We carried out a review of the data available to us about Huntercombe Hall Care Home 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 Huntercombe Hall Care Home, you can give feedback on this service.
Huntercombe Hall is a 'care home'. People in care homes receive accommodation and nursing or personal care as single package under one contractual agreement. CQC regulates both the premises and the care provided, and both were looked at during this inspection. The service is registered to provide care for up to 42 people. On the day of the inspection there were 37 people using the service.
There was a registered manager in post . A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. Like registered providers, they are 'registered persons'. Registered persons have legal responsibility for meeting the requirements in the Health and Social Care Act 2008 and associated Regulations about how the service is run.
People, relatives and staff were positive about the significant improvements made in the service since the inspection in July 2017. The registered manager promoted a culture that recognised the uniqueness of people and showed her commitment to continuous improvement of the service. The registered manager ensured systems for monitoring and improving the service were effective and where areas of improvement were identified there were plans in place for those improvements to be made.
The dining experience had improved. People were positive about the food and there was a social atmosphere throughout the mealtime. People living with dementia were supported by staff who knew them and understood how to encourage them to eat and drink.
People were supported by caring staff who treated them with kindness and compassion. There was a relaxed, cheerful atmosphere where people enjoyed the company of each other and staff. People enjoyed a range of activities and where people preferred to spend time in their room or did not want to join in activities this was respected.
Staff understood their responsibilities to protect people from harm and abuse. Risks to people were assessed and there were plans in place to manage risks. Medicines were managed safely to ensure people received their medicines as prescribed.
Staff were well supported and had access to training and development opportunities to ensure they had the skills and knowledge to meet people’s needs.
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 contacted health and social care professionals appropriately to ensure people received on-going healthcare support. Where advice and guidance was given people were supported to follow this guidance.
The service was responsive to people’s changing needs. People and relatives were treated with empathy and compassion when people were receiving end of life care.
At our previous inspection on 21 and 22 October 2015 we identified concerns around people's mealtime experience. This was highlighted again at our inspection on 29 November and 2 December 2016. At the inspection on 29 November and 2 December 2016 we found that people did not receive food and drink in a way that was person-centred. This is a breach of Regulation 9 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) regulations 2014. The provider had been made aware of this issue at the previous two inspections. However had still not taken appropriate action to ensure the quality of the mealtime experience was improved. The systems in place to monitor the quality of the service were not always effective.
There was a registered manager in post. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. Like registered providers, they are ‘registered persons’. Registered persons have legal responsibility for meeting the requirements in the Health and Social Care Act 2008 and associated Regulations about how the service is run. However we were informed by the registered manager that they would be de registering to allow the new home manger to become the registered manager. The new home manager had worked at the home previously.
People were not always treated with dignity and respect as we saw that some of the language used by staff was not always appropriate. People’s privacy was not always upheld.
Staff told us, and records confirmed they did not always receive effective support. Staff did not always receive regular supervisions. A supervision is a one to one meeting with their line manager. Records confirmed people were supported by staff who had the skills and knowledge to carry out their roles and responsibilities. However some staff were not up to date with the provider's mandatory training.
People received their medicines as prescribed. Staff administering medicines checked each person's identity and explained what was happening before giving people their medicine. Medicines were stored securely and in line with manufacturer's guidance.
There were sufficient staff to meet people's needs. Throughout the inspection there was a calm atmosphere and staff responded promptly to people who needed support. The service had robust recruitment procedures and conducted background checks to ensure staff were suitable for their role.
People told us they were safe. People were supported by staff who could explain what constitutes abuse and what to do in the event of suspecting abuse. People were supported by staff who had been trained in the Mental Capacity Act (2005) and applied it's principles in their work.
Where people required special diets, for example, pureed or fortified meals, these were provided by kitchen staff who understood the dietary needs of the people they were catering for. Staff understood people's needs and preferences. Staff were knowledgeable about the support people needed. The service sought people's views and opinions.
We found three breaches of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014. You can see what action we told the provider to take at the back of the full version of this report.
At our inspection on 21 and 22 October 2015 we found three breaches of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014. At this inspection we found improvements had been made. Medicines were managed safely. Where risks were identified there were management plans in place to manage the risks. People's care records were accurate and up to date. People were supported in line with the Mental Capacity Act 2005, however we found there were not always mental capacity assessments for specific decisions.
Huntercombe Hall Care Home is a care home providing nursing and personal care for up to 42 people. The home supports people living with dementia. At the time of our inspection there were 38 people using the service.
The home had a new manager who was in the process of registering with CQC to become the registered manager. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. Like registered providers, they are ‘registered persons’. Registered persons have legal responsibility for meeting the requirements in the Health and Social Care Act 2008 and associated Regulations about how the service is run.
People were positive about living at Huntercombe Hall. People enjoyed a variety of activities and had contact with local community groups. People were able to spend their day as they chose.
People' relatives and staff were positive about the manager and the improvements that had been made since the new manager came in to post. The manager promoted an open culture and everyone felt confident to raise any concerns.
Staff were knowledgeable about people's needs. Staff received regular support and had the skills to meet people's needs. Staff supported people with care and compassion. There was a relaxed atmosphere throughout the inspection and requests for support were responded to promptly by all staff.
There were sufficient staff to meet people's needs, however staff were not deployed effectively at mealtimes. People did not always receive person-centred support at mealtimes. The chef was knowledgeable about people's specific dietary needs and ensured food provided met people's needs.
Staff felt well supported and had access to development opportunities to ensure their skills and knowledge was let up to date. Staff were positive about the communication between staff and management.
The provider had not taken action to resolve issues identified at our inspection in October 2015 in relation to people's mealtime experience.
There were effective systems in place to monitor and improve the service. Accidents and incidents were monitored to ensure themes and patterns were identified.
There were systems in place to monitor the safety of the environment and equipment.
We found one breach of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014.
We carried out our inspection on 21 and 22 October 2015. This was an unannounced inspection.
The service had a registered manager who was responsible for overall management of the home. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission (CQC) to manage the service. Like registered providers, they are 'registered persons'. Registered persons have legal responsibility for meeting the requirements in the Health and Social Care Act and associated regulations about how the service is run.
Huntercombe Hall is a care home providing accommodation for people requiring personal and nursing care. The service supports older people with a variety of conditions which includes people living with dementia. At the time of our visit there were 40 people living in the service.
The Care Quality Commission (CQC) monitors the operation of the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS) which applies to care homes. DoLS enable restrictions to be used in a person’s support, where they are in the best interests of a person who lacks capacity to make the decision themselves. The registered manager had not made any referrals to the supervisory body, however some people living in the home had restrictions in place that met the criteria for a DoLS application. Where people lacked capacity to make decisions the registered manager was not acting within the principles of the Mental Capacity Act (2005).
People were positive about living in the home and enjoyed a variety of activities and outings. There were close links with community groups, who visited the home.
People were complimentary about the manager and staff. Throughout the inspection there was a cheerful atmosphere and we saw people being supported in a kind and caring manner. Staff were knowledgeable about people’s needs and we saw many interactions which showed staff understood the needs of the people they supported.
Medicines were not always managed safely and in line with the organisations medicines policy. Risks to people, associated with swallowing difficulties were not always managed and clear instructions were not always available to enable staff to support people safely.
People had care plans that were detailed and personalised. Care plans were not always up to date and records were not always legible.
Systems in place to monitor the quality of the service were not always effective. Issues found during this inspection had been identified but had not been addressed.
We found three breaches of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulation 2014. You can see what action we told the provider to take at the end of the full version of the report.