Watford House Residential Home

Updated 22 April 2023

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 Health and Social Care Act 2008.

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 2 inspectors 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

Watford House is a ‘care home'. People in care homes receive accommodation and nursing and/or personal care as a single package under one contractual agreement dependent on their registration with us. Watford House is a care home without nursing care. CQC regulates both the premises and the care provided, and both were looked at during this inspection.

This provider is required to have a registered manager to oversee the delivery of regulated activities at this location. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. Registered managers and providers are legally responsible for how the service is run, for the quality and safety of the care provided and compliance with regulations.

At the time of our inspection there was a registered manager in post.

Notice of inspection

This inspection was unannounced.

What we did before inspection

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

During the inspection

We spoke with 9 people who used the service and 3 relatives about their experience of the care provided. We spoke with 7 members of staff including the registered manager, deputy manager, a senior care worker, care workers, the maintenance person and the chef.

We reviewed a range of records. This included 5 people’s care records and medication records. We looked at 2 staff files in relation to recruitment and staff supervision. A variety of records relating to the management of the service, including policies and procedures were reviewed.

Updated 22 April 2023

About the service

Watford House is a residential care home providing personal care to up to 43 people in one adapted building. The service provides support to older people and younger adults, some of whom may have a physical disability or a diagnosis of dementia. At the time of our inspection there were 40 people using the service.

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

People were protected from the risk of harm and abuse by a staff team who knew how to recognise and respond to safeguarding concerns. There were enough staff to meet people’s needs and these staff had been trained to assess and safely manage people’s risks. Since the last inspection, systems to monitor the safe management of medicines had improved and people received their medicines safely. Staff members had been trained to follow effective infection prevention and control procedures.

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 quality monitoring systems in place were also much improved and supported the registered manager in driving improvement and providing good quality care. People, their relatives and staff were consulted about the care they received and spoke positively of the registered manager.

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

Rating at last inspection and update

The last rating for this service was requires improvement (published 24 March 2022).

The provider completed an action plan after the last inspection to show what they would do and by when to improve. At this inspection we found improvements had been made and the provider was no longer in breach of regulations.

Why we inspected

This inspection was prompted by a review of the information we held about this service

We carried out an unannounced comprehensive inspection of this service on 1 March 2022. Breaches of legal regulations 12 (safe care and treatment) and 17 (good governance) were found. The provider completed an action plan after the last inspection to show what they would do and by when to improve

We undertook this focused inspection to check they had followed their action plan and to confirm they now met legal requirements. This report only covers our findings in relation to the Key Questions safe and well-led which contain those requirements.

For those key questions not inspected, we used the ratings awarded at the last inspection to calculate the overall rating. The overall rating for the service has changed from requires improvement to good. This is based on the findings at this inspection.

You can read the report from our last comprehensive inspection, by selecting the ‘all reports’ link for Watford House on our website at www.cqc.org.uk.

Follow up

We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service, which will help inform when we next inspect.