Willowbrook

Updated 21 May 2020

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 team consisted of one inspector.

Service and service type

This service provides care and support to people living in specialist 'extra care' housing. Extra care housing is purpose-built or adapted single household accommodation in a shared site or building. The accommodation is bought or rented and is the occupant's own home. People's care and housing are provided under separate contractual agreements. CQC does not regulate premises used for extra care housing; this inspection looked at people's personal care and support.

The service had a registered manager. A registered manager is someone who, along with the provider 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 announced. This was to make sure people would be at home to allow us to be able to talk with them.

What we did before the inspection

We reviewed information available to us since the last inspection. This included details about incidents the provider must notify us about, such as abuse. We sought feedback from commissioners and professionals who work with the service, including the local authority safeguarding adults’ team. 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 also contacted Healthwatch. Healthwatch is an independent consumer champion that gathers and represents the views of the public about health and social care services in England.

During the inspection

We spoke with the registered manager, the deputy manager, six care staff and two visiting professionals. We spoke with six people and five relatives. We reviewed a range of records. This included two people’s care records and various medication records. We looked at records related to the management of the service.

After the inspection

We continued to receive information from the registered manager to confirm the inspection findings. We also spoke with one other visiting professional via the telephone.

Updated 21 May 2020

About the service

Willowbrook is an extra care housing service. People using this service lived in their own apartment within one large building. The building comprised of 79 individual apartments.

Not everyone living at Willowbrook received personal care. The Care Quality Commission only inspects where people receive personal care. This is help with tasks related to personal hygiene and eating. Where they do, we also consider any wider social care provided. At the time of inspection 59 people were in receipt of the service.

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

People experienced care which was exceptionally person-centred, placing great emphasis upon ensuring people lived the best lives they could. Feedback received from people, their relatives and visiting professionals described how the service had impacted positively on people’s lives. One person told us, "I am doing things now I would never have done before. Since living here I've grown in confidence which makes things happen." They told us their level of confidence and greater independence was as a result of the outstanding effort and level of care and support they received from staff.

People and their families told us they were involved in the decisions made about the care they received. Care plans were reviewed on a regular basis and where necessary changes to people’s care was made. People were supported to maintain both family and personal friendships both internal and external to the service. The provider had a complaints policy in place and any complaints had been handled in line with their policy.

People told us they felt very safe living at the service, and they were protected from abuse. Assessments had been completed and reviewed to make sure people and the environment were safe. People’s medicines were handled safely. New staff were recruited safely, and enough staff were employed to support people. The service was very clean, tidy and staff had access to adequate amounts of gloves and aprons to support with infection control.

People’s needs were fully assessed before they received their package of care. People received care from staff who were skilled and experienced to care for people.

Staff received regular supervision sessions to support them in their role. People were supported to eat and drink enough to maintain a healthy lifestyle. Where necessary staff referred people to their GP, and other medical professionals to make sure people were supported to remain well. People had access to a variety of communal areas within the service. This included an on-site restaurant/dining area, a well-furnished lounge area.

Staff cared for people with a great level of care and respect. Staff knew the people they cared for very well.

The registered manager, deputy manager and all staff had a very good understanding of their roles and responsibilities. All staff had a good working relationship with various external professionals who supported them to care for people well. Visiting professionals were very complimentary about the service. They told us, “The staff here genuinely care for people. They know people so well. I have peace of mind for my clients who live here. I only wish the service was bigger.” The registered manager told us how the service was seen as a ‘flagship service.’ This was due to the level and model of care provided. Staff had recently been nominated for the British Care Awards and had been successful in getting through to the finals later in the year. People, their relatives and staff told us the service was very well-led and spoke highly of the registered manager, stating they were approachable; caring; lead by example and were a very visible presence in the service. Staff told us they felt valued, supported and listened to in their role.

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 22 September 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.