The Views

Updated 20 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 conducted by one inspector.

Service and service type

The Views is a ‘care home’. People in care homes receive accommodation and nursing or personal care as a 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 registered with the Care Quality Commission. This means that they and the provider are legally responsible for how the service is run and for the quality and safety of the care provided.

Notice of inspection

We gave the service 24 hours’ notice of the inspection. This was because the service is small, and people are often out. Some people could also become anxious when new people came into their home. We wanted to be sure there would be people at home to speak with, and that staff had time to prepare them for our visit.

What we did before inspection

We reviewed information we had received about the service since the last inspection. We used the information the provider sent us in the 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

Due to people’s complex communication needs, we were not able to speak with people about their views on the service. Therefore, we spent time observing interactions between people and staff, activities and meal-times to gather information about people’s experiences living at the Views. We spoke with four members of staff including the registered manager, a team leader and two care staff.

We reviewed a range of records. This included four people’s care records and multiple medication records. We looked at two 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.

After the inspection

We continued to seek clarification from the provider to validate evidence found. We spoke with two relatives and three professionals who regularly visit the service.

Updated 20 March 2020

About the service

The Views is a residential care home providing personal care for up to six people with learning disabilities. Some people had physical disabilities and were wheelchair users. At the time of inspection, five people were living at the service.

The Views is a six bedded bungalow, with all area’s wheelchair accessible for people. This included a large garden which people enjoyed in the warmer weather. People had their own large, personalised bedrooms and shared two bathrooms, with specialised bathing and shower facilities.

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.

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

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.

Staff went the extra mile to ensure that people had their own voice and were as involved as possible in their care and support. They were passionate about providing people with the tools they needed and preferred, to communicate. This included specialised technology and the use of social media. Activities were solely focused on people, their preferences and goals and had an extremely positive impact on their wellbeing. Relatives and staff told us how staff had gone above and beyond to ensure people’s preferences and wishes were met at the end of their lives.

People remained safe with support from staff who knew them, their support needs and risks to their wellbeing. We observed that staff constantly looked out for areas of risk and took immediate action to mitigate them. There were always enough staff to meet people’s needs and they were recruited safely.

Some people had complex medicines protocols, but these were well known by staff and medicines were given safely. The building was kept safe through a number of health and safety checks by staff and external professionals. A professional said, “The home is always clean and tidy and staff members respect that it is the resident’s 'home'.” When incidents occurred, actions were taken immediately to reduce reoccurrence.

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. Staff continuously asked people about their views and choices and these were documented.

Staff had the skills and knowledge to meet people’s needs and preferences. They had received specialised training, regular supervision and team meetings to ensure they were confident in their roles. People’s nutritional and hydrational needs continued to be met. They were supported with regular involvement from health and social care professionals, who spoke positively about the support people received.

There was a kind and caring culture at the Views. Relatives and professionals spoke highly about staff. We observed that people enjoyed spending time with staff and that strong relationships had been built. Staff were passionate about working with people. One staff member said, “Having worked in this field a while, I feel for the first time I am at home. It makes me so very enthusiastic about everything.”

People’s privacy, dignity and independence was promoted and respected. People’s views were continually sought, using a variety of tools to create a sensory experience and further understanding of choices about their care.

Relatives and professionals were complimentary about the registered manager and how the service was run. Staff described them as, “Lovely”, “Very supportive” and said, “Even if she’s not here, we can always phone her.” Staff told us they felt part of a warm, supportive, team-working culture, that centred around people’s quality of life every day. One staff member said, “I loved the culture from the moment I came here.”

Quality assurance processes were robust to give oversight of the service. The registered manager and team leader had ideas of how to continuously improve people’s lives and valued working in partnership with others to achieve this.

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 8 August 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.