Sandford Grove House

Updated 20 September 2018

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 10 September 2018 and was announced. We gave the service 48 hours’ notice of the inspection visit because the registered manager is sometimes out of the office at the other care home they manage, and people are often out. We needed to be sure the registered manager or registered provider, some people receiving support and staff would be available to meet and speak with us.

The inspection was carried out by one adult social care inspector.

Prior to the inspection, we gathered information from a number of sources. We reviewed the information we held about the service, which included correspondence we had received and notifications submitted to us by the service. A notification should be sent to CQC every time a significant incident has taken place. For example, where a person who uses the service experiences a serious injury. We reviewed the Provider Information Return (PIR), which the registered provider completed before the inspection. The PIR is a form that asks the registered provider to give some key information about the service, what the service does well and improvements they plan to make.

We contacted Sheffield local authority and Healthwatch (Sheffield) to obtain their views of the service. Healthwatch is an independent consumer champion that gathers and represents the views of the public about health and social care services in England. All the comments and feedback received were reviewed and used to assist and inform our inspection.

At the time of this inspection, seven people were living at Sandford House. During our inspection, we spoke with four people who were receiving support to obtain their views about the service.

We looked around different areas of the service, which included communal areas, and with their permission, some people’s bedrooms.

We spoke with all the staff on duty to obtain their views. This included the registered provider, two senior support workers and one support worker.

We reviewed a range of records, which included two people’s support plans, three people’s medical files, three staff support and employment records, training records and other records relating to the management of the service.

Updated 20 September 2018

Sandford House is registered to provide accommodation and personal care for up to 18 people with a diagnosis of mental health related issues. Accommodation is based in two adjacent properties, over three floors and accessed by stairs. There are four double and ten single rooms. The home is in the Nether Edge area of Sheffield, on local bus routes and close to amenities. Sandford 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.

Whilst the service is registered with us as Sandford House, the service is also known as Sandford Grove. The registered provider has applied to change the services name to Sandford Grove.

The registered provider/ nominated individual is responsible for two other services in Sheffield. The registered manager of Sandford House is also registered manager for one other service. The registered provider and registered manager share time at Sandford House to manage the service. 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.

At the last inspection, the service was rated Good. At this inspection, we found the evidence continued to support the rating of Good and there was no evidence or information from our inspection and ongoing monitoring that demonstrated serious risks or concerns. This inspection report is written in a shorter format because our overall rating of the service has not changed since our last inspection.

Why the service is rated Good.

People who lived at Sandford House told us they felt safe and they were provided with the support they needed.

Staff were aware of their responsibilities in keeping people safe.

Policies and procedures for the safe management of medicines were in place.

There were robust recruitment procedures in operation to promote people’s safety.

Staff were provided with relevant training and supervision so they had the skills they needed to undertake their role.

People receiving support felt staff had the right skills to do their job. They said staff were respectful and caring in their approach.

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

People’s support plans contained relevant person-centred information to inform staff. The support plans had been reviewed to ensure they were up to date.

People were confident in reporting concerns to the registered manager or registered provider and felt they would be listened to.

There were quality assurance and audit processes in place to make sure the service was running well.

The service had a full range of policies and procedures available to staff.

Further information is in the detailed findings below.