Sandown Park Care Home

Updated 4 March 2018

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.

Our inspection took place on 9 January and 10 January 2018 and was unannounced.

Our inspection was completed by two adult social care 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. Our expert-by-experience had knowledge of people living with dementia.

We reviewed information we already held about the service. This included notifications we had received. A notification is information about important events which the service is required to send us by law. We also checked feedback we received from members of the public, local authorities and clinical commissioning groups (CCGs). We checked records held by Companies House, the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) and the local fire inspectorate.

We spoke with eight people who used the service and seven relatives who visited during our inspection.

We spoke with the registered manager, the deputy manager, the administrator, the receptionist, three activities coordinators and the maintenance person. We also spoke with five registered nurses and seven care workers about people’s support and treatment. We spoke with the GP, a visiting social worker, a vicar and a representative from the CCG.

We looked at seven people’s care records, two staff personnel files and other records about the management of the service. After the inspection, we asked the registered manager to send us further documents and we received and reviewed this information. This evidence was included as part of our inspection.

Updated 4 March 2018

Our inspection took place on 9 January and 10 January 2017 and was unannounced.

Sandown Park Care Home is a 'care home'. People in care homes receive accommodation and nursing or personal care as a single package under one contractual agreement. We regulate both the premises and the care provided, and both were looked at during this inspection.

Sandown Park Care Home can accommodate 95 people across three floors, each of which has separate adapted facilities. The service cares for adults, including people living with dementia. The premises are modern and purpose-built. People live in their own bedrooms and have access to communal facilities such as a dining, lounge and activities areas. There is an expansive landscaped sensory garden surrounding the building. At the time of our inspection, there were 84 people living at the service.

The provider is required to have a registered manager as part of their conditions of registration. 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. At the time of our inspection, there was a registered manager in post.

The risk of harm to people was significantly reduced by the systems and processes in place at the service. This included prevention of harm by abuse, neglect, discrimination, injuries and accidents. People’s care documentation and the support they received ensured their maximum safety. When harm occurred, this was swiftly acted on and the service used any incident as a point for reflection and to put strategies in place to prevent similar events in the future. There was a safe amount of staff deployed and robust recruitment processes. People were protected from the risk of infections. The service was clean and well-maintained. The management of people’s medicines was robust.

The service was compliant with the requirements of the Mental Capacity Act 2005 (MCA) and associated codes of practice. People were assisted 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 practise.

Staff induction, training, supervision and performance appraisals were extensive and ensured workers had the necessary knowledge and skills to effectively support people. People’s care preferences, likes and dislikes were assessed, recorded and respected. We found there was appropriate access to other community healthcare professionals. People were supported to maintain a very healthy lifestyle. People complimented the food and drink and we found the risks of malnutrition and dehydration were satisfactorily managed.

The service remained very caring. There was overwhelming complimentary feedback from people who used the service, their family and community healthcare professionals. People told us they were able to participate in care planning and reviews and we saw evidence of decision-making that promoted people’s independence. People’s privacy and dignity was respected when care was provided to them. We observed respectful care by staff.

The service continued to provide outstanding person-centred care. Care plans were thorough and contained information of how to support people in the best possible way. We saw there was complaints system in place which included the ability for people to contact any staff member or the management team. Questionnaires were used to determine people’s satisfaction with the care. People and their families had a say in the everyday decision-making and operation of the service.

The service was run by a committed management duo and care was provided by a passionate, effective team of staff. There were numerous positive opinions about the management and leadership of the service. There was an excellent workplace culture and we saw the staff worked cohesively to ensure good care for people. The turnover rate of staff was low, which demonstrated staff liked to work at Sandown Park Care Home. Audits and checks were used to gauge the safety and quality of care. The provider met the conditions of registration and complied with other relevant legislation related to the adult social care sector.

The service consistently strived to ensure that people had the best possible care, and that they were supported in a compassionate, dignified and safe way. The service had forged successful partnerships with an array of other stakeholders, was actively involved in research and innovation and aimed to provide an excellent care experience for people. The service frequently referred to best practise guidelines to formulate the type and style of care provided for people. Learning from projects and studies at the service were shared with other care operators, both locally and nationally. The service's staff were often nominated for, and commended in, national care sector awards. These factors demonstrated that Sandown Park Care Home was a outstanding service for adult residential social care in England.