Croston Park

Croston Park is a nursing and residential care home providing personal and nursing care to 43 people at the time of our inspection. The service can support up to 56 people who have a range of residential and nursing needs, including older people and people living with dementia.

The home is a seventeenth century grade II listed building in its own grounds which has been suitably adapted for its purpose. Bedrooms are located over 3 floors with lift access to the upper floors. Most of the bedrooms are ensuite. The ground floor includes the dining room and several communal lounge areas and access to the outside garden and grounds.

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

Medicines were stored and administered safely. People were supported safely, and the provider had plans in case of emergencies. The home was clean and hygienic, and staff were seen to wear appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE). Staff were employed following a safe and robust recruitment process. Safeguarding training was mandatory, and staff were aware of the processes to follow to enable people to keep safe.

Staff felt supported by the management team and the induction and ongoing training they received. 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. Mealtimes were relaxed and organised around people's individual daily routines. People were supported to have access to healthcare professionals and their healthcare needs had been met. The service worked in partnership with other organisations to ensure they followed good practice and people in their care were safe.

Staff were caring, respected people's differences and promoted their independence. Staff knew people well and delivered care according to people's specific needs.

People were encouraged to stay active as much as possible and engage among each other in activities organised by staff. People and their relatives knew how to make a complaint, and felt they could raise any issues with the registered manager. Staff felt able to raise concerns if they needed to. The provider was able to offer people dignified end of life care, that met people's needs.

The provider had various methods to assess, monitor and improve the quality of the service. People and staff told us there was a very positive culture at Croston Park. The management team positively engaged in the inspection process and the manager clearly understood their regulatory responsibilities. The provider and management team had been responsive in implementing positive change and working with health and social care professionals to improve people’s quality of life.

Rating at last inspection and update: The last rating for this service was requires improvement (published 25 January 2023) and there were breaches of regulation. 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 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.

This inspection was carried out to follow up on action we told the provider to take at the last inspection.

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 Croston Park 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.

Croston Park Nursing Home is a nursing and residential care home providing personal and nursing care to 38 people at the time of our inspection. The service can support up to 56 people who have a range of residential and nursing needs.

The home is a seventeenth century grade II listed building in its own grounds which has been suitably adapted for its purpose. Bedrooms are located over three floors with lift access to the upper floors. Most of the bedrooms are ensuite. The ground floor includes the dining room and several communal lounge areas and access to the outside garden and grounds.

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

We found the home had made a number of improvements since the last inspection; however, he provider had not ensured risks related to medicines and nutrition were managed safely. The provider’s systems had not always been effective in identifying and addressing shortfalls related to medicines, nutrition and the quality of records.

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.

The provider continued to ensure staff were recruited safely and there were enough staff deployed to meet people’s needs safely. Staff had received training and knew how to keep people safe. The home was clean and hygienic. Staff followed guidance to reduce risks related to infections. The provider used accidents and incidents as a learning opportunity to improve the service.

There had been a change in management since our last inspection. We received positive feedback about the impact the new manager was having on the service. Staff were well supported and worked well together as a team. The service continued to work in partnership with other agencies and engaged with people using the service, their relatives and staff. The provider had made further improvements to their quality assurance systems and governance since our last inspection.

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 1 July 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, however the provider remained in breach of regulations.

The service remains rated requires improvement. This service has been rated requires improvement for the last three consecutive inspections.

Why we inspected

We carried out an unannounced focussed inspection of this service on 14 December 2021. Breaches of legal requirements were found. The provider completed an action plan after the last inspection to show what they would do and by when to improve Safe care and treatment and Good governance.

We carried out 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.

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 remained requires improvement. 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 Croston Park on our website at www.cqc.org.uk.

We have found evidence that the provider needs to make improvements. Please see the safe and well-led sections of this full report.

You can see what action we have asked the provider to take at the end of this full report.

Enforcement

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 breaches in relation to medicines management, nutrition, records and the effective operation of the provider’s quality management systems at this inspection.

Please see the action we have told the provider to take at the end of this report.

Full information about CQC’s regulatory response to the more serious concerns found during inspections is added to reports after any representations and appeals have been concluded.

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.