Archived: St John's Cottage

Updated 30 June 2016

We carried out this inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 as part of our regulatory functions. This inspection was planned to check whether the provider is meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Health and Social Care Act 2008, to look at the overall quality of the service, and to provide a rating for the service under the Care Act 2014.

This inspection took place on 21 and 25 April 2016 and was announced. We gave 24 hours’ notice as it is a small home for eight people who are often out at their activities and we needed to be sure people would be in.

The inspection was carried out by one inspector.

We gathered and reviewed information about the service before the inspection, including notifications we had received from the provider. This is information the provider is required by law to tell us about. We reviewed the provider information return (PIR) and used this information when planning and undertaking the inspection. The provider also sent us information immediately after the inspection.

During the inspection we spoke with eight people about their experiences of living in the home. We also spoke with four support staff, the operations manager and the cluster manager who oversaw the management of St Johns Cottage along with two other homes. We looked at care records and associated risk assessments for three people, management records and four staffing records.

The service had previously been inspected on 13 September 2013 and met the requirements of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2010.

Updated 30 June 2016

The inspection took place on 21 and 25 April 2016 and was announced. St John’s Cottage is a small care home located in Sevenoaks and provides accommodation and personal care for up to eight people with learning disabilities.

The home is a detached property located near Sevenoaks Town Centre. At the time of our inspection there were eight people living at the home some of whom required support to manage health conditions such as diabetes. The service did not have 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. Interim management arrangements were in place to cover the service whilst recruitment to the post was in progress and the provider’s operations manager had submitted an application to be the new registered manager.

Although people told us they felt safe, we found that one person had not been given the correct amount of medicine because the registered provider had not ensure that there was safe management and administration of medicines.

The registered provider had not ensured that monitoring checks and audits undertaken were effective, identified concerns and led to improvement.

Staff knew how to protect people from abuse and harm and were clear about their responsibilities. Risk assessments were person centred and gave staff clear guidance regarding people’s individual needs. Staffing levels were based on people’s support needs and were reviewed in line with people’s changing needs. Records showed that recruitment procedures were followed to ensure staff were suitable to work with people.

Staff knew people well and provided effective care that was based on detailed guidelines and effective communication. Staff received guidance, support and training according to people’s needs. We observed that staff sought people’s consent before providing care and support. Staff and management understood and followed the principles of the Mental Capacity Act 2005.

People were supported to eat a balanced diet that met their needs and preferences and received care and support that promoted their health and wellbeing. People were referred to health care professionals when needed and there were strong links with a wide range of health professionals.

Relationships between people and staff were positive and people were respected and treated with dignity. People were encouraged to be involved in all aspects of the home and their independence valued and supported. Care and support was based on people's preferences, likes and dislikes. People led active lives and were supported to maintain their relationships and undertake a range of activities. People’s support plans were reviewed regularly and updated when their needs changed to ensure they received the support they required. People’s feedback was actively sought and there were a range of ways people could give feedback or raise a complaint. The provider had developed effective links with organisations that helped them develop best practice and opportunities for people.

We found two breaches of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014. You can see what action we told the provider to take at the back of the full version of this report.