Archived: Gosmore Nursing and Care Centre

Updated 13 March 2020

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 Care Act 2014.

Inspection team:

The inspection was carried out by two 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:

Gosmore Nursing and Care Centre is a 'care home'. People in care homes receive accommodation and nursing or personal care as single package under one contractual agreement. CQC regulates both the premises and the care provided, and both were looked at during this inspection.

The service had a manager who was registered with the Care Quality Commission. A registered manager and the provider are legally responsible for how the service is run and for the quality and safety of the care provided. Gosmore Nursing and Care Centre is in administration. Barchester Homes were assisting the Administrators to operate the care home until it closes. The regional manager was providing provider oversight to the home.

Notice of inspection

This inspection was unannounced.

What we did before the 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 did not request a provider information return. This is information providers are required to send us with key information about their service, what they do well, and improvements they plan to make. This information helps support our inspections. We used all of this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

We spoke with 10 people who used the service and five relatives about their experience of the care provided. We spoke with the registered manager, regional manager and five members of staff. We used the Short Observational Framework for Inspection (SOFI). SOFI is a way of observing care to help us understand the experience of people who could not talk with us.

We reviewed a range of records. This included four people’s care records and various medication records. A variety of records relating to the management of the service were reviewed.

After the inspection

We continued to seek clarification from the provider to validate evidence found. We looked at quality assurance records.

Updated 13 March 2020

About the service

Gosmore Nursing and Care Centre is a residential care home providing personal care to 22 people at the time of the inspection. The service can support up to 70 people.

Gosmore Nursing and Care Centre is in administration. A supporting provider, Barchester Group, had been instructed by the Administrators to operate the care home until the home closes.

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

People were happy with the care and support they received. Staff were kind, friendly and attentive to people’s needs. People told us there were enough staff to meet their needs. Staff felt that there were enough of them to meet people’s needs in a person-centred way. Staff were trained and felt well supported.

People felt safe and staff were aware of how to promote people’s safety. Regular checks were in place to ensure staff worked in accordance with training and health and safety guidance adhered to. Accidents and incidents were reviewed to help identify any themes or concerns. This included a ‘safety cross’, which was a visual aid to the management team to help see what part of the home incidents had occurred.

There were some governance systems in place and these were being used effectively and regularly. However, when the provider, Four Seasons, ceased to operate the home on 10 December 2019, access to their governance systems stopped. The supporting provider was adapting their audits to match Four Seasons policies to provide governance in this period. The management structure in the home made staff feel they had guidance and support. Staff felt this had very much improved since our last inspection.

There was plenty of communal space for people to enjoy, staff were aware of areas that were cold on the day due to a draft and supported people to use different rooms, for example for activities. People who were participating in the activities that were provided told us they enjoyed them.

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 information in the capacity assessments was clear and showed that people had been given the right information to help them be involved in the process.

People were involved in planning their care , along with their relatives. People had end of life care plans in place. Complaints were responded to appropriately, and there had been no recent complaints. Feedback was sought through meetings and the registered manager was around the home frequently speaking with people and relatives.

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

The last rating for this service was Inadequate (published 23 August 2019). At this inspection the service has improved to Requires improvement.

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.

This service has been in Special Measures since 23 August 2019. During this inspection the provider demonstrated that improvements had been made. The service is no longer rated as inadequate overall or in any of the key questions. Therefore, this service is no longer in Special Measures.

Why we inspected

This was a planned inspection based on the previous rating.

Follow up

We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service until we return to visit as per our re-inspection programme depending on if the home closes. If we receive any concerning information we may inspect sooner.