Victoria House

Updated 30 October 2018

We carried out this inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 as part of our regulatory functions. This inspection was planned to check whether the provider is meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Health and Social Care Act 2008, to look at the overall quality of the service, and to provide a rating for the service under the Care Act 2014.

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

This comprehensive inspection visit took place on 16 October 2018 and was unannounced.

The inspection team consisted of one adult social care inspector.

Before our inspection we completed our planning tool and reviewed the information we held on the service. This included notifications we had received from the provider, about incidents that affect the health, safety and welfare of people supported by the service and previous inspection reports. We also checked to see if any information concerning the care and welfare of people supported by the service had been received. We contacted the commissioning department at Lancashire County Council and Healthwatch Lancashire. Healthwatch Lancashire is an independent consumer champion for health and social care. This helped us to gain a balanced overview of what people experienced accessing the service.

As part of the inspection we used information the provider sent us in the Provider Information Return. This is information we require providers to send us at least once annually to give some key information about the service, what the service does well and improvements they plan to make.

We did not use the Short Observational Framework for Inspection (SOFI) during our visit. SOFI is a way of observing care to help us understand the experience of people who could not talk with us. This was because people who lived at the home were able to speak with us and tell us about their experiences living at the home.

During the inspection visit we spoke with a range of people about the service. They included three people who lived at the home and three relatives. We also spoke with the service’s registered manager, registered provider and two care staff. We observed care practices and how staff interacted with people in their care. This helped us understand the experience of people who could not talk with us.

We looked at care records of two people who lived at the home. We also viewed a range of other documentation in relation to the management of the home. This included records relating to the management of the service, medication records of four people, recruitment and supervision arrangements of three staff members and staffing levels. We also checked the care homes environment to ensure it was clean, hygienic and a safe place for people to live.

Updated 30 October 2018

Victoria House provides accommodation and personal care for up to 12 older people. The home is situated in a residential area of Poulton-le-Fylde and is close to shops and local amenities. Victoria House is well served by public transport, being on a bus route and close to the railway station. There are two lounges and one dining area situated on the ground floor, with individual bedrooms on the ground and first floors. A stair lift is in place for ease of access to the upper floor. At the time of our inspection visit there were 12 people who lived at the home.

At the last inspection carried out on 05 May 2016 the service was rated Good. At this inspection we found the evidence continued to support the rating of Good. There was no evidence or information from our inspection and ongoing monitoring that demonstrated serious risks or concerns. This inspection report is written in a shorter format because our overall rating of the service has not changed since our last inspection.

There was a registered manager in place. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. Like registered providers, they are ‘registered persons’. Registered persons have legal responsibility for meeting the requirements in the Health and Social Care Act 2008 and associated Regulations about how the service is run.

People who lived at the home told us they were safe, well cared for and enjoyed living at the home. Comments received included, “I am really well looked after and feel completely safe.” And, “I am looked after really well by caring and conscientious staff.”

Relatives spoken with during the inspection told us they were happy with the care provided and had no concerns about their family members safety. Comments received included, “I am very happy with [relatives] care. They are treated with respect and dignity by staff.” And, “We think the home is absolutely brilliant. The staff are fantastic, they have the patience of saints.”

Throughout the inspection we observed staff being kind and attentive to people in their care. We saw they were caring, patient and engaged people in conversation whilst providing their support. We saw staff were always in attendance and available when people needed their help.

Procedures were in place to record safeguarding concerns, accidents and incidents and take necessary action as required. Staff had received safeguarding training and understood their responsibilities to report unsafe care or abusive practices.

Risk assessments had been developed to minimise the potential risk of harm to people during the delivery of their care. These had been kept under review and were relevant to the care provided.

Staff had been recruited safely, appropriately trained and supported. They had skills, knowledge and experience required to support people with their care and social needs. All staff except one recently recruited staff member had achieved national care qualifications. The registered provider told us the new staff member would soon be undertaking their care qualification training.

The service had sufficient staffing levels in place to provide support people required. People had support to enable them to pursue activities of their choice.

Staff responsible for assisting people with their medicines had received training to ensure they had the competency and skills required.

People’s care and support had been planned with them and was person centred. They told us they had been consulted and listened to about how their care would be delivered. Care plans were organised and had identified care and support people required. We found they were informative about care people had received.

We saw there was an emphasis on promoting dignity, respect and independence for people supported by the service. They told us they were treated as individuals and received person centred care.

We observed the daily routines and practices within the home and found people were treated equally and their human rights were constantly being respected.

We looked around the building and found it had been maintained, was clean and hygienic and a safe place for people to live. We found equipment had been serviced and maintained as required.

The design of the building and facilities provided were appropriate for the care and support provided.

The service had safe infection control procedures in place and staff had received infection control training.

Meal times were relaxed and organised around people’s individual daily routines. People told us they enjoyed the quality and choice of meals provided for them.

People were supported to have access to healthcare professionals and their healthcare needs had been met.

People told us staff were caring towards them. Staff we spoke with understood the importance of high standards of care to give people meaningful lives.

The service had information about support from an external advocate should this be required by people they supported.

The service had a complaints procedure which was made available to people and their family when they commenced using the service. The people we spoke with told us they were happy with the service and had no complaints.

The registered manger used a variety of methods to assess and monitor the quality of the service. These included regular audits and satisfaction surveys to seek their views about the service provided.

Further information is in the detailed findings below