Longwood Grange

Updated 20 December 2023

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.

Inspection team

The inspection team consisted of 2 inspectors, 1 medicines inspector 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

Longwood Grange 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. Longwood Grange is a care home without nursing care. CQC regulates both the premises and the care provided, and both were looked at during this inspection.

Registered Manager

This provider is required to have a registered manager to oversee the delivery of regulated activities at this location. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. Registered managers and providers are legally responsible for how the service is run, for the quality and safety of the care provided and compliance with regulations.

At the time of our inspection there was a registered manager in post.

Notice of inspection

The inspection was unannounced.

What we did before the inspection

We reviewed the information we had received about the service since the last inspection. We sought feedback from the local authority, commissioners and Healthwatch Kirklees. Healthwatch is an independent consumer champion that gathers and represents the views of the public about health and social care services in England. We used the information the provider sent us in the provider 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 of this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

We spoke with 6 people who used the service and 5 relatives about their experience of the care provided. We spoke with 12 staff members including the quality compliance manager, registered manager, unit co-ordinator, carers, housekeeping and kitchen staff. We spoke with 1 healthcare professional who worked with the service.

We reviewed a range of records including 5 people's care records and multiple medication records. We looked at 3 staff files in relation to recruitment. We reviewed records relating to the management of the service, including policies, procedures and quality assurance records.

Updated 20 December 2023

About the service

Longwood Grange is a care home providing personal care for up to 34 people, some of whom are living with dementia. Accommodation is located on the first floor, with communal areas available on both the ground and first floor. At the time of our inspection there were 30 people using the service.

People’s experience of the service and what we found:

There were enough staff to meet people’s needs, however deployment of those staff was sometimes disorganised. Staff were recruited safely.

People had their care needs and risks assessed and they were protected from abuse and avoidable harm. Accidents and incidents were reported and managed appropriately and learning was used to improve the service. Medicines were managed safely.

Safe infection prevention and control (IPC) practices were in place. The environment was in need of refurbishment in places. The provider had a plan in place to address this.

The registered manager maintained good oversight of the service and engaged with people, relatives, staff, and external agencies. Quality assurance systems and processes were effectively used to drive service improvement. The service worked in collaboration with other health care professionals to achieve good outcomes for people.

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.

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]

The last rating for this service was requires improvement (published 05 July 2019) and there were breaches of regulation. The provider completed an action plan after the last inspection to show what they would do and by when to improve. At this inspection we found improvement had been made and the provider was no longer in breach of regulations.

At our last inspection we recommended the registered manager review the relevant guidance in relation to statutory notifications. At this inspection we found statutory notifications were being submitted as required.

Why we inspected

This inspection was prompted in part by a review of the information we held. When we last inspected Longwood Grange on 28 May 2019 and 03 June 2019 breaches of legal requirements were found. This inspection was undertaken to check whether they were now meeting the legal requirements.

We undertook a focused inspection to review the key questions of safe and well-led only. For those key question 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.

You can read the report from our last comprehensive inspection by selecting the 'all reports' link for Longwood Grange on our website at www.cqc.org.uk.

Recommendations

We have made a recommendation regarding staff deployment processes.

Follow Up

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