Archived: 35 Avenue Road

Updated 25 September 2015

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.

This unannounced inspection took place on 20 July 2015. The inspection team consisted of one inspector and an Expert by Experience. An Expert by Experience is a person who has personal experience of using or caring for someone who used this type of care service.

Before the inspection, the provider completed a Provider Information Return (PIR). This is a form that asks the provider to give some information about the home, what the home does well and improvements they plan to make. We reviewed the information we held about the home and looked at the notifications they had sent us which the provider is required to send us by law. We contacted the local authority to gain their views about the quality of the service provided. We used this information to help us plan our inspection of the home.

During our inspection we used the Short Observational Framework for Inspection (SOFI). SOFI is a way of observing care to help us understand the experience of people who live at the home. We used this because people living at the home were not able to tell us in detail what it was like to live there. We also used it to record and analyse how people spent their time and how effective staff interactions were with the people living at the home. We spoke with four members of staff and the deputy manager. The registered manager was on annual leave during the inspection. Following the inspection we sought feedback from two healthcare professionals.

We looked at the care and medicine records for two people to see how their care and treatment was planned and delivered. We looked at other records related to the running of the service including two staff files; to check staff were trained and supported to deliver care to people living at the home, records relating to the management of the home, a selection of policies and procedures that related to the management of people’s safety, safeguarding and complaints.

Updated 25 September 2015

This unannounced inspection took place on 20 July 2015. At our last inspection on 10 July 2014, we asked the provider to make improvements to the premises. Following this inspection the provider sent us an action plan to tell us the improvements they were going to make by 31 August 2014. We found this action had not been completed.

Avenue Road is a care home providing accommodation for up to five adults with learning disabilities or autistic spectrum disorder. At the time of our inspection three people were living there. The home had a registered manager in post. 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.

We found the premises were not adequately maintained; people were therefore at risk of living in an environment where risks to their safely were not addressed.

Staff kept people safe from the risk of abuse. We saw that the provider had systems in place to protect people from potential abuse.

People had personalised care plans in place and risks to people had been assessed that detailed their health and social needs. There was adequate staff numbers to meet people’s individual care needs when they needed it.

People received their medicines at the correct time and as prescribed. Medicines were managed stored and administered safely.

Appropriate action was taken to protect the rights of people and people were asked for their consent by staff to provide care.

People were supported to eat and drink sufficient to keep them healthy. People’s health and care needs were assessed and care was planned and delivered to meet those needs. People had access to healthcare professionals when needed. Advice and guidance was provided to staff to support people with their health needs.

Staff understood people’s choices and preferences and respected their dignity and privacy when supporting them. People were encouraged to be as independent as possible.

People were supported to maintain their interests and were given the opportunity to participate in activities. The provider had a system in place to respond to people’s complaints and concerns.

The provider had systems in place to monitor the quality of the home. However, we found that the provider did not always implement actions needed to improve the quality of the home.

You can see what action we told the provider to take at the back of the full version of the report.