of the service promoted a positive culture that was person-centred and inclusive. We received positive feedback about the quality and safety of care people received and the overall management of the service from people and their relatives. The registered manager and the staff team showed a desire to improve the service provided and in turn the quality of life experiences for the people living at Widnes Hall. People and staff had experienced a positive change in the home since the arrival of the new registered manager.

People said they felt safe living at Widnes Hall. There were enough staff to support people when they needed assistance. People received their medicines at the times they needed them and had ready access to healthcare professionals as and when required. The environment was regularly checked and well maintained.

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 encouraged to provide their views and opinions about the home and care provided through meetings and questionnaires; these helped to drive continuous improvements. The home completed a range of audits and quality monitoring processes to help support this process.

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 25 August 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.

This was the first inspection of this service since the provider had changed to Anchor Care Homes Limited.

Widnes Hall is a care home which provides care and support for a maximum of 68 people. The accommodation is provided in four separate units, two at ground floor level with two more units on the first floor. Two units provide care and support for up to 36 people who are living with dementia. The other two units provide accommodation for up to 32 people who need residential care and support. The home has car parking facilities and large well maintained garden areas. The home is situated in Ditton and is approximately one mile from the centre of Widnes. The two-storey property is purpose built and is close to shops, public transport and other local amenities. 65 people were living in the home at the time of our visit.

Widnes Hall has a registered manager in post. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission 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.

The registered manager was present during the two days of our inspection and was supported by the deputy manager on the second day of our inspection. The registered manager was open and transparent throughout the inspection process and was seen to interact with people using the service and staff in a caring and helpful manner.

We spent time talking with people and undertaking observations within the home and noted that people received care and support in a timely manner, which was also responsive to their individual needs. We noted that staff communicated and engaged with people in a kind, friendly and compassionate manner and that people were encouraged to maintain their independence and to follow their preferred daily routines and lifestyle.

We saw that staff were recruited safely, appropriately trained and supported. They had the skills, knowledge and experience required to support people with their care. Staffing levels were observed to be sufficient to meet the needs of the people living in the home.

People living in the home and their relatives confirmed that staff were kind, patient and knew them and their needs well.

A programme of induction and on-going training had been developed for staff to access via e-learning and face to face learning methods. Staff also had access to recognised qualifications in health and social care. This helped to ensure people using the service were supported by competent staff. Additional systems of support such as supervisions, daily handovers and team meetings were also in place.

We received one negative comment about staffing levels. However all of our observations, our examination of staff rotas and records of peoples dependency needs together with discussions with staff confirmed that there were sufficient numbers of staff to meet the needs of the people living in the service.

We saw that the service had a safeguarding procedure in place. This was designed to ensure that any potential safeguarding incidents were dealt with openly so that people were protected from harm.

The service had a range of policies and procedures which helped staff refer to good practice and included guidance on the Mental Capacity Act 2005. Staff evidenced good knowledge in this area. This meant that the staff members were aware of people's rights to make their own decisions.

The food in the home was varied and well-presented and we received positive comments about the choices that people were offered and the standard of the food.

People’s care plans were person centred and reviewed regularly. This meant staff knew if any changes in care provision had been made and helped to ensure that people’s needs continued to be met.

There was a variety of activities and outings from the home which people told us they enjoyed. This ensured they were not socially isolated.

There was a complaints policy in place and people knew who they could speak to if they were not satisfied with their care. People told us they were confident they would receive a response.

Staff members we spoke with were positive about how the home was managed. The staff members we spoke with were satisfied about the service provision and the quality of the support they received in their job role.

The registered manager used a variety of methods to assess and monitor the quality of the service. This included regular audits of the service, staff and resident meetings, monthly newsletters, checks to check the quality of the service as well as gaining the views of the people who used the service. The provider had an internal system into which the registered manager submitted monthly information based on the audits undertaken within the home. These were sent to the company’s head office and ensured that the provider was kept informed about the quality and safety of the service.