An adult social care inspector carried out this unannounced inspection of Clifftop care home on 7 September 2016. The service was previously inspected on the 21 February 2013 when it was fully compliant with the regulations.
The service is registered to provide care and accommodation for up to 32 people. On the day of our inspection there were 25 people living at the service. There was a registered manager in post at the time of this inspection. 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 told us they were safe and well cared for and appeared relaxed and comfortable throughout our inspection. People’s comments included, “I am quite happy, it is very good here”, “To be quite honest I think I am very lucky to have ended up here” and “I would certainly highly recommend this place to anyone.”
Staff said, “As far as I know everyone is perfectly safe here” and “People are definitely safe here. It is the best home I have worked in.” Health and social care professionals told us, “People are definitely safe here” and “I would like to come here myself when I am older.”
On the day of our inspection the service was fully staffed and the service had sufficient staff available to meet people’s care needs. People and relatives told us there were enough staff available and staff said, “There are enough staff” and “They have used agency staff in the past but we are fully staffed at the moment.” There was a stable staff team at the service and recruitment practices were safe and robust. The registered manager told us, “I can be quite choosy with who I employ.”
People’s care plans included risk assessments and staff had been provided with detailed guidance on how to protect people from each identified area of increased risk. Where accidents or incidents had occurred these had been documented, fully investigated and regularly audited to identify any areas of increased risk within the service.
All new staff completed formal induction training before there were permitted to provided care within the service. The registered manager told us, “They have to do all the training in the first 12 weeks, it’s a big ask but they have to do it so they know how to look after people.” While a recently recruited staff member said, “I shadowed for about four weeks so I did feel confident when I started on my own. There is a lot to remember here.” Records showed staff training was regularly updated and that managers provided appropriate supervision. Staff told us, “We get one [an online training course] to do every month”, “I don’t think I have ever had as much training as here” and “The manager does supervision every two months.”
The service used a digital care planning system and we found that people’s care plans were accurate and sufficiently detailed to enable staff to meet people’s care needs. Staff told us, “I love the computer system, there is a support team there if you need them” and “The assessment asks you questions, you answer them and that feeds into the care plan. It reminds you when updates are due, of people’s birthdays and appointments. I am happy with it.”
Staff knew people well and provided calm and compassionate support throughout our inspection. People told us, “I do get on well with them” and “The staff are excellent, kind, loving and caring.” Professionals said, “The staff are lovely” and “staff know people very well”. We saw that people requested support from staff without hesitation and that staff responded promptly to people’s requests.
The registered manager understood the requirements of the Mental Capacity Act 2005 (MCA). The service had made appropriate applications for the authorisation of potentially restrictive care plans. However, we identified that one person’s care plan was potentially restrictive and the registered manager agreed to discuss these arrangements with the local supervisory body.
People told us, “I am in charge” and we saw that staff respected people’s choices and encouraged independence. Where people chose to decline care, these decision were also respected.
The service’s kitchen had a five star food hygiene rating and people told us, “The food is pretty good.” People were offered choices at meal time and kitchen staff had received guidance on how to meet people’s specific nutritional needs.
The service was well maintained and enjoyed panoramic views of Swanage Bay that people told us were “fabulous.” People’s bedrooms had been personalised with pictures, ornaments and furniture while communal areas were decorated in a homely style with numerous paintings and pictures.
People living at Clifftop Care Home were able to enjoy a wide variety of activities. During the afternoon of our inspection a pianist visited the service and people enjoyed listening to the music in the lounge. In addition, the registered manager ensured that the inspection process did not interfere with a planned game of scrabble. People told us, “They try very hard to amuse us and keep us interested” and “We have quizzes and scrabble and we play bridge as well.” People were encouraged to visits local shops and town centre when they wished and one person said, “Just ask and they will arrange a taxi for you and they pay half the fare.”
The service was well led. The register manager was supported by two assistant managers with clearly defined individual roles and responsibilities. Staff were well motivated and told us, “[The registered manager] is great” and “The registered manager is easy going and supportive. It is always quite calm here.” There were appropriate procedures in place to monitor the service’s performance. Residents meeting were held regularly and were feedback was provided, people told us this was quickly addressed.