Elliott House

Updated 21 July 2022

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 an inspector and an assistant inspector.

Service and service type

Elliott House is a ‘care home’. People in care homes receive accommodation and nursing or personal care as a single package under one contractual agreement. The Care Quality Commission (CQC) regulates both the premises and the care provided, and we looked at both during this inspection.

This service is required to have a registered manager. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. 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.

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 and the previous inspection report.

The provider was not asked to complete 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 of this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

Inspection activity started on 19 May 2022 and ended on 8 June 2022. We visited the home on 19 and 24 May 2022.

We are improving how we hear people’s experience and views on services, when they have limited verbal communication. We have trained some CQC team members to use a symbol-based communication tool. We checked that this was a suitable communication method, and that people were happy to use it with us. We did this by speaking to the registered manager and the person themselves. In this report, we used this communication tool with four people to tell us their experience. We sought their views about staffing, food, their bedroom and other aspects of their experience. The responses were all positive and no-one expressed any concerns.

We also spoke with three relatives, two staff and the registered manager. We looked at a range of records including three staff recruitment files and quality assurance audits.

Updated 21 July 2022

About the service

Elliott House is a residential care home providing personal care to up to nine people who live with a learning disability, autism and/or associated health needs. At the time of inspection, there were eight people living in the home.

We expect health and social care providers to guarantee autistic people and people with a learning disability the choices, dignity, independence and good access to local communities that most people take for granted. Right Support, right care, right culture is the statutory guidance which supports CQC to make assessments and judgements about services providing support to people with a learning disability and/or autistic people.

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

Based on our review of safe, effective and well-led the service was able to demonstrate how they were meeting the underpinning principles of Right support, right care, right culture. The service was maximising people’s choice, control and independence. The care was person-centred and promoted people’s dignity, privacy and human rights. The values and attitudes of the registered manager and staff ensured that people using the service lead confident, inclusive and empowered lives.

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.

Right Support

The registered manager considered people’s needs when deciding on staffing levels. There were enough staff to support people to go out to undertake activities and enjoy hobbies, as well as support people with their needs in the home.

People were supported to eat and drink enough and to make their own meals if they chose to. People were able to eat together at the same time but could also eat alone if they wished.

Right Care

Risk assessments were in place regarding risks to people’s health and safety. For example, risks were considered for people to undertake specific activities outside of the home. Systems were in place which ensured safety checks and maintenance were completed.

People were supported to access healthcare professionals, for example, their GP. People received their medicines as prescribed.

People’s needs were assessed before the provider offered people a service. The provider had a training programme in place which covered a range of topics, relevant to people’s needs.

Right Culture

The new registered manager and provider had responded positively to the concerns we raised in our previous report. Action had been taken immediately and the ethos and culture of the service had changed for the better. Therefore, outcomes for people had improved and this was evident during our visit. The use of restrictive practices had been reviewed and people were no longer restricted in what they could do. Staff had received training in safeguarding and were aware of what to do if they were to witness or suspect abuse.

Staff were responsive to people’s requests and people could choose how they spent their time. People enjoyed various home-based activities and regularly went out to local places such as cafes.

The culture in the home was positive, inclusive and empowering. People and their relatives were consulted and included in decisions made about daily life at the home. The registered manager had systems in place to ensure there was continuous learning in the home.

For more information, please read the detailed findings section of this report. If you are reading this as a separate summary, the full report can be found on the Care Quality Commission (CQC) website at www.cqc.org.uk

Rating at last inspection and update

At our last inspection this service was rated requires improvement (published 11 June 2021). We found breaches of the regulations in relation to safeguarding, restrictive practices and governance. The provider met with us and provided an action plan after the last inspection to tell us 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.

Why we inspected

We undertook this focused inspection to check if the provider had made improvements and if they were now meeting the legal requirements. This report only covers our findings in relation to the key questions Safe, Effective and Well-led.

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. This is based on the findings at this inspection.

You can read the report from our last comprehensive inspection, by selecting the ‘all reports’ link for Elliott House on our website at www.cqc.org.uk.

Follow up

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