Sovereign House

Updated 18 June 2025

Date of Assessment: 2 July 2025 to 8 July 2025.

The service is a nursing home providing nursing and personal care support to older people and younger adults who may be living with dementia. Processes were in place to help keep people safe and protect them from harm. Staff understood risks associated with people’s care, but some care records showed effective monitoring did not always take place as required. Environmental and equipment checks took place regularly to support people’s needs and ensure they were kept safe. Staffing arrangements were regularly checked to make sure they were sufficient to support people’s needs, but some staff felt pressured to complete all of their duties. Staff had access to ongoing training to develop their skills. The provider had governance systems to monitor the quality of the service and support any required learning amongst staff. Managers made sure staff attended regular supervision meetings to support their needs and maintain the quality of the service. Staff administered medicines as prescribed to support people’s healthcare needs. Cleaning of the home took place regularly and systems in place supported infection prevention and control.

At our last inspection, the rating for this service was requires improvement (published 10 January 2023) and there were breaches of regulation in relation to safe care and treatment and good governance. The provider completed an action plan after the last inspection to show what they would do and by when to improve. We undertook this inspection to check improvements had been made and to confirm they now met legal requirements. At this inspection we found the provider had made the necessary improvements and were no longer in breach of the regulations. Overall, improvements had been made to the safety of the service including risk management, medicines and infection control. There was also improved oversight of the service by the management team.

Updated 18 June 2025

People and/or their family members were involved in the assessment of people’s needs to ensure these could be met at the home. Assessments considered people’s individual communication needs as well as personal and healthcare needs. People’s care was regularly reviewed and changes made as needed. Sometimes records used to monitor peoples care failed to show checks were carried out as required and in a timely way to keep people safe. People’s privacy and dignity was respected by staff. People had enough to eat and drink to stay healthy and had a choice of meals. Special diets were made available to those who required them. People had access to some activities of interest to them to stay physically and mentally active. People felt at ease to raise any concerns if they needed to and were confident action would be taken and improvements made. People knew staff well. Records of people’s needs were shared (as appropriate) with other agencies to support the best outcomes and ensure the safe transition of people when moving services or attending hospital appointments. People told us staff understood their care and treatment needs, and advised they were asked for their consent before care was provided. People spoke positively of living at the home and of the staff including management staff. People said they were treated with patience and respect. One person told us, “I do feel safe it’s a good environment and the people are friendly.” People made daily living choices related to their care and support, and were encouraged to maintain relationships with family and friends. Staff worked to reduce health and care inequalities through training and feedback.