Updated 14 May 2022
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. This inspection was planned to check whether the provider was meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Act, to look at the overall quality of the service, and to provide a rating for the service under the Care Act 2014.
Inspection Team
The Inspection was carried out one inspector.
Service and service type:
The Maples is a care home. People in care homes receive accommodation and nursing or personal care as a single package under one contractual agreement. CQC regulates both the premises and the care provided, and both were looked at during this inspection.
The Maples 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. The registered manager was on extended leave and not present during the inspection.
Notice of inspection
This inspection was unannounced; however, we telephoned the provider from outside the home because of the risks associated with COVID-19. This was because we needed to know of the COVID-19 status in the home and discuss the infection, prevention and control measures in place.
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, professionals who work with the service and Healthwatch. Healthwatch is an independent consumer champion that gathers and represents the views of the public about health and social care services in England. The provider was requested to complete a provider information return (PIR). 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 took this into account when we inspected the service and made the judgements in this report.
During the inspection
We spoke with six people who used the service, to ask about their experience of the care provided.
We observed staff providing support to people in the communal areas of the service. This was so we could understand people's experiences. By observing the care received, we could determine whether they were comfortable with the support they were provided with.
We spoke with nine members of staff, which included the manager, deputy manager, directors, senior care assistants, care assistants and domestic staff. We reviewed a range of records about people's care and how the service was managed.
After the inspection
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic we reviewed a number of records off site.