Golden Gorse Residential Care Home

Updated 14 January 2023

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. We checked whether the provider was meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Act. We looked at the overall quality of the service and provided a rating for the service under the Health and Social Care Act 2008.

As part of this inspection we looked at the infection control and prevention measures in place. This was conducted so we can understand the preparedness of the service in preventing or managing an infection outbreak, and to identify good practice we can share with other services.

Inspection team

The inspection was carried out by 1 inspector. An Expert by Experience carried out phone calls to friends and relatives of people who lived at the home. An Expert by Experience is a person who has personal experience of using or caring for someone who uses this type of care service.

Service and service type

Golden Gorse Residential Care Home is a ‘care home’. People in care homes receive accommodation and nursing and/or personal care as a single package under one contractual agreement dependent on their registration with us. Golden Gorse Residential Care Home is a care home without nursing care. CQC regulates both the premises and the care provided, and both were looked at during this inspection.

Registered Manager

This provider is required to have a registered manager to oversee the delivery of regulated activities at this location. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. Registered managers and providers are legally responsible for how the service is run, for the quality and safety of the care provided and compliance with regulations.

At the time of our inspection there was a registered manager in post.

Notice of inspection

This inspection was unannounced.

What we did before the inspection

We looked at the information we had about the service and from the service. We sought feedback from the local authority quality team.

We used the information the provider sent us in the provider information return (PIR). This is information providers are required to send us annually with key information about their service, what they do well, and improvements they plan to make.

We used all this information to plan our inspection

During the inspection

We met and talked with everyone who lived at the home. People’s verbal communication skills varied. Some people were able to fully articulate their views to us about the care and support they received whilst others had limited verbal communication. All were happy to interact with us.

The Expert by Experience spoke with 4 friends and relatives by phone to seek their views on the care their loved ones received.

We met with 2 staff on duty and received written feedback from 3 staff members. The registered manager was available throughout the inspection.

We looked at a variety of records relating to people’s individual care and the running of the home. These included 2 care and support plans, a sample of medication administration records, 2 staff recruitment files, health and safety records and some in house audits.

Updated 14 January 2023

About the service

Golden Gorse Residential Care Home is a care home providing accommodation and personal care. The home is registered to provide care to up to 8 people. The home specialises in the care of people with a learning disability. At the time of our inspection there were 7 people using the service.

We expect health and social care providers to guarantee people with a learning disability and autistic people respect, equality, dignity, choices and independence and good access to local communities that most people take for granted. ‘Right support, right care, right culture’ is the guidance CQC follows to make assessments and judgements about services supporting people with a learning disability and autistic people and providers must have regard to it.

People’s experience of using this service and what we found

Right Support:

People lived together in a family type setting which was in the centre of Minehead. It was within easy walking distance of the town centre and local amenities.

People told us they were able to make choices about their day to day lives. People said they were able to follow their own routines and interests.

People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible and in their best interests; the policies and systems in the service supported this practice.

People looked very at home and relaxed. They had unrestricted access to their personal rooms and all communal areas of the home.

The service gave people care and support in a safe, clean, well equipped, well-furnished and well-maintained environment that met their needs.

Right Care:

People were treated as individuals and staff respected each person’s routines and needs. However, there was limited information about how people and/or their representatives were involved in planning their care and setting goals for themselves. The registered manager gave assurances they would address this issue.

People received kind and compassionate care. Staff protected and respected people’s privacy and dignity. They understood and responded to their individual needs.

Staff supported people to stay in touch with friends and family. People told us their family visited and they enjoyed trips out with them.

People told us they felt safe at the home and staff were always kind.

Right Culture:

There was a very happy atmosphere in the home. Some people had lived together for a number of years and had formed strong friendships with each other. People had a sense of belonging and felt included.

Staff continually interacted with people and included them in conversations and activities. Staff knew and understood people well and were responsive, supporting them to follow their own routines.

Staff turnover was very low, which supported people to receive consistent care from staff who knew them well.

People spent time with community access workers who were independent of the home.

For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk

Rating at last inspection

The last rating for this service was good (published 19 August 2019)

Why we inspected

The inspection was prompted in part due to concerns received about how staff respected people as adults and how people were assisted to be fully involved in their care and support. As a result, we undertook a focused inspection to review the key questions of safe, caring and well-led only.

We looked at infection prevention and control measures under the Safe key question. We look at this in all care home inspections even if no concerns or risks have been identified. This is to provide assurance that the service can respond to COVID-19 and other infection outbreaks effectively.

We found no evidence during this inspection that people were at risk of harm from the concerns raised with us. However, we identified that there was limited evidence that people and/or their representatives were involved in planning their care. The registered manager told us they would address this issue.

Please see the well led and caring section of the full report.

For those key questions not inspected, we used the ratings awarded at the last inspection to calculate the overall rating.

You can read the report from our last comprehensive inspection, by selecting the ‘all reports’ link for Golden Gorse Residential Care Home on our website at www.cqc.org.uk.

The overall rating for the service has not changed from good based on the findings of this inspection.

Follow up

We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service, which will help inform when we next inspect.