Mills Meadow

Updated 30 August 2019

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.

Inspection team

The inspection was carried out by an inspector, an assistant 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

Mills Meadow is a ‘care home’. People in care homes receive accommodation and nursing or personal care as single package under one contractual agreement. CQC regulates both the premises and the care provided, and both were looked at during this inspection.

A registered manager was not in post. The deputy manager was currently acting up as general manager. The previous registered manager had recently left the home and a new manager had been appointed. Plans were in place to register them with the Care Quality Commission. A registered manager 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

This inspection was unannounced.

What we did before the inspection

We reviewed information we had received about the home since the last inspection. We sought feedback from the local authority and professionals who work with the home. We used the information the provider sent us in the provider information return. This is information providers are required to send us with key information about their service, what they do well, and improvements they plan to make. This information helps us support our inspections. We used all this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

We observed the care and support provided and the interaction between people and staff throughout our inspection. We spoke with eleven people who used the service, ten relatives, two visitors and one visiting professional about their experience of the care provided. We spoke with the deputy manager who was acting manager, the provider’s regional director and twelve members of staff, from the care, activities, catering and domestic teams. We also spoke with the previously registered manager who came to support the deputy manager during the inspection and still works for the provider.

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

After the inspection

We received information requested as part of the inspection and electronic feedback from three professionals involved with the home and four relatives about the care provided.

Updated 30 August 2019

About the service

Mills Meadow is a registered care home with nursing providing personal care to up to 60 people. At the time of the inspection there were 53 people living in the home. Most of these people were older adults with needs associated with physical disability, dementia or long-term conditions. The home was not providing nursing care and was in the process of removing this regulated activity from its registration.

Mills Meadow is a purpose-built care home consisting of four separate wings; Queen Mary (residential dementia), Pembroke (residential), Castle Moat (residential) and Sheeran (dementia nursing care), each of which has separate adapted facilities.

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

People were exceptionally happy with the outstanding care they received from Mills Meadow. They shared numerous examples of the high-quality care that met and exceeded their individual needs, expectations, and enhanced their daily lives.

Feedback from relatives, visitors and professionals was equally complimentary describing dedicated and compassionate staff, who repeatedly went the extra mile to ensure people’s lives were filled with enjoyment, meaningful engagement and inclusion in the place they called home.

People were consistently treated with dignity and respect in a way that celebrated and championed them as individuals. They continued to be supported to maintain their health and to access relevant services. Staff were knowledgeable about people’s risks and how to care for them safely. They understood how to protect and safeguard people and demonstrated a positive attitude to reporting concerns.

Mills Meadow was a visible presence within the local community. Effective community links had been established, with different community groups regularly visiting the home and people accessing the local area through a wide range of activities. This contributed towards their enhanced wellbeing and sense of belonging.

Staff clearly understood their responsibilities and were passionate and dedicated in their roles. They actively engaged and included people and their relatives in the ongoing design and delivery of their care. This was in line with identified needs, best practice and continual developments in the home.

Feedback was welcomed, valued and acted on. People, relatives and professionals expressed confidence that they could raise issues or concerns with any member of staff or the management team and that these would be addressed.

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.

People’s medicines continued to be managed safely. The home was visibly clean throughout. There were enough staff with the right skills and experience to care and support people. When the time came staff respected people’s wishes and provided them with holistic, dignified, end of life care.

Since our last inspection, a visibly person-centered culture that consistently delivers high quality care and positive outcomes for people had been firmly established in Mills Meadow. People were held in the highest regard and at the centre of everything in the home. This was underpinned by the provider’s principles, values and expectations of staff and demonstrates the characteristics of an outstanding service.

Rating at last inspection

The last rating for this service was Good (published 07 September 2016).

Why we inspected

This was a planned inspection based on the previous rating.

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.

For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk