Loughton Hall

Updated 6 February 2024

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.

Inspection team

The inspection team consisted of 1 inspector.

Service and service type

Loughton Hall 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. Loughton Hall 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

The inspection was unannounced

What we did before the inspection

We reviewed information we had received about the service since the last inspection. 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 with 8 people who used the service and 6 relatives about their experience of the care provided. We spoke with 7 members of staff, including the operations manager and the registered manager. We reviewed a range of records. This included 4 people's care records and several medicine records. We looked at 4 staff files in relation to recruitment and staff training. A variety of records relating to the management of the service. We used the Short Observational Framework for Inspection (SOFI). SOFI is a way of observing care to help us understand the experience of people who are unable talk with us.

Updated 6 February 2024

About the service

Loughton Hall is a care home providing accommodation for persons who require nursing or personal care to up to a maximum of 33 people. The service provides support to older people, including people living with dementia. At the time of our inspection 28 people were using the service.

People’s experience of the service and what we found:

People's medicines were not always managed safely. Environmental risks were assessed and monitored. People’s risk assessments reflected their current needs. There was enough staff to meet people’s needs. Recruitment oversight had improved. Safeguarding policies were being followed and reported appropriately.

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 registered manager had oversight of monitoring records such as food, fluid and repositioning records. Appropriate action had been taken to undertake all required training and provide staff with support through supervision and appraisal.

Governance arrangements had improved. However, more work was required in relation to the oversight for medicines management.

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 6 December 2022) 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 whilst some improvements were found the provider remained in breach of regulations.

At our last inspection we recommended the provider takes advice from a reputable source to review their recruitment practices in line with safe recruitment practice guidance. At this inspection improvements had been made.

The last rating for this service was requires improvement (published 1 June 2023). The service remains rated requires improvement. This service has been rated requires improvement for the last 4 consecutive inspections.

Why we inspected

When we last inspected Loughton Hall in April 2023 breaches of legal requirements were found. This inspection was undertaken to check whether they were now meeting the legal requirements.

Enforcement

We have identified continued breaches in relation to medicines and governance.

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.