Roop Cottage Residential Home

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• Overview
• Shared direction and culture
• Capable, compassionate and inclusive leaders
• Freedom to speak up
• Workforce equality, diversity and inclusion
• Governance, management and sustainability
• Partnerships and communities
• Learning, improvement and innovation

This key question has been rated requires improvement. There was a new management team in place and recent changes in governance and oversight arrangements had contributed to improvements in quality and safety. The manager was working effectively with the provider and people, relatives and staff to ensure improvements were continued and new processes embedded.

This service scored 61 (out of 100) for this area. Find out what we look at when we assess this area and How we calculate these scores.

Staff said they were involved in the day to day running of the home and they could make suggestions for change and improvements. A staff member said, “I suggested the PCS system instead of the paperwork, this was taken on board. Staff are now using the PCS system." A staff member said the visions and values of the home are, “The residents are the most priority." The provider told us processes were in place to develop a shared direction and culture. They told us they wanted to build on staff involvement in driving improvement across all areas of the home. They said, "We want to be more honest and for staff to feel they really add value and share new ideas."

Processes were in place to ensure a shared culture and direction were in place. The management team were visible and there were regular meetings and the manager attended daily handovers with the team. Meetings included the values of the team and discussions about the drive for improvement. The home's statement of purpose clearly stated the home's values.

Staff said the manager was very supportive, approachable and listened to them. Staff said they had regular team meetings. One staff member said the home is run well and things had improved recently. Comments included, " The new management team are working hard and putting in their 100%" and, "The current manager and deputy are amazing and things are better as they are supportive."

There was a new manager and deputy manager in place at the home. They had the skills and experience to lead the team. They were visible around the home and were working to establish good relationships with stakeholders, the staff team and people who used the service. They demonstrated a good understanding of the needs of the service. The manager was not registered with the Commission but they had commenced this process. They held regular meetings with the provider. There had been recent changes to how the home was managed which required embedding to ensure recent improvements which had been implemented were sustained.

Staff told us they were aware of the Whistleblowing Policy and would feel able to speak up if they had any concerns or worries. One staff member said, “First I will go to the manager, then to the local authority or CQC if needed."

There was a Whistleblowing Policy in place and a summary guidance sheet displayed for staff to advise how they could raise any concerns.

Staff told us they felt supported and encouraged by the new management team. The provider told us about examples of how they provided individualized support to staff, including additional workshops around communication and supporting opportunities for flexible working.

The provider had an up to date recruitment policy and employed a diverse staff team. Human resources processes were in place to ensure staff understood their rights as employees and confidential advice was available for staff. There was evidence such as regular meetings, handovers, flash meetings and supervisions to show staff were included in decision making. Consideration was given to staff' individual needs including opportunities for flexible working.

Staff told us they thought the home was well run and they had seen recent improvements. Staff said they would recommend the home. The provider told us they were in a transition phase which meant quality leads were focusing on different areas with the oversight of the manager and the provider. Plans were in place to further streamline audits.

There were updated processes in place to ensure there was effective oversight of the home. Whilst a lot of the audits were newly in place they had been effective in highlighting areas of improvement and areas were then put onto an overall service improvement plan. We saw timely action had been taken to address issues. Many of the governance processes had been recently introduced and required embedding to provide assurance they were fully effective. The provider employed a manager, deputy manager and 2 quality leads with specific areas of responsibility. A senior member of staff had also recently been employed to focus on medication administration and their role had driven improvements in the safety of medication administration. Audits were in place to cover all key areas of the care and support people received, staff knowledge and skills and the health and safety of the home. The provider had policies in place. They were basic and required further improvement. For example, the Medicines Policy did not have the required detail and did not reflect current best practice guidance and the Admissions Policy referred to nursing care and the provider did not employ nurses.

We did not receive any feedback from people and relatives about this quality statement.

The provider told us they worked collaboratively with the local authority and met with representatives monthly. The manager said, "We use their help whenever we can." The manager told us there were regular visits to the home from the local library service and good contacts with health and social care professionals. Plans were in place to increase the opportunities for further positive engagement within the community, including establishing links with local schools and the community center, which held regular coffee mornings and bingo sessions.

Partners described improvements in collaborative working and spoke highly of the new management team. One professional described the manager as "friendly and approachable." Another highlighted they thought they were experienced and felt assured they would continue to drive further improvement." Another partner said, "The manager has landed well with the staff and [name of manager] is positive."

The provider worked in partnership with the local authority contract and commissioning team. They worked closely with the local GP and health and social care professionals to ensure people's needs were met.

The provider told us they had focused on key elements relating to the safety of people's care and support but there was a drive and commitment to continue and develop this in order to further enhance people's lives. This included further improvements to the environment to make it more dementia friendly, including murals in the corridors, a sensory room and feature walls in people's individual bedrooms. The manager told us they were working with the local authority to review people's needs to ensure they were fully met. The manager spoke passionately about working closely with staff and increase their knowledge, skills and involvement in improvements. The manager said, "We want to grow in-house talent."

Processes were in place to ensure learning and improvement and over the course of the assessment we saw here had been improvements which improved the safety and quality of people's care and support. Improvements were required to processes such as incident and accident reporting and safeguarding events to ensure the provider robustly reviewed any potential wider themes and trends. Service Improvement Plans showed further plans the provider had for wider improvements to continue to enhance the experiences of people living at the service.