Willow Tree Lodge

Updated 10 August 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

Willow Tree Lodge 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. Willow Tree Lodge is a care home with nursing care. CQC regulates both the premises and the care provided, and both were looked at during this inspection.

Registered Manager

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 our inspection there was a registered manager in post.

Notice of inspection

This inspection was unannounced.

What we did before the inspection

We reviewed information we had received about the service since the last inspection. We sought and received 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. We used all this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

We spoke with seven people who lived at the service. We also 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 to two relatives about their experience of the care provided. We spoke with nine members of staff including the registered manager, the provider, nursing staff, care staff and the maintenance person. We also spoke with four visiting health and social care professionals.

We reviewed a range of records. This included four people’s care records and medication records. We looked at two staff files in relation to recruitment. A variety of records relating to the management of the service, including policies and procedures were reviewed.

Updated 10 August 2022

About the service

Willow Tree Lodge is a residential care home providing accommodation, personal and nursing care to up to 34 people. The service provides support to older people, some whom live with dementia. At the time of our inspection there were 27 people using the service. Care is provided in one adapted building over three floors.

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

People and their relatives were positive about the service and the support they received from staff. One person said, “I am happy here. I wouldn’t want to go anywhere else.” A relative said, “I am happy with the care home. They are all friendly and attentive.”

Staff knew how to protect people from the risk of abuse. If concerns arose, they were reported and investigated appropriately. Action was taken following incidents and lessons were learnt to reduce the risk of re-occurrence. There were risk assessments in place to guide staff on how to support people to remain safe. Staff were aware of the risks to people and were supporting people safely. There were sufficient staff to support people and people told us they got support when they needed it. Medicines were managed safely to ensure people received them as prescribed. People were kept safe from the risk of the transfer of infection, such as the risk from COVID.

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. Staff followed best interest processes where people needed this support for decisions. Where people could make choices, people told us staff supported this.

The service had continued to improve since the last inspection and previous improvements had been imbedded. Regular checks were undertaken on the quality of the service. Where the registered manager had identified actions were needed, these had been undertaken or were in progress. The registered manager understood the importance of being open and transparent should incidents occur. Staff were kind to people and were supported by the registered manager who worked alongside them. There were systems in place to ensure people, their relatives and staff could provide feedback about their care. People told us they were listened to.

The service had complied with legal obligations such as displaying their rating and notifying CQC of important events. The service had worked in partnership with other health and social care providers to improve outcomes for people and learn best practice.

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 requires improvement (Published 02 December 2019). Since the last inspection the service has changed their name from High Meadow Nursing Home to Willow Tree Lodge. There were no breaches of regulation found at the last inspection.

Why we inspected

This inspection was prompted by a review of the information we held about this service. We undertook a focused inspection to review the key questions of safe and well-led only. For those key questions not inspected, we used the ratings awarded at the last inspection to calculate the overall rating. The overall rating for the service has changed from requires improvement to good based on the findings of 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.

You can read the report from our last comprehensive inspection, by selecting the ‘all reports’ link for Willow Tree Lodge on our website at www.cqc.org.uk.

Follow up

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