We carried out a review of the data available to us about Victoria Lodge Care Home on 6 July 2023. We have not found evidence that we need to carry out an inspection or reassess our rating at this stage.
This could change at any time if we receive new information. We will continue to monitor data about this service.
If you have concerns about Victoria Lodge Care Home, you can give feedback on this service.
We found the following examples of good practice.
¿ A visitor protocol was in place. On arrival at the home the temperature of visitors was recorded. A lateral flow test and a risk assessment were completed to ensure visits took place safely.
¿ People were supported to maintain contact with others who were important to them. A visiting pod had been built in the rear garden. The pod was divided by a Perspex screen which meant people were able to see and talk to their visitors in a safe and comfortable environment.
¿ People were supported to maintain contact with their chosen faith groups in a variety of ways including watching religious services via the internet. This had a positive impact on people's wellbeing.
¿ A senior care worker was a 'Mental health first aider.' They were trained to spot signs of mental ill health amongst the staff team and take action to support positive wellbeing. A confidential helpline was available for staff to seek advice and support.
¿ The hours staff worked had been reviewed and amended which made staff feel supported. Staff had received training from a variety of bespoke training providers to ensure they had the knowledge and skills they needed to provide safe care to people during the pandemic.
¿ Staff uniforms remained at the home and were laundered at the end of each shift. This practice minimised the transmission of Covid-19.
¿ Cleaning schedules had been increased and additional audits had been implemented to monitor cleanliness and staff compliance with the provider's infection control policy.
Victoria Lodge Care Home provides accommodation and personal care for a maximum of 24 older people, some of whom may be living with dementia. At the time of our inspection there were 23 people living at the location.
People’s experience of using this service:
The service has a strong, visible person-centred culture. Staff and management were fully committed to providing an exceptional level of person-centred care. They were proactive in identifying and implementing creative resources to support people living at the location.
Staff demonstrated an in-depth understanding of people’s personal and individual needs. People valued the staff team’s caring and compassionate approach, and related to staff on a meaningful personal level.
The provider and staff were highly motivated to support people in a caring, compassionate and empowering way.
The provider had a proven track record of being an excellent role model, actively seeking and responding to the views of others through creative and innovative methods. They have developed and sustained a positive culture for people and staff to raise issues and concerns, which they act upon.
There was a strong emphasis on continually striving to improve the service and maintain high sustainable standards of care. The provider’s vision and values were strongly embedded in a person-centred culture which placed people firmly at the heart of the service.
The provider worked in partnership with other organisations to ensure they were following current practice and providing high quality care. They strived for excellence through consultation and reflective practice.
People were kept safe and secure from the risk of harm. Potential risks to people had been assessed and managed appropriately by the provider. People received their medicines safely and as prescribed and were supported by sufficient numbers of staff to ensure that risk of harm was minimised.
Staff had been recruited appropriately and had received relevant training, so they were able to support people with their individual care and support needs.
Staff sought people’s consent before providing care and support. People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible; the policies and systems in the service supported this practice.
People were treated with kindness and compassion. People’s right to privacy was respected by the staff who supported them and their dignity was maintained. People were supported to express their views and be actively involved in making decisions about their care and support needs.
People’s choices and independence were respected and promoted. Staff responded appropriately to people’s support needs. People received care from staff that knew them well.
People using the service were confident about approaching the registered manager if they needed to. The provider had effective auditing systems in place to monitor the effectiveness and quality of service provision. The views of people on the quality of the service was gathered and used to support service development.
Rating at last inspection:
At our last inspection in January 2017 we rated the service as outstanding. At this inspection we rated the provider as outstanding.
Why we inspected:
This was a planned inspection based on the rating at the last inspection. The service is now rated as outstanding overall.
Follow up:
We will continue to monitor intelligence we receive about the service until we return to visit as per our inspection programme. If any concerning information is received we may inspect sooner.
Victoria Lodge Care Home is a residential care home which provides accommodation with personal care for up to 24 older people. At the time of our inspection 22 people were living at the home.
A registered manager was in place. 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 and associated Regulations about how the service is run.
People living in Victoria Lodge were very happy with the service they received because they felt safe, comfortable and valued by the staff that supported them. The registered manager and provider provided very strong leadership that ensured that people were at the centre of everything that was done. The registered manager and provider led by example and ensured the development of an ethos and culture where people were valued as individuals and where they were supported to feel at home. This helped people to feel a sense of belonging and being valued.
The registered manager carried out audits and checks to ensure the home was running properly to meet people's needs and to monitor the quality of the care people received. The provider was involved in the home on a daily basis and knew people and their relatives personally and showed a keen interest in their well being. There were close links with the local community shops and services so that people were able to do everyday things such as shopping. The registered manager was involved in supporting local schools to develop their students' interests in the needs of people that received care in an effort to encourage them to consider a career in health and social care. Improvements were identified through consultation with people, relatives and professionals involved in the home. For example, the provider had planned to provide accommodation for relatives to use so that they could be close to their loved ones when they were unwell. This showed that the provider placed a high value on meeting the needs of people and their relatives.
People received care that was kind and compassionate, tailored to the individual and provided by staff that were respectful, trained, well supported and managed to ensure that people received an excellent caring service. Relationships with families and friends were cherished and developed so that people were able to maintain and develop their ties with people important to them. Friends and families built relationships with other people living in the home and often continued to visit them after their own family members had passed away. This provided people living in the home with a continuation of friendships and interactions with a wide group of people that were interested in them as individuals and that enhanced their quality of life. Staff had been commended by relatives about the support they and their loved ones had received during the difficult times at the end of their loved one’s lives.
People were supported to eat in a calm and supportive environment that provided opportunity to socialise as well as eat. People received food and drinks that they liked and that met their dietary needs. A freshly prepared meal was available to people in the home on a daily basis and some people were able to be involved in the mealtime experience through baking, setting the tables and clearing up after meals. People were enabled to eat at times that suited their needs and a freshly prepared meal available at most times during the day.
Staff told us they liked working in the home because they had time to spend with people supporting them in the way they [people] wanted. Staff treated people professionally but also that showed that people were valued and important to them through the way they were spoken with, offering reassurance through hugs and holding people’s hand if appropriate. Staff felt supported by the registered manager and provider and were supported through training and meetings where their views were listened to. Staff were encouraged to develop their skills so that they could develop their professionalism and take additional responsibilities in the home. Many of the staff had worked there for several years providing people with a continuity of care.
Staff were responsive to changes in people’s needs ensuring that their physical, social and emotional needs were met. People’s ability to make decisions was assessed and where people lacked the mental capacity to consent to their care and welfare actions were taken in their best interests. There were excellent communications with other professionals involved in people’s care and people’s friends and relatives ensuring that all the relevant individuals were involved in meeting people’s needs. The provider had taken suitable action when they had identified people who did not have capacity to consent to their care or treatment and applications had been made to authorise restrictions on people's liberty in their best interests.
People were supported to be involved in activities that met their individual needs and skills. These activities were available in group settings and on a one to one basis both in the home or out in the community.
People told us they had no complaints about the service they received but were confident if they did, that the provider would deal with it effectively. No complaints had been raised but we saw there was a complaints process in place.
People and relatives told us they felt the Victoria Lodge was a safe and homely environment for people to live in. People were protected from abuse because staff could identify the different types of abuse and knew what actions to take to report abuse. Risks to people were being monitored and staff were supported to minimise the risk of injury whilst enabling people to maintain a safe level of independence. People and relatives were encouraged to be involved in the home and voice their opinions about proposed developments.
We saw staff were busy but there were sufficient staff available to provide support to people when needed. This included support for people to eat, drink and move around the home safely and to be involved in activities that they wanted to be involved in. The provider’s recruitment processes ensured suitable staff were recruited.
At the last inspection although no regulations had been breached, some improvement was required in respect of some aspects of the management of medicines. At this inspection we found all the required improvements had been made and people received their medicines as prescribed.
This inspection took place on 1 April 2015 and was unannounced. We last inspected this service on 18 January 2014 when the service was compliant with all regulations inspected.
The service can provide care and accommodation to up to 24 people with ailments associated with old age but who do not require nursing care. All bedrooms are singly occupied and have en suite facilities available. Bedrooms are provided over two floors but a passenger lift connects the floors so that people with reduced mobility can access the home throughout.
There was a registered manager in post. 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.
All the people and relatives spoken with were complimentary about the home and staff and were happy with the service provided.
Staff had the skills and knowledge to recognise if abuse was occurring and knew how to escalate any concerns they had.
People were protected from unnecessary harm because systems were in place to identify, assess and minimise identified risks.
There were sufficient numbers of suitably trained staff to ensure that people’s needs were met and staff had time to chat with people. There were friendly and supportive interactions between the staff and people that lived there.
People were supported to receive their medicines however it could not always be assured that people had received their medicines as prescribed because of poor recording.
People and their relatives were involved in making decisions about people’s care so that their rights were upheld and support was provided in the way people wanted. People were supported to maintain contact with relatives and friends.
People received food and drink that met their needs and preferences. People were supported to access medical support as and when required so that they remained as healthy as possible.
There were group and individual activities arranged for people to be involved in if they wanted.
The registered manager and provider were available to people and their relatives so that any concerns they had could be raised and addressed appropriately.
Systems were in place that ensured that the views of people were used to improve the service on an ongoing basis.
People told us and we saw that staff respected their privacy and dignity and that they were given choices about their care. One person told us, 'I cannot praise the staff enough. They are kind considerate and very helpful'. This meant people were happy with their care.
People's care and health care needs were planned and met in a personalised way. All staff spoken with told us they had the information they needed to care for people safely.
People spoken with told us that they were given a choice about what they wanted to eat each day. We saw that all meals were homemade. One person told us, 'The food is very good we get plenty to eat and drink, any time we ask'.
Staff were clear about the action to take should they become aware of an allegation of abuse in the home. All relatives and the people we spoke with told us they felt secure and knew who to tell if they had concerns and were confident that these would be acted upon.
There were effective systems in place to reduce the risk and spread of infection. One person told us, 'It always smells nice here'
There were systems in place to monitor how the home was run, and action taken where feedback from the people using the service would improve the service provided to them.
People were happy with the standard of care that they were receiving. One person commented " Staff are nice and friendly, I am well looked after". Another person that we spoke with told us 'The care is good I am very happy".
People told us that they were afforded dignity and respect and independence was promoted.
Care plans and risk assessment were in place to support people's needs and care was person centred.
Safeguarding procedures were in place and staff were confident that they would recognise and report any allegations of abuse.
Staff were supported, supervised and trained to provide safe and effective care.
There was an effective complaints system available so that complaints people made could be responded to appropriately.