Salford House

Updated 25 December 2019

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.

Service and service type

Salford House 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 who was also the provider. This means that they are legally responsible for how the service is run and for the quality and safety of the care provided.

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. This included details about incidents the provider must notify us about, such as serious injuries. We sought feedback from the local authority and professionals who work with the service. We also sought feedback from Healthwatch. Healthwatch is an independent consumer champion that gathers and represents the views of the public about health and social care services in England. 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

We spoke with seven people who used the service, two relatives and two family friends about their experience of the care provided. We spent time with people in communal areas, observing interactions and support they received from staff. We spoke with the registered manager, the lead senior carer, a senior member of care staff, two members of care staff, the activities co-ordinator, the housekeeper, the cook, a healthcare professional, the owner and a director. The owner was also 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. These included three people’s care and medication records. We also looked at a variety of records relating to the management of the service, including quality audits and training records.

After the inspection

We continued to seek clarification from the registered manager to validate evidence found. We also spoke with another healthcare professional about their experience of the care provided.

Updated 25 December 2019

About the service

Salford House is a residential home providing personal care to 25 older people. There were 23 bedrooms spread across three floors. Two of these could be used as shared rooms. At the time of our inspection there were 18 people living at the home. Some of these people were living with dementia.

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

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 were particularly responsive to people’s individual wishes and preferences and staff went out of their way to ensure people received personalised care.

There was a relaxed and friendly atmosphere in the home and people told us staff were kind and treated them with dignity and respect. We saw warm and friendly interactions between people and staff, and staff told us they enjoyed working at the home. Staff had the right skills to meet people’s needs.

People told us they were protected from avoidable harm and felt safe at Salford House. Staff understood their responsibilities to keep people safe and were confident the registered manager would investigate any concerns thoroughly.

Risks to people’s health and wellbeing had been identified, assessed and monitored. Records contained guidance to staff on how to manage risks and staff understood these. Medicines were ordered, received, stored, administered and disposed of safely. People told us staff followed good infection control processes and the home was clean and tidy.

There was a robust recruitment procedure which prevented unsuitable staff from working with vulnerable adults. People told us there were enough skilled staff to meet their health, emotional and social needs. Staff told us they had time to spend with people and we saw this during our visit.

People had enough to eat and drink and gave positive feedback about the food. Guidance was provided in care plans about how to encourage people to maintain a healthy diet and their nutritional needs had been assessed. People could eat when, where and what they wanted to.

People's needs, and preferences had been assessed before they moved into the home. People’s care and support was planned in partnership with them, those closest to them and appropriate health professionals. Records showed referrals had been made to other healthcare professionals when necessary to ensure people remained well.

The registered manager completed regular checks to ensure people received high quality and compassionate care. Where improvements were identified, action had been taken or was planned.

People knew how to complain and were confident they would be listened too. Staff provided positive feedback about the management of the home.

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 3 June 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.