Elwis House

Updated 9 July 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. 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

This inspection was carried out by one Inspector.

Service and service type

Elwis House 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.

This service is required to have a registered manager. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. 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. At the time of the inspection there was a registered manager in post.

Notice of inspection

We gave the service 48 hours’ notice of the inspection. This was because it is a small service and we needed to be sure that the registered manager would be present to support the inspection.

What we did before inspection

We reviewed information we had received about the service since the last inspection. We sought feedback from the local authority and professionals who work with the service. 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. This information helps support our inspections. We used all of this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

We spoke with two people to get their feedback about the care they received. We spoke with one relative and received written feedback from another about the care their family member received. We spoke with the registered manager and two support workers. All staff were sent a questionnaire and we received feedback from four staff members. We reviewed four people’s care and medicine records. We reviewed the recruitment and training records of three support workers. We looked at maintenance records for the building and quality assurance records related to all aspects of the management of the service.

After the inspection

We continued to seek clarification from the provider to validate evidence found. We looked at training data and quality assurance records.

Updated 9 July 2022

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.

About the service

Elwis House is a residential care home providing personal care for up to four people and people with a learning disability and/or autistic people . At the time of the inspection four people were living there.

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

Right Support

Staff supported people to have the maximum possible choice, control and independence and they had control over their own lives. Staff focused on people’s strengths and promoted what they could do, so people had a fulfilling and meaningful everyday life. Staff supported people to identify and work towards aspirations and goals.

The service gave people care and support in a safe, clean, well equipped, well-furnished and well-maintained environment that met their sensory and physical needs. People had a choice about their living environment and were able to personalise their rooms.

Staff supported people to make decisions following best practice in decision-making. Staff communicated with people in ways that met their needs.

Staff supported people to play an active role, where possible, in maintaining their own health and wellbeing. Staff ensured people had full access to health and social care to maintain their health and wellbeing.

Right Care

People received kind and compassionate care. Staff protected and respected people’s privacy and dignity. They understood and responded to their individual needs and promoted equality and diversity in their support for people.

People told us or communicated with us they were happy living at Elwis House. Relatives told us their family members were happy, safe and comfortable at the service. Staff understood how to protect people from poor care and abuse. The service worked well with other agencies to do so. Staff had training on how to recognise and report abuse and they knew how to apply it. There was enough appropriately skilled staff to meet people’s needs and keep them safe.

People were encouraged and supported to identify and take part in activities and pursue interests that were tailored to them. Where appropriate, staff encouraged and enabled people to take positive risks.

Right culture

People received good quality care and support because trained staff could meet their needs and wishes. People led inclusive and empowered lives because of the ethos, values, attitudes and behaviours of the management and staff.

People were supported by staff who understood best practice in relation to the wide range of strengths, impairments or sensitivities people with a learning disability and/or autistic people may have. This meant people received compassionate and empowering care that was tailored to their needs.

Staff placed people’s wishes, needs and rights at the heart of everything they did. They knew and understood people well and were responsive, supporting their aspirations to live a quality life of their choosing.

People and those important to them were involved in planning their care. Staff valued and acted upon people’s views.

The registered manager and provider had implemented effective checks and audits on the quality and safety of the service. When shortfalls were identified, action was taken to address these.

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

At the last inspection the service was not rated (published 4 August 2021). This was because we carried out a targeted inspection. We use targeted inspections to follow up on Warning Notices or to check concerns. They do not look at an entire key question, only the part of the key question we are specifically concerned about. The last rating for the service was on 1 December 2020 when the service was rated requires improvement.

Why we inspected

We undertook this inspection to see if improvements had been made to person-centred care and assess that the service is applying the principles of right support right care right culture. The overall rating for the service has changed from requires improvement to good. This is based on the findings at this inspection.

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.

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.