Thornhill

Updated 4 October 2023

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 Health and Social Care Act 2008.

As part of this inspection, we looked at the infection control and prevention measures in place. This was conducted so we can understand the preparedness of the service in preventing or managing an infection outbreak, and to identify good practice we can share with other services.

Inspection team

One inspector carried out this inspection.

Service and service type

Thornhill is a ‘care home’. People in care homes receive accommodation and nursing and/or personal care as a single package under one contractual agreement dependent on their registration with us. Thornhill is a care home without nursing care. CQC regulates both the premises and the care provided, and both were looked at during this inspection.

Registered Manager

This provider is required to have a registered manager to oversee the delivery of regulated activities at this location. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. Registered managers and providers are legally responsible for how the service is run, for the quality and safety of the care provided and compliance with regulations.

At the time of our inspection there was a registered manager in post.

Notice of inspection

We gave the service 48 hours' notice of the inspection. This was because it is a small service and we needed to be sure that the provider or registered manager would be in the office to support the inspection.

What we did before the inspection

The provider was not asked to complete a Provider Information Return (PIR) prior to this inspection. A PIR is information providers send us to give some key information about the service, what the service does well and improvements they plan to make.

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 annually with key information about their service, what they do well, and improvements they plan to make. We used all this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

We spoke to the registered manager, the deputy manager and the operations manager; we received feedback from 2 care staff and 2 relatives. We reviewed a range of records. This included 2 people's complete care records and medication records for 2 people. We looked at 3 staff files in relation to recruitment and staff supervision as well as staff feedback forms. A variety of records relating to the management of the service, including policies and procedures were also reviewed.

Updated 4 October 2023

About the service

Thornhill is a care home providing personal care to people with a learning disability and autistic people. The service accommodates 7 people. At the time of the inspection 6 people were using the service.

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.

The service was able to demonstrate how they were meeting the underpinning principles of right support, right care, right culture.

Right support: The service maximised people’s choice, control and independence. Staff were safely recruited and received an induction followed by training from the provider. Training was monitored and staff were supported with regular meetings and supervisions. Staffing capacity was enough to meet people’s needs. The provider followed current best practice guidelines to effectively manage people's medicines and risks associated with infection prevention and control (IPC). People and their relatives were very positive about the care provided. People told us they felt safe, and staff had the skills to support them.

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. If people lacked capacity to make certain decisions appropriate support was sought to support them.

Right care: Care is person-centred and promoted people's dignity, privacy, and human rights. People were encouraged to communicate freely and accessed community for activities when they wanted to. Staff supported people to learn new skills and maintain important contacts. People's care records were person-centred and up to date. Staff knew people well and understood their support needs which empowered people to make decisions about their care.

Right culture: People who use services live confident, inclusive, and empowered lives thanks to the leaders' and care staff's values and behaviours. The staff team coordinated efficiently to ensure that people's rights and preferences were respected. The management team set a good example, and people were encouraged to take positive risks and were supported to complete more tasks independently.

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 good (published 22 April 2021).

Why we inspected

This inspection was prompted by a review of the information we held about this service.

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.

We undertook a focused inspection. This report only covers our findings in relation to the Key Questions Safe and Well-led. 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 not changed. This is based on the findings at this inspection.

You can read the report from our last comprehensive inspection, by selecting the ‘all reports’ link for Thornhill 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.