Little Paddocks

Updated 19 October 2021

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 Care Act 2014.

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

The inspection was carried out by one inspector.

Service and service type

Little Paddocks is a ‘care home’. People in care homes receive accommodation and nursing or personal care as a 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

We gave the service 48 hours’ notice of the inspection. This was because the service is small, and people are often out and we wanted to be sure there would be people at home to speak with us.

What we did before the inspection

We reviewed information we had received about the service since the last inspection. The provider was not asked to complete a provider information return prior to this inspection. This is information we require providers to send us to give some key information about the service, what the service does well and improvements they plan to make. We took this into account when we inspected the service and made the judgements in this report. We used all of this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

We spoke with three people who used the service and five relatives about their experience of the care provided. We spoke with six members of staff including the registered manager and support workers. We reviewed a range of records. This included three people’s care and medicines records, three staff files in relation to recruitment and staff supervision and a variety of records relating to the management of the service.

After the inspection

We continued to review the provider’s training and quality assurance documentation and we spoke with two professionals who have contact with the service.

Updated 19 October 2021

About the service

Little Paddocks is a residential care home providing accommodation and personal care for up to eight autistic people and people with a learning disability. At the time of the inspection eight people were living in the service.

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

The provider had processes in place to check staff were safely recruited; however, these processes were not always effective.

We have made a recommendation about the provider’s recruitment processes.

Relatives did not always feel involved in planning and reviewing people’s care or kept up to date about changes in the service. Relatives did not always feel their concerns had been responded to promptly by the provider.

The service had undergone several changes in management structure since the last inspection and a new registered manager had only recently come into post. People, relatives and staff spoke enthusiastically about the changes the registered manager had introduced and the positive impact this was starting to have on the service.

People told us they felt safe. Risks to people’s safety were assessed and staff knew how to report any concerns. There were enough staff available to meet people’s needs and staff received an induction and training relevant to their role. Staff told us they felt supported and valued.

Staff followed safe infection prevention and control processes and guidance was available to support staff during the COVID-19 pandemic. People received their medicines as prescribed and staff had received medicines training.

People told us the staff were kind and caring. 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.

The provider had systems in place to monitor the quality and safety of the service and worked effectively alongside other health professionals to meet people’s needs. People and relatives spoke positively about the culture and management of the service.

We expect health and social care providers to guarantee autistic people and people with a learning disability the choices, dignity, independence and good access to local communities that most people take for granted. Right Support, right care, right culture is the statutory guidance which supports CQC to make assessments and judgements about services providing support to people with a learning disability and/or autistic people.

The service was able to demonstrate how they were meeting the underpinning principles of Right support, right care, right culture.

The size of the service was in line with current best practice guidance and the homes were personalised to reflect people’s individual preferences. People were involved in making decisions about their home and told us they were happy living with their housemates. People were supported to make decisions about their daily care and staff understood people’s personal preferences and support needs. Staff promoted people’s independence and were respectful of their privacy and dignity. People were supported to find employment opportunities and to take part in activities within the local community. The new registered manager and staff team were working to make improvements to ensure people and relatives were fully involved in planning their care and to ensure people were supported to achieve good outcomes.

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 Good (published 6 June 2018).

Why we inspected

We undertook this inspection as part of a random selection of services rated Good and Outstanding to test the reliability of our new monitoring approach.

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.

Follow up

We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service until we return to visit as per our re-inspection programme. If we receive any concerning information we may inspect sooner.