Archived: Mercers Place

Updated 21 April 2015

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 unannounced inspection took place 22 January 2015 and was carried out by an inspector.

The provider completed a Provider Information Return (PIR). This is a form that asks the provider to give some key information about the service: what the service does well and improvements they plan to make.

We reviewed information we had received about the service such as notifications. This is information about important events which the provider is required to send us by law. We also looked at information sent to us from other stakeholders, for example the local authority and members of the public.

We spoke with four people who used the service, three members of care staff and the registered manager. We also spoke with three health and social care professionals about their views of the care provided.

People were able to communicate with us in different ways. Where people could not communicate verbally we used observations, spoke with staff, reviewed care records and other information to help us assess how their care needs were being met.

We observed two people’s care and reviewed their care records. This included their care plans, risk assessments and medication charts. We looked at records relating to the management of the service including two staff recruitment and training files and systems in place for assessing and monitoring the quality of the service. For example, health and safety records, internal audits and information about compliments and complaints.

Updated 21 April 2015

We inspected this service on the 22January 2015 and this inspection was unannounced. Mercers Place provides support and care for up to for up to seven people who have a learning disability. At the time of our inspection there were five people living in the service.

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.

People received care that was personalised to them and met their needs and aspirations. The atmosphere in the service was friendly and welcoming.

People felt safe, were treated with kindness, compassion and respect by the staff. People were supported to maintain their health and well-being and encouraged to attend appointments with other healthcare professionals.

Staff listened to people and acted on what they said. Staff knew how to recognise and respond to abuse correctly. People were protected from the risk of abuse because the provider had taken reasonable steps to identify the possibility of abuse and prevent abuse from happening. Staff understood how to minimise risks and provide people with safe care. Appropriate arrangements were in place to provide people with their medicines safely.

People were supported by sufficient numbers of staff with the knowledge and skills to meet their needs. Staff respected people’s privacy and dignity and interacted with people in a caring and respectful manner.

People were supported by the manager and staff to make decisions about how they led their lives and how they wanted to be supported. People voiced their opinions and had their care needs provided for in the way they wanted. Where they lacked capacity, appropriate actions had been taken to ensure decisions were made in the person’s best interests.

People were provided with a variety of meals and supported to eat and drink sufficiently. Staff encouraged people to be independent but where additional support was needed this was provided in a caring, respectful manner.

People were encouraged to pursue their hobbies and interests and participated in a variety of personalised, meaningful activities. People knew how to make a complaint and any concerns were acted on promptly and appropriately.

There was an open and transparent culture in the service. The manager planned, assessed and monitored the quality of care consistently. Systems were in place that encouraged feedback from people who used the service, relatives, and visiting professionals and this was used to make continual improvements to the service.