6 December 2023
During an inspection looking at part of the service
This service provides care to people living in specialist 'extra care' housing. Extra care housing is purpose built or adapted household accommodation in a shared site or building. The apartments are either purchased or rented and is the occupant's own home. People's care and housing are provided under separate contractual agreements. CQC does not regulate premises used for extra care housing; this inspection looked at people who received a personal care service.
People’s experience of using this service and what we found
People told us they felt safe and enjoyed living at Southlands Retirement Apartments with Care and Support. One person told us, “I can’t see room for improvement, it is an excellent service.” Relatives also spoke positively about the support and were satisfied with the care and support given to their loved ones.
Medicines were not always managed as required, areas for improvement were identified during our inspection around storage and auditing, the policy that was in place was not relevant for ‘extra care’ housing. Systems were in place to protect people from the risks related to their care needs. There were enough staff working at the service to meet people's needs and there were adequate staff recruitment practices in place. systems were in place to minimise the risk of infection.
People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives.
Staff enjoyed working for the provider and told us they felt well supported.
Most people, relatives and staff told us the management team were always approachable and responsive to any issues raised. One person had raised concerns and told us that they felt that these were not always resolved as they would have liked.
For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk
Rating at last inspection and update
The last rating for the service was good, published on 28 November 2017.
Why we inspected
This was a planned inspection due to the length of time since the last inspection
Follow up
We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service, which will help inform when we next inspect.
Recommendations
We have made 3 recommendations in relation to medication, auditing and communication with one person that uses the service.