Massenet

Updated 26 September 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. This inspection was planned to check whether the provider was meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Act, to look at the overall quality of the service, and to provide a rating for the service under the Care Act 2014.

Inspection team:

The inspection team was made up of two inspectors and an expert by experience. 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:

Massenet 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.

The service had a manager registered with the Care Quality Commission. 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.

Notice of inspection:

This was an unannounced inspection.

What we did:

Before the inspection, we reviewed information we had received about the service since the last inspection. This included details about incidents the provider must let us know about, such as abuse; and we sought feedback from the local authority and other professionals involved with the service. We assessed the information providers send us at least once annually to give some key information about the service, what the service does well and improvements they plan to make. We used all this information to plan and inform our inspection.

During the inspection we spoke with the registered manager, the deputy manager and three other members of the care staff team. 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 spoke with five relatives of people and also contacted healthcare professionals who worked in partnership with the service. We looked at four people’s care records including their medication records and daily notes. We looked at two staff files. We reviewed training and supervision records and documents relating to the management of the service including complaints and compliments, minutes of meetings and quality audits.

Updated 26 September 2019

About the service:

Massenet is a care home providing personal care and accommodation for up to seven people who have a learning disability or who are autistic and have complex support needs. The service does not provide nursing care. At the time of inspection there were seven people using the service.

People’s experience of using this service:

The care service has been developed and designed in line with the values that underpin the Registering the Right Support and other best practice guidance. These values include choice, promotion of independence and inclusion. People with learning disabilities and autism using the service can live a life as any citizen and Massenet ensured this was the case for the people who lived there.

Feedback we received about the service was universally positive and staff and the management team were well thought of. Relatives told us they would recommend the service to others as in the words of one relative, “We are incredibly happy with the way [named person's]] life is unfolding. We feel very connected to the home whenever we call or visit; [named person] is content and they [the service] accommodate [named person's] needs and they understand our concerns; we are very very pleased”

Robust recruitment practices were in place to ensure the suitability of new staff. Staff knew people well and had a good understanding of their needs and new how to keep people safe. Safe systems for the management of medicines were in place. Only staff who had been trained and assessed as competent administered medicines.

Staff enjoyed working at the service and felt well supported. There were systems in place to monitor and support staff to ensure they had the skills and knowledge to provide effective care and support.

The registered manager and staff team understood their responsibilities in relation to the Mental Capacity Act 2005 and the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards. 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 support this practice.

People were supported to eat and drink enough which met their needs and preferences. The service ensured people had access to health care advice and treatment when promptly when this was needed. The environment was well maintained and suitable for the needs of the people who lived there.

Staff were kind and caring and had formed positive, trusting relationships with people which helped people develop the confidence to achieve their goals. The service had introduced new ways of working based on best practice principles which demonstrated their commitment to supporting people to live full lives through the introduction of new opportunities and experiences which encouraged people to be as independent as they could be.

The service was well-led by a registered manager and deputy who provided a positive role model to staff. The culture of the service was person-centred and empowering. Robust quality assurance systems were in place to monitor the safety and quality of the service and drive improvements.

Rating at last inspection: Good. (Last report published July 2017).

Why we inspected: This was a planned inspection based on the previous rating.

Follow up: We will continue to monitor the service.

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