Care service description

SENSE - 163 Newington Road is a care home for adults who have sensory impairment and learning disabilities. The service is run by the national charity Sense, and can provide care and support for up to four people.

The service is situated in a residential area of Ramsgate. There were four people living at the service at the time of the inspection. Most people had lived at the service for a long time and some people had very complex physical needs. The accommodation was on one level. There was a communal lounge, conservatory, dining room/kitchen area and a small garden. Hallways were wide and accessible so people in wheel chairs could move around the service. Each person had their own bedroom which contained their personal belongings and possessions that were important to them. The service had its own vehicle to access facilities in the local area and to access a variety of activities.

Rating at last inspection

At the last inspection, the service was rated good and requires improvement in the ‘safe’ domain.

Why we inspected

We carried out an unannounced comprehensive inspection of this service on 3 August 2016. A breach of legal requirements was found. After the comprehensive inspection, the provider wrote to us to say what they would do to meet legal requirements in relation to the breach of Regulation 12 of the Health and Social Care Act Regulated Activities Regulations 2014, Safe care and treatment. We undertook this focused inspection to check that they had followed their plan and to confirm that they now met legal requirements. This report only covers our findings in relation to those requirements. You can read the report from our last comprehensive inspection, by selecting the 'all reports' link for SENSE - 163 Newington Road on our website at www.cqc.org.uk

At this inspection we found the service remained good and is now rated good in the 'safe' domain.

Why the service is rated Good

The service had improved since the last inspection. Medicines were now stored safely and at the correct temperature. Staff were not decanting medicines from their original packaging. There were clear guidelines in place when people needed medicines on an as and when basis.

Staff knew how to recognise and respond to abuse. There had been no safeguarding incidents since our last inspection.

Risks relating to people’s health and mobility had been assessed and minimised where possible. Regular health and safety checks were undertaken to ensure the environment was safe and equipment worked as required. Regular fire drills were completed.

There was enough staff to keep people safe. Staff were checked before they started working with people to ensure they were of good character and had the necessary skills and experience to support people effectively.

This inspection took place on 3 August 2016 and was unannounced.

Sense- 163 Newington Road is a care home for adults who have sensory impairment and learning disabilities. The service is run by the national charity Sense, and can provide care and support for up to four people. The service is situated in a residential area of Ramsgate. There were four people living at the service at the time of the inspection. Most people had lived at the service for a long time and some people had very complex physical needs. The accommodation was on one level. There was a communal lounge, conservatory, dining room/kitchen area and a small garden. Hallways were wide and accessible so people in wheel chairs could move around the service. Each person had their own bedroom which contained their own personal belongings and possessions that were important to them. The service had its own vehicle to access facilities in the local area and to access a variety of activities.

There was a registered manager working at the service and they were supported by a deputy 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. The registered manager, deputy manager and staff supported us throughout the inspection.

The registered manager had been in charge at the service since it had opened 11 years ago. They knew people and staff well. The registered manager was passionate about giving people the care and support they needed in the way that suited them best. They were committed to improving people’s lives. The registered manager was supported by a dedicated, stable staff team who had also worked at the service for many years.

People's medicines were not always handled and managed as safely as they could be. Temperatures where medicines were stored were not checked. When people needed medicines on an ‘as and when’ basis the guidance was not in place to make sure these were given consistently. Some medicines were decanted from their original packaging into containers. This increased the risk of mistakes being made. This was a breach of the regulations.

Risks to people’s safety were assessed but the guidance on how to keep some risks to a minimum had not been recorded. Some assessments identified people’s specific needs, and showed how risks could be minimised but other risk assessments did not contain all the information to make sure staff had all the guidance and checks needed to mitigate risks. Staff knew people well and had given the appropriate care and support. This is an area for improvement.

The registered manager and staff team carried out regular environmental and health and safety checks to ensure that the environment was safe and that equipment was in good working order. Audits and monitoring systems ensured that any shortfalls or areas for improvement were identified and addressed promptly. There were systems in place to review accidents and incidents and make any relevant improvements as a result. Emergency plans were in place so if an emergency happened, like a fire, the staff knew what to do. Fire safety checks were carried out regularly throughout the building and there were regular fire drills so people knew how to leave the building safely.

Before people decided to move into the service their support needs were assessed by the registered manager to make sure the service would be able to offer them the care that they needed. People received care that was personal to them. People indicated and said they were satisfied and happy with the care and support they received. Staff understood people’s specific needs well and mutual good relationships had developed. People were settled, happy and contented. Staff were caring and respected people's privacy and

We visited when three of the four people living at the home were in. We spoke with the three people and staff gave support with sign language to interpret where needed. Due to communication difficulties, we mainly observed how staff supported people during the visit. We spoke with the manager and several staff.

One person we spoke to said ‘I like it here, I like to have music on. My favourite is singing with (the therapist) and massage’. Another person gave us the thumbs up and smiled when asked if life was good here. We observed staff have warm and friendly contact with people throughout our visit.

We saw that people were supported by staff who knew them well. The support described in the plan was being delivered by staff. We saw staff take as much time as was needed to help a person communicate effectively. We saw that signing was being practiced using everyday pictures, such as food items and meals.

We saw that there was plenty of food, much we were told was home cooked. We saw records around food for one person, but records were not kept for other people. The manager said they will change and improve this right away.

The home was warm, clean and homely. People looked safe and comfortable and could get around the house easily. People had the right support to manage their medicines and records were very well kept.

We spoke with, or observed care being given to, all three people at the home at the time of the inspection. We found that the staff were respectful and polite with each person and addressed them by name. We noted that people participated in activities, such as skittles, of their own choosing, and enjoyed a relaxed and friendly relationship with the staff.

We reviewed all three care plans at the home, and found that they contained individualised guidelines for daily personal care needs for each person, as well as use of specific equipment for staff. The care plans also contained risk assessments and consents for each person. we spoke with two staff members and the manager, and they were all knowledgeable about their roles and the support needs of each of the people at the home. This meant that the staff and manager were able to provide safe and appropriate care and support for each person.