Archived: Dane End House

Updated 16 December 2020

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.

As part of CQC’s response to care homes with outbreaks of coronavirus, we are conducting reviews to ensure that the Infection Prevention and Control (IPC) practice was safe and the service was compliant with IPC measures. This was a targeted inspection looking at the IPC practices the provider has in place.

This inspection took place on 24 November 2020 and was unannounced.

Updated 16 December 2020

About the service

Dane End House is a residential care home providing personal care to five people at the time of the inspection. The service accommodates up to five people in one adapted house. People had a range of learning disabilities and some people required support with behaviour that challenged. Four people lived with hearing loss and all used British Sign Language (BSL) to communicate.

The service has been developed and designed in line with the principles and values that underpin Registering the Right Support and other best practice guidance. This ensures that people who use the service can live as full a life as possible and achieve the best possible outcomes. The principles reflect the need for people with learning disabilities and/or autism to live meaningful lives that include control, choice, and independence. People using the service receive planned and co-ordinated person-centred support that is appropriate and inclusive for them.

The building design fitted into the residential area. There were deliberately no identifying signs, intercom, cameras, industrial bins or anything else outside to indicate it was a care home. Staff were also discouraged from wearing anything that suggested they were care staff when coming and going with people.

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

People were happy living at Dane End House. There was a positive atmosphere and person-centred culture. Staff focused on people’s wellbeing and ensured all their needs were met in the most appropriate ways. People could be who they wanted to be and were fully involved in all aspects of their care. People were supported to become more independent in line with their wishes. People’s privacy and dignity was promoted.

People’s care was entirely person centred. People were supported to understand their choices and had control of their life’s. There was positive risk management which ensured people were not unnecessarily restricted. People were supported to achieve their goals. People’s communication needs were met to ensure they were fully engaged with their care. People were supported to develop relationships and spend their time doing things they enjoyed. Some people were supported with employment.

The registered manager had developed an open culture and demonstrated strong leadership which had consistently ensured person centred and high-quality care. There was a strong, consistent and happy staff team who aimed to continuously improve the care people received. Quality assurance systems were used effectively to monitor and improve the service. People, relatives and staff were all engaged with the service and asked for their views. People were part of their local communities.

People felt safe and all risks to people were managed safely. People were protected from abuse and avoidable harm. Enough safely recruited and suitable staff were deployed to meet people’s needs. Medicines were managed safely and in line with good practice. Lessons were learnt from accidents and incidents and used to make improvements.

People's needs were fully assessed, and they received the care they needed to achieve the best quality of life from experienced and competent staff. Staff were well supported by the registered manager. People were involved with menu planning, shopping and meal preparations. People were supported to maintain their health and well-being. 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 service applied the principles and values of Registering the Right Support and other best practice guidance. These ensure that people who use the service can live as full a life as possible and achieve the best possible outcomes that include control, choice and independence. The outcomes for people using the service reflected the principles and values of Registering the Right Support by promoting choice and control, independence and inclusion. People's support focused on them having as many opportunities as possible for them to gain new skills and become more independent.

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

Rating at last inspection

The last rating for this service was Good (published 15 February 2017).

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. If we receive any concerning information we may inspect sooner.