Clifftop Care Home

Updated 28 January 2020

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 Care Act 2014.

Inspection team

The inspection was carried out by one inspector.

Service and service type

Clifftop Care Home 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 had a manager registered with the Care Quality Commission. This means that they and the provider are legally responsible for how the service is run and for the quality and safety of the care provided.

Notice of inspection

This inspection was unannounced.

What we did before the inspection

We reviewed information we had received about the service since the last inspection. We sought feedback from the local authority commissioners. We used the information the provider sent us in the provider information return. This is information providers are required to send us with key information about their service, what they do well, and improvements they plan to make. This information helps support our inspections. We used all of this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

We spoke with seven people who used the service and two relatives about their experience of the care provided. We spoke with five members of staff including the registered manager, deputy manager, senior care assistant and care assistants. We made observations of interactions between people and staff. We met with one healthcare professional who was visiting the home.

We reviewed a range of records. This included three people’s care records, people’s daily monitoring charts and multiple medication records. We looked at two staff files in relation to recruitment and staff supervision. A variety of records relating to the management of the home, including accident, incident and safeguarding records were reviewed.

After the inspection

We spoke with the registered manager to validate evidence found and discussed immediate actions carried out following the inspection.

Updated 28 January 2020

About the service

Clifftop Care Home is registered to accommodate up to 32 people and provides care and support for older people. The service is split over three floors which were all accessible by stairlift, stairs or a lift. There were 28 people using the service at time of inspection.

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

People told us they felt safe, supported and happy living at Clifftop Care Home. Since the last inspection improvements had been made to medicines management, accident and incident recording and management oversight of the home.

There was a homely, relaxed, family atmosphere in the home. People were supported by staff who knew how to recognise and raise concerns. The systems in place meant that concerns were raised and referred to the relevant agencies. The home was clean, tidy and comfortable. Staff were recruited safely, and staffing levels were kept under review by the registered manager. Lessons were learnt by the home and it was important to them to continually improve.

The staff demonstrated a good understanding of how to meet people’s individual needs. People’s outcomes were known, and staff worked with people to help achieve these. People were supported and encouraged to maintain their independence and live their lives as fully as possible.

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. Staff were respectful, and consent was sought. People had access to a wide range of health and social care professionals to support their general health needs.

People’s needs were assessed, and staff had access to care plans which were person centred and involved the person. People’s hobbies, wishes and desires were recorded, and staff worked to achieve these for the person. People were occupied and enjoyed the social aspects of the home. People and their relatives thought staff were kind, compassionate and caring.

People were supported to maintain contact with those important to them including family and friends and they felt included within the home. Staff knew people well and gave individualised care and support. People knew how to make a complaint; the home had a complaints policy, and this was followed to people’s satisfaction. The registered manager knew it was their duty to be open, honest and transparent when things went wrong.

The management of the service was respected, people and staff had confidence in them. Staff had a good understanding of their roles and responsibilities. The staff team worked and got on well together demonstrating team work. Staff were proud to work at Clifftop Care Home and told us that they were family.

Quality and safety checks helped ensure people were safe and protected from harm. This meant the service could continually improve. Audits were robust and helped identify areas for improvement and this learning was shared with staff. The home worked well with external professionals and agencies and continued to build their links within the small community.

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 5 February 2019).

Why we inspected

This was a planned inspection based on the previous rating.

Enforcement

Since the last inspection we recognised that the provider had failed to comply with display ratings requirement under Regulation 20A of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014. Offence under Regulation 22 of the 2014 Regulations. This was a breach of regulation and we issued a fixed penalty notice. The provider accepted a fixed penalty and paid this in full.

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.