21 March 2018
During a routine inspection
This service provides care [and support] to people living in specialist 'extra care' housing. Extra care housing is purpose-built or adapted single household accommodation in a shared site or building. The accommodation is bought, and is the occupant's own home. People's care and housing are provided under separate contractual agreements. CQC does not regulate premises used for extra care housing; this inspection looked at people's personal care [and support] service. At the time of inspection, seven people were using the service. This was Adlington House – Otley’s first inspection since their registration with the Care Quality Commission (CQC) in January 2017.
Adlington House - Otley provides care and support services for people living in their own homes. It is based in Otley and supports people who live within the retirement village. There is good disabled access to the Adlington House - Otley office with parking also available.
The service had a registered manager. 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.
Risks to people were assessed, monitored and mitigated. Where incidents occurred, these were analysed for reflection and future learning.
Staff received training in safeguarding, which helped them identify and prevent people coming to harm.
There were sufficient staff in place and the provider had thorough pre-employment checks in place to determine their character and skills.
There were systems and processes in place to reduce the risk of infections and manage people's medicines. Staff understood how to put this guidance in place. However, we found some shortfalls in how medicines were recorded. We made a recommendation around improving medicine records.
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 were mostly independent in their nutritional and healthcare needs. Where required the support needed was clearly identified. Staff received ongoing training and support in their role to promote effective care.
People were given choice and flexibility around their care arrangements.
The registered manager and staff worked in partnership with people to provide services which were personalised, responsive and met people's needs.
There were policies in place to manage people's complaints and the registered manager investigated all concerns thoroughly when they arose.
Staff were competent, confident and caring in their role. People were treated with dignity and respect and staff gave them choices about how their care was delivered.
The registered manager was fully involved in the day to day running of the service. They understood people's needs and were responsive to feedback when given.
The registered manager carried out a series of checks to monitor the quality and safety of the service and worked in partnership with other stakeholders to provide support and resources to people.
Further information is in the detailed findings below.