We carried out a review of the data available to us about Northenden House on 6 July 2023. We have not found evidence that we need to carry out an inspection or reassess our rating at this stage.
This could change at any time if we receive new information. We will continue to monitor data about this service.
If you have concerns about Northenden House, you can give feedback on this service.
Northenden House is a care home and provides accommodation and personal care for up to 6 people who have a range of needs including autism, mental health needs and/or learning disabilities. There were 4 people using the service at the time of this inspection
People’s experience of using this service and what we found
We expect health and social care providers to guarantee people with a learning disability and autistic people respect, equality, dignity, choices and independence and good access to local communities that most people take for granted. ‘Right support, right care, right culture’ is the guidance CQC follows to make assessments and judgements about services supporting people with a learning disability and autistic people and providers must have regard to it.
Right Support
Individuals independence was promoted at the service and staff encouraged individuals to make choices around their care and activities. Care plans were routinely reviewed and updated and reflected the care given to people at the service. Risks were appropriately identified and risk assessments were robust and showed ways to manage and mitigate risks. People were supported to take part in meaningful activities including having access to the community, this included trips to the park, the shop and a farm. The staff team knew individuals needs well and told us they knew individuals triggers and are able to reduce risks through positive behaviour support.
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.
Right Care
People received kind and person-centred care. Staff responded to individuals needs well and supported them appropriately. People had access to nursing staff 24 hours a day and the service worked well with external health care professionals when needed. Medicine management at the service was safe and oversight was clear.
Right Culture
People received good quality care from the service and the service knew individuals well and responded well to them. Individuals were involved in the service delivery and also planning of their care. The service had developed “success” plans which showed individual journeys at the service and marked achievements. The service engaged those who lived and worked at the service and acted on feedback.
For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk
Rating at last inspection and update
The last rating for this service was requires improvement (published 27 May 2022).
The provider completed an action plan after the last inspection to show what they would do and by when to improve.
At this inspection we found improvements had been made and the provider was no longer in breach of regulations.
Why we inspected
We carried out an unannounced inspection of this service on 15 March 2022. A breach of legal requirements was found. The provider completed an action plan after the last inspection to show what they would do and by when to improve good governance.
We undertook this focused inspection to check they had followed their action plan and to confirm they now met legal requirements. This report only covers our findings in relation to the Key Questions Safe and Well-led which contain those requirements
We looked at infection prevention and control measures under the Safe key question. We look at this in all care home inspections even if no concerns or risks have been identified. This is to provide assurance that the service can respond to COVID-19 and other infection outbreaks effectively.
For those key questions not inspected, we used the ratings awarded at the last inspection to calculate the overall rating.
The overall rating for the service has changed from requires improvement to good based on the findings of this inspection.
You can read the report from our last comprehensive inspection, by selecting the ‘all reports’ link for Northenden House on our website at www.cqc.org.uk.
Follow up
We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service, which will help inform when we next inspect.
About the service
Northenden House is a care home and provides accommodation and personal care for up to six people who have a range of needs including autism, mental health needs and/or learning disabilities. There were six people using the service at the time of this inspection.
Right Support
The staff supported people to have the maximum possible choice, control and independence and they had control over their own lives. Staff supported people to take part in activities and pursue their interests in their local area. We found person centred activity programmes were scheduled for certain people to ensure their routines were safely followed. The service made reasonable adjustments for people so they could be fully involved in discussions about how they received support, including support to travel wherever they needed to go. For one person we found the service implemented a number of new routines and support mechanisms to manage this person’s particular behaviours.
Right Care
People received kind and compassionate care. Staff protected and respected people’s privacy and dignity. During the inspection we observed a person becoming unwell and requiring treatment. Staff were quickly on hand to support this person and provided the care and treatment they needed in their bedroom. They understood and responded to their individual needs. People who had individual ways of communicating, using body language, sounds, Makaton (a form of sign language), pictures and symbols could interact comfortably with staff and others involved in their care and support because staff had the necessary skills to understand them.
Right culture
Staff knew and understood people well and were responsive, supporting their aspirations to live a quality life of their choosing. People and those important to them, including advocates, were involved in planning their care. Staff evaluated the quality of support provided to people, involving the person, their families and other professionals as appropriate. We found the service was proactive at engaging with people’s families and worked in collaboration with health care teams to ensure bespoke care was provided to people.
We have made a recommendation about the provider considering the current guidance on Right Support, Right Care, Right Culture’ to update their practice accordingly.
Improvements were required to the safe management of medicines. There had been no medicines errors or harm caused to people; however, staff did not always follow best practice.
We found there had been improvements made to the quality and assurance system in place to monitor the safety and quality of care provided. However, further work was required to ensure incidents were fully reviewed/analysed and further quality checks on people’s medicines needed to be introduced.
For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk
Rating at last inspection and update
The last rating for this service was requires improvement (published 25 September 2020) and there were breaches of regulation. The service remains rated requires improvement. This service has been rated requires improvement for the last three consecutive inspections.
Why we inspected
This inspection was carried out to follow up on action we told the provider to take at the last inspection. As a result, we undertook a focused inspection to review the key questions of safe and well-led only.
For those key questions not inspected, we used the ratings awarded at the last inspection to calculate the overall rating.
We looked at infection prevention and control measures under the Safe key question. We look at this in all care home inspections even if no concerns or risks have been identified. This is to provide assurance that the service can respond to COVID-19 and other infection outbreaks effectively.
Enforcement and Recommendations
We are mindful of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on our regulatory function. This meant we took account of the exceptional circumstances arising as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic when considering what enforcement action was necessary and proportionate to keep people safe as a result of this inspection. We will continue to monitor the service and will take further action if needed.
We have identified a breach in relation to good governance at this inspection.
Please see the action we have told the provider to take at the end of this report.
Follow up
We will request an action plan from the provider to understand what they will do to improve the standards of quality and safety. We will work alongside the provider and local authority to monitor progress. We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service, which will help inform when we next inspect.
Northenden House is a care home and provides accommodation and personal care for up to six people who have a range of needs including autism, mental health needs and/or learning disabilities. There were six people using the service at the time of this inspection.
The care service has been developed and designed in line with the values that underpin the Registering the Right Support and other best practice guidance. These values include choice, promotion of independence and inclusion. People with learning disabilities and autism using the service can live as ordinary a life as any citizen.
People’s experience of using this service and what we found
People felt safe while living at Northenden House and we received positive feedback from people and their relatives.
Improvements had been made to the home medicines systems following the previous inspection in May 2019. There were also improvements made to aspects of the governance systems, however further improvements were required with better oversight in some other areas. ”
Fire safety arrangements needed to be improved to ensure the staff team were safely equipped and knowledgeable on how to deal with emergencies such as a fire.
Personal and protective equipment such as face masks were not always being used in accordance with Public Health England guidance to mitigate the risks associated with Coronavirus. As a result, the provider updated their policy and procedures on managing the risks associated with the Coronavirus in line with the latest guidance from Public Health England for care homes.
Procedures to support the safe recruitment of staff were followed and there were enough staff on duty day and night to provide the support people needed. People were protected from the risks of harm, abuse or discrimination because staff knew what actions to take if they identified concerns.
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 requires improvement (published 12 August 2019).
Why we inspected
This was a planned focused inspection based on the previous rating.
You can read the report from our last comprehensive inspection, by selecting the ‘all reports’ link for Northenden House on our website at www.cqc.org.uk.
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. We notified the Local Authority Quality Improvement Team of the areas of concern we identified, and we also contacted the local infection control team in regard to the homes approach to managing the Coronavirus.
Northenden House is a care home providing nursing and personal care to five people who had a learning disability and/or autism, a physical disability and mental health needs at the time of the inspection.
Northenden House can accommodate up to six people in one, purpose built, building.
The service has been developed and designed in line with the principles and values that underpin Registering the Right Support and other best practice guidance. This ensures that people who use the service can live as full a life as possible and achieve the best possible outcomes. The principles reflect the need for people with learning disabilities and/or autism to live meaningful lives that include control, choice, and independence. People using the service receive planned and co-ordinated person-centred support that is appropriate and inclusive for them.
People’s experience of using this service and what we found
People were protected from abuse and the staff knew how to protect people from harm. There were enough staff to support people. Medication records were not robust and the provider could not check people had received their medicines as their doctor had prescribed. We shared our concerns with the provider and they immediately took action to improve how staff recorded medicines.
The service was not consistently well-led. Although there was a registered manager employed, they were not working in the home at the time of our inspection. The systems to oversee the management of the home and to assess the quality of the service had not identified issues where the service could be improved and ensured they were addressed promptly.
We have made a recommendation about assessing and monitoring the quality of the service.
The staff were skilled and competent to provide people’s care. Appropriate specialist services had been included in assessing people’s needs and planning their care. People enjoyed the meals provided and staff supported people to make healthy eating choices.
The staff understood the principles of the Mental Capacity Act 2005 and people’s rights were protected. People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible; the policies and systems in the service supported this practice.
The service applied the principles and values of Registering the Right Support and other best practice guidance. These ensure that people who use the service can live as full a life as possible and achieve the best possible outcomes that include control, choice and independence.
The outcomes for people using the service reflected the principles and values of Registering the Right Support by promoting choice and control, independence and inclusion. People's support focused on them having as many opportunities as possible for them to gain new skills and become more independent.
The staff treated people in a kind and caring way. People were supported to gain skills and independence. The staff knew how people communicated and gave them information to make choices in a way they could understand. The staff respected the decisions people made about their lives and support.
People and those who knew them well were included in planning their support. The staff supported people to follow activities they enjoyed in the home and in the local community. People were able to see their friends and families and to maintain relationships that were important to them. The provider had a procedure for responding to complaints about the service.
For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk
Rating at last inspection: This service was registered with us on 17 May 2018 and this is the first inspection.
Why we inspected: This was the service’s first planned inspection.
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.