Seacliff Care Home

Updated 25 April 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

Seacliff is a ‘care home’. People in care homes receive accommodation and nursing and/or personal care as a single package under one contractual agreement dependent on their registration with us. Seacliff is a care home without nursing care. 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 the Care Quality Commission 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 service improvement and safeguarding teams. The provider completed a Provider Information Return (PIR) prior to this inspection. A PIR is information providers send us to give some key information about the service, what the service does well and improvements they plan to make. We used all this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

We spoke with 4 people who used the service and 2 relatives about their experience of the care provided. We spoke with 8 members of staff including the registered manager, deputy manager, quality and compliance lead, care team leader, health care assistants and the provider. We made observations throughout the day of interactions between people and staff.

We reviewed a range of records. This included 4 people's care records and medication records. We looked at 2 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.

Updated 25 April 2023

About the service

Seacliff Care Home is a residential care home registered to provide care and support to up to 24 people. The service provides support to older people some of whom were living with dementia. At the time of our inspection there were 21 people using the service.

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

Improvements had been made to the quality assurance and oversight processes within the home. A variety of audits and checks meant there was consideration to continual improvement. Medicines procedures were strengthened, and good practice guidance was key to the improvements made.

People, their relatives and staff told us Seacliff Care Home was a safe place to be. There were enough staff on duty, and they had been recruited using robust, safe processes. Staff knew how to identify, and report concerns about people, they were confident matters would be followed up.

People had risk assessments in place for all their care and support. Assessments were reviewed regularly and supported people to live their life the way they wanted to. 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 were protected from avoidable infections; the home was clean and hygiene processes were in place. Accidents and incidents were recorded and reviewed to ensure lessons were learned within the home.

Staff felt appreciated and proud to work at Seacliff Care Home. They were complimentary about the leadership of the home and their colleagues. The registered manager understood their regulatory responsibilities.

Staff knew and understood their job role and tasks were defined. The home sought to work in partnership with a range of external professionals including making links within their local community. Seacliff Care Home actively sought feedback on the quality of the care provided and used the information to continually improve.

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

Rating at last inspection and update

The last rating for this service was requires improvement (published 3 February 2022). The provider completed an action plan after the last inspection to show what they would do and by when to improve. At this inspection we found improvements had been made and the provider was no longer in breach of regulations.

At our last inspection we recommended that the provider follow good practice guidelines for the safe management of medicines. At this inspection we found the provider had acted on the recommendation and were operating safe practices.

Why we inspected

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

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 requires improvement to good based on the findings of this inspection.

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.

Follow up

We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service, which will help inform when we next inspect.