Archived: Pound Farm

Pound Farm provides accommodation and personal care for adults with a learning disability. It has the capacity for 15 people to live there in one of their five flats Acorn, Rowan, Beach, Sycamore and Cedars. At this inspection 14 people were living there.

A registered manager was in post and was present during our inspection. 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.

People were safe as staff had been trained and understood how to support people in a way that protected them from danger, harm and abuse. People were involved in their own risk assessments and were able to make informed choices about what they wanted to do.

There were enough staff to support people and to meet their needs. The provider had systems in place to adapt to the changing needs of people and to make provision for additional staffing when required. Before staff could start work the provider undertook checks to ensure they were safe to work with people.

The provider helped people to administer their own medicines. When people could not administer their own medicines they were supported by staff who were trained to safely administer medicines. The provider undertook checks to ensure people and staff were following safe procedures when administering medicines.

Staff had the skills and knowledge to meet people’s needs. Staff were supported in their roles by the provider and attended training that was relevant to the people they supported. Staff were supported by the provider and the registered manager who promoted an open and transparent culture.

People were involved in decisions about their day to day care. People were supported by staff who understood and took steps to ensure their rights were upheld. Staff provided care and support which was personalised and respected people’s likes and dislikes. People took part in activities they liked and found stimulating. People were involved in the day to day running of their home.

People were supported by staff who knew them well and had good relationships with them. Staff made sure people were involved in their own care and information was given to them in a way they could understand. People’s independence was encouraged and staff respected their privacy and dignity.

People had a choice of food to eat and were prompted to maintain a healthy balanced diet. People’s routine health needs were looked after and people had access to healthcare when they needed it.

People and staff felt able to express their views and felt their opinions mattered. The provider and registered manager undertook regular quality checks in order to drive improvements. The provider engaged people from another service to visit and complete quality checks as part of a peer review scheme. When needed improvements were made.

We were shown around the building by the registered manager. All areas of the building were furnished and maintained to a high standard. We observed that people were cared for in a clean and hygienic environment.

The accommodation was provided in five flats, each had a kitchen and lounge. Everyone was happy to show us their flat. They had their own rooms which were all well-furnished to meet their needs. Everyone had their own belongings and hobbies which they were keen to talk about. The bathroom and toilet facilities were well equipped and modern.

The morning we visited everyone was up and busy. People were attending classes, helping with the domestic tasks, working with the animals or out in the community. We observed the friendly and relaxed way the people and staff interacted. The staff showed people respect and made sure their dignity was maintained. We observed staff supporting people to undertake tasks and learning activities.

One member of staff we spoke with said, 'We try lots of different things with the people. Not everything is a success but we try to give them personalised care'. Another said, 'We get to know the people and then we can understand them. We get them involved in their own care and support them be as independent as possible'.

We were told by the staff that if they had any problems they could go to the manager and they would always help and support them.

People were positive about the care and support they received. There was a relaxed and friendly atmosphere. One person told us the staff were, 'Marvellous' and another person said, 'They are nice'. People who were unable to tell us their views verbally used various ways to show us they liked living at Pound Farm. The provider had arranged regular contact with an advocate to support people to have their voice heard.

People lived varied lives and chose how to spend their time. The records showed that the staff supported people to look after their health. People were encouraged to take part in a wide range of activities many of which made use of local community facilities.

The service had clear information available about the action to take if a person was at risk of harm due to abuse or neglect. Staff were trained so they would understand the local adult safeguarding procedures to follow if they needed to report any concerns. People told us they could tell the staff if something was wrong.

There were well organised recruitment procedures. This reduced the risk of unsuitable people being employed to work at the home.

There was information for people about how to make a complaint. People told us that they could tell the manager or staff if they were concerned or unhappy about anything.