The White House

Updated 9 August 2022

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 one inspector and an Expert-by-Experience, who made calls to people using the service. An Expert by Experience is a person who has personal experience of using or caring for someone who uses this type of care service.

Service and service type

The White House 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. The White House 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 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 on 13 May 2021. This included details about incidents the provider must notify us about, such as abuse or when a person dies. The provider completed a Provider Information Return. This is information we require providers to send us to give some key information about the service, what the service does well and improvements they plan to make. We took this into account when we inspected the service and made the judgements in this report. We spoke with a visiting healthcare professional. We used all this information including the information in our last inspection report to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

We spoke with 10 people who used the service about their experience of the care provided. We spoke with four members of staff including the registered manager, deputy manager and care workers.

We reviewed a range of records. This included three people’s care records. We reviewed medicines records. We looked at three 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 9 August 2022

About the service

The White House is a residential home registered to provide care and support for up to 38 older people including those living with dementia. The service had two lounges, a dining room and a garden to the rear of the service. At this inspection, there were 23 people living in the service.

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

People told us, “They [staff] do everything you want them to do, so it’s not a problem. And they are very good giving choices.” And “Staff are very good, friendly and brilliant’”

People were protected from the risk of harm as robust safeguarding procedures were in place and staff had a good understanding of their responsibilities. Risks associated with people’s care and wellbeing were safely managed.

Staff were recruited safely, and checks were completed. People were supported by staff with the relevant skills and experience, which enabled them to meet people’s needs. Staff also received appropriate training to enable them to carry out their roles safely. Staffing rotas showed there were enough staff deployed to meet people's needs.

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.

Medicines were safely managed and administered. Staff received appropriate medicine administration training. Staff understood and demonstrated their responsibilities to raise concerns, to record safety incidents, concerns and near misses, and to report them internally and externally, where appropriate.

People and staff were encouraged to provide feedback about how the service could be improved. This was used to make changes and improvements that people wanted. The registered manager had good oversight of the service and the staffing team.

The provider continued to build links with other healthcare professionals and work closely with them. The registered manager and management team learnt from incidents that had happened. Any incidents were discussed, and trends and pattern analysed to improve the service.

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 requires improvement (published 1 July 2021).

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.

Why we inspected

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 Requires improvement to Good based on the findings of this inspection.

We undertook this focused inspection to check they had followed their action plan and to confirm they now met legal requirements. This report only covers our findings in relation to the Key Questions Safe and Well-led which contain those requirements.

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 The White 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.