Woodlands Care Home

Updated 11 May 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.

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 two inspectors on the first day and two inspectors on the second day. An Expert by Experience made telephone calls to people’s relatives. 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

Woodlands care home 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. Woodlands care home 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 first day of inspection was unannounced. The second day of inspection was announced.

What we did before the inspection

We reviewed information we had received about the service since the last inspection. We sought 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 five people who used the service and ten relatives about their experience of the care provided. We spoke with seven members of staff including the registered manager, deputy manager, and four members of the care staff team. We reviewed a range of records. This included people's care records and associated medication records. We looked at three staff files in relation to recruitment and staff supervision. A variety of records relating to the management of the service, including audits, training matrix, policies and procedures were reviewed.

Updated 11 May 2023

About the service

Woodlands Care Home is a residential care home providing accommodation and personal care up to 56 people. The service provides support to people living with dementia and mental health. At the time of our inspection there were 42 people using the service.

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

The provider had not made sufficient improvement since the last inspection. Governance systems had not always identified the areas we found at this inspection. We identified continued concerns with care plans, risk management, and staff skills and competency.

People did not always receive their medicines in line with the prescribers’ instructions. Risks to people were not always managed and learning from accident and incidents had not identified themes or training needs off staff.

The environment was clean and tidy, but some furniture still required replacing to ensure it could be effectively cleaned.

People’s rooms were personalised, and people had a choice of communal and outdoor spaces to spend their time.

People were supported to access health care appointments. The mealtime experience was pleasant, and people told us they were happy with the food and choice available to them. The kitchen team were passionate about providing good quality food.

People were happy with the care and support they received. We received consistent positive feedback about the kind and caring nature of staff.

Staff felt supported by the management team and there was good staff morale at the service.

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 08 July 2019)

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 the provider remained in breach of regulations.

Why we inspected

This inspection was prompted by a review of the information we held about this service.

We carried out an unannounced comprehensive inspection of this service on 18 July 2019. Breaches of legal requirements were found. The provider completed an action plan after the last inspection to show what they would do and by when to improve.

We undertook this focused inspection to check they had followed their action plan and to confirm they now met legal requirements. This report only covers our findings in relation to the Key Questions Safe, Effective and Well-led which contain those requirements.

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 remained Requires Improvement. This is based on the findings at this inspection.

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

Enforcement and Recommendations

We have identified breaches in relation to risk management, medicines, and governance plain at this inspection.

Please see the action we have told the provider to take at the end of this report.

Follow up

We will request an action plan from the provider to understand what they will do to improve the standards of quality and safety. We will work alongside the provider and local authority to monitor progress. We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service, which will help inform when we next inspect.