Archived: Sunnydene

Updated 15 June 2016

We carried out this inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 as part of our regulatory functions. This inspection was planned to check whether the provider is meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Health and Social Care Act 2008, to look at the overall quality of the service, and to provide a rating for the service under the Care Act 2014.

This inspection took place on 21 and 25 April 2016 and was announced. The provider was given 24 hours’ notice because the service was a small care home for adults who are often out during the day; we needed to be sure that people would be available to talk to us. The inspection was carried out by one inspector.

Before the inspection we reviewed information we held about the service. This included previous inspection reports and notifications we had received. A notification is information about important events which the service is required to send to us by law.

During the inspection we spoke with three people who used the service, two relatives, the area manager, the registered manager, the manager and three members of staff. After the inspection we contacted three health care professionals who had knowledge of people living at Sunnydene.

We looked at four records related to people’s individual care needs and three records relating to the administration of medicines. We reviewed three staff recruitment files, training records for all staff, policies and procedures and records associated with the management of the service

Updated 15 June 2016

This inspection took place on 21 and 25 April 2016 and was announced. This was because Sunnydene is a small service where people go out most days as part of their care and we wanted to make sure people would be available to talk to us. The service was last inspected in November 2013. We had no concerns at that time.

Sunnydene is part of the Royal Mencap Society and provides care and accommodation for up to eight people who have a learning disability. At the time of the inspection seven people lived at the home.

The service had 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. The registered manager did not visit the service on a daily basis but there was a manager in place, who was responsible for the day to day running of the service.

The atmosphere at Sunnydene was relaxed and calm. Interactions between people and staff were friendly and supportive. Staff were knowledgeable about how people wanted to be supported and what was important to them.

Staff had a good understanding of how to recognise and report any signs of abuse, and the staff took action to protect people if required.

Recruitment practices helped ensure people working in the home were fit and appropriate to work in the care sector. New staff were required to attend a thorough induction, which incorporated the care certificate, when they started their employment. This included attending external training sessions and shadowing more experienced members of staff. All staff were supported by ongoing regular supervision sessions and an annual appraisal.

People had their medicines stored and disposed of safely. People received their medicines as prescribed and on time.

People were supported to maintain good health through regular access to a range of health and social care professionals, such as GPs, chiropodists, social workers and speech and language therapists. People were supported to eat a healthy, balanced diet and any associated risks were carefully documented and managed.

People’s care plans were informative, personalised and updated regularly to reflect their changing needs. People were involved in developing and reviewing their care plans.

People took part in a range of personalised activities. This helped people remain physically and cognitively stimulated. People were supported to take everyday risks and to lead full and active lives.

People were supported by staff who were caring and who respected their confidentiality and privacy.

There was a system in place to receive, investigate and manage complaints and people and relatives said they felt confident to raise concerns if necessary.

People spoke highly of the registered manager and said they were approachable and took an active role in running the service. Communication was encouraged. People and staff were involved in a meaningful way and enabled to make suggestions about what mattered to them through team meetings and residents meetings

There was an effective quality assurance system in place to monitor the service and to drive improvements.