Fotherby House

Updated 5 December 2019

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 Care Act 2014.

Inspection team

The inspection team consisted of one inspector.

Service and service type

Fotherby House is a ‘care home’. People in care homes receive accommodation and nursing or personal care as single package under one contractual agreement. CQC regulates both the premises and the care provided, and both were looked at during this inspection.

Notice of inspection

The inspection was unannounced.

What we did before the inspection

We reviewed information we had received about the home since the last inspection. We also sought feedback from the local authority who commissioned with the home 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.

We used all of this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

We spoke with five people who lived at the home in person and five relatives about their experience of the care provided by telephone whilst we were at the home. We spoke with five members of the care staff team, the cook and the registered manager. We also spoke with the registered provider and the nominated individual. The nominated individual is responsible for supervising the management of the service on behalf of the provider.

We also spent time observing how people and staff interacted and how care plans were being implemented. We used the Short Observational Framework for Inspection (SOFI). SOFI is a way of observing care to help us understand the experience of people who could not talk with us.

We looked at how the environment was set out and being maintained, observed how people were being supported with their medicines, meals and how they were helped to access drinks. We also reviewed a range of records. These included specific parts of three people’s care records and medicine records. We looked at two staff files in relation to recruitment and a variety of records relating to the management of the service, including the registered provider's policies and procedures.

After the inspection

We continued to seek clarification from the provider to validate evidence found.

Updated 5 December 2019

About the service

Fotherby House is a residential care home providing personal and nursing care for up to 20 older people. At the time of our inspection there were 18 people living at the home.

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

People were happy and content and we received a wide range of positive comments about people’s experience of living at the home. People were supported by very kind, caring and compassionate staff who often went the extra mile to provide people with good, high quality care. This high standard of care enhanced people's quality of life and wellbeing.

People were treated with dignity and respect in a way that truly valued them as individuals.

The staff and the management team were passionate about providing people with support that was based on their individual needs and wishes. As a result, their care was tailored to meet their exact needs. The registered manager and all staff, whatever their position, were always prepared to go over and above their roles to ensure people received the care they needed and to live full and meaningful lives.

The registered manager and staff strived for excellence and it was clear from the feedback we received from people and their relatives and our observations, that staff worked tirelessly as a team to ensure people were cared for on both a physical and emotional level.

The registered provider, registered manager and staff put people at the centre of everything they did. People were encouraged to be involved in the running of the home and to voice their opinions on the way their care was being delivered to them.

People were supported to make decisions for themselves about how they spent their time and were offered choices about the range of food and drinks provided. 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. Where people were unable to make a decision about whether they wished to live at the home their rights had been protected under the Mental Capacity Act 2005.

People were supported by staff who were recruited safely and who received the training and support necessary to provide safe care. Staff knew about the actions they would need to take in order to keep people safe from abuse. This included how to appropriately escalate and report concerns for people’s safety. There were enough staff to ensure people received their care in a timely manner.

Risks to people had been identified and care plans contained all the information staff would need to provide safe individualised care to people. Care plans has been reviewed and updated when people’s needs had altered.

The environment had been set out to support the independence of all of the people who lived at the home, including those living with dementia. The home was well maintained and supported people’s well-being.

The provider’s policies and procedures reflected best practice guidance and staff knew about and worked in line with the policies. Medicines were safely managed and effective infection control processes were in place.

The registered provider and registered manager had clear systems in place to monitor the quality of care provided. They had built strong ties with the local community. The home was consistently well managed by a registered provider and registered manager who worked closely together with staff as ‘one team’ and demonstrated strong values, leading by example and maintaining an open, inclusive and caring culture.

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 26 April 2017).

Why we inspected

This was a planned inspection based on the previous rating.

Follow up

We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service until we return to visit as per our re-inspection programme. If we receive any concerning information we may inspect sooner.