Wimbledon House Residential Care Home

Updated 4 February 2023

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 Health and Social Care Act 2008.

As part of this inspection we looked at the infection control and prevention measures in place. This was conducted so we can understand the preparedness of the service in preventing or managing an infection outbreak, and to identify good practice we can share with other services.

Inspection team

The inspection was carried out by 1 inspector.

Service and service type

Wimbledon House Residential Care Home is a ‘care home’. People in care homes receive accommodation and nursing and/or personal care as a single package under 1 contractual agreement dependent on their registration with us. Wimbledon House Residential Care Home is a care home without nursing care. The Care Quality Commission (CQC) regulates both the premises and the care provided, and both were looked at during this inspection.

Registered Manager

This provider is required to have a registered manager to oversee the delivery of regulated activities at this location. A registered manager is a person who has registered with CQC to manage the service. Registered managers and providers are legally responsible for how the service is run, for the quality and safety of the care provided and compliance with regulations.

At the time of our inspection there was a registered manager in post.

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. We used the information the provider sent us in the provider information return (PIR). This is information providers are required to send us annually with key information about their service, what they do well, and improvements they plan to make. We used all this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

We spoke with 6 people living at the service and 2 relatives. We spoke with 8 staff including the registered manager and general manager. We spoke with the nominated individual. The nominated individual is responsible for supervising the management of the service on behalf of the provider. We reviewed a range of records. This included 4 people's care plans, associated risk assessments and multiple medication records. We looked at 3 staff files in relation to recruitment, training and supervision. A variety of records relating to the management of the service, including policies and procedures were also reviewed.

Updated 4 February 2023

About the service

Wimbledon House Residential Care Home is a residential care home providing personal care to 29 people with mental health needs at the time of the inspection. Wimbledon House accommodates up to 34 people in one adapted building.

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

The registered manager did not ensure auditing systems and process were established and operated effectively. There was a lack of oversight by the registered manager over the day to day running of the service. There was no effective system to record and analyse accidents and incidents to ensure any patterns or trends could be monitored, identified and acted on.

Risk assessments, such as the risk of choking, were not sufficiently detailed. For example, there was no guidance for staff about what to do should a person begin to choke, in line with good practice. Whilst staff, who knew people well, had been trained in first aid, the service was using agency staff and recruiting new staff. This meant there was a risk staff who were unfamiliar would not know what action to take.

When people were at risk of constipation, there was insufficient guidance for staff about when the medication should be given or when to seek advice from a health care professional. Other risk, such as a possible deterioration in mental health were in place.

People were protected from the risks of abuse, and discrimination. Staff understood how to report concerns. People were supported by a consistent staff team who had been recruited safely.

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.

People told us they felt safe and happy living at the service. Equality and diversity were promoted by staff who treated people equally as individuals. People were encouraged to make suggestions about the day to day running of the service and their ideas were listened to and acted on.

People were supported to see health care professionals when needed. Staff worked closely with community psychiatric nurses, community nurses and GPs to make sure people received the support they needed.

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 March 2020).

Why we inspected

This inspection was prompted by a review of the information we held about this service.

We looked at infection prevention and control measures under the Safe key question. We look at this in all care home inspections even if no concerns or risks have been identified. This is to provide assurance that the service can respond to COVID-19 and other infection outbreaks effectively.

For those key questions not inspected, we used the ratings awarded at the last inspection to calculate the overall rating. The overall rating for the service has changed from good to requires improvement based on the findings of this inspection.

We have found evidence that the provider needs to make improvements. Please see the Well-led section of this report. You can see what action we have asked the provider to take at the end of this full report.

Enforcement and Recommendations

We have identified breaches in relation to good governance. Please see the action we have told the provider to take at the end of this report.

Follow up

We will request an action plan from the provider to understand what they will do to improve the standards of quality and safety. We will work alongside the provider and local authority to monitor progress. We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service, which will help inform when we next inspect.