St Andrew's Court

Updated 17 May 2023

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.

Inspection team

The inspection was completed by 1 inspector and an Expert by Experience. 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

St Andrews Court 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. St Andrews Court is a care home with nursing care. CQC regulates both the premises and the care provided, and both were looked at during this inspection.

Registered Manager

This provider is required to have a registered manager to oversee the delivery of regulated activities at this location. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. Registered managers and providers are legally responsible for how the service is run, for the quality and safety of the care provided and compliance with regulations.

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. We sought feedback from the local authority and professionals who work with the service. We used the information the provider sent us in the provider information return (PIR). This is information providers are required to send us annually with key information about their service, what they do well, and improvements they plan to make. We used all this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

We spoke with 7 people who used the service and 1 relative about their experience of the care provided. We spoke with 8 members of staff including the registered manager, operational managers, nurse, care workers and the administrator.

We reviewed a range of records. This included 5 people's care records and medication administration records. We inspected 4 staff files in relation to their recruitment. A variety of other records relating to the management of the service, including audits and policies and procedures, were also reviewed.

We inspected the environment and spent time observing interactions between people and staff, and infection prevention and control practices.

Updated 17 May 2023

About the service

St Andrew's Court is a residential care home that provides accommodation, nursing and personal care to a maximum of 20 people, including people living with dementia, physical disability and people with a mental health diagnosis. Eighteen people were living in the home on day one of the inspection and fifteen on day two.

The main part of the home contains 18 single occupancy bedrooms over two floors. Adjoining the main building is a two story two-bedroom house providing accommodation for two people. This self-contained house has its own private access independent from the main home.

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

Records were not always completed effectively. A system was in place to monitor the quality and safety of the service.

The safety of the service was maintained through regular checks.

Medicine practices were in line with best practice guidelines and staff received training to meet people's individual assessed needs.

People and staff spoke positively about the management of the service. There was a positive, caring culture within the service and we observed people were treated with dignity and respect.

People were happy with the care they received, they felt safe and well looked after. Care plans included risk assessments for known risks and staff followed support plans to help keep people safe. Care plans and risk assessments were up to date and regularly reviewed.

People were regularly asked their views on the service provided and action had been taken when suggestions were made.

The provider and staff worked in partnership with other health and social care agencies to deliver good outcomes for people and to ensure their needs were met and reviewed.

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.

The home was clean and tidy. Staff had access to and followed clear policies and procedures on infection, prevention and control that met current and relevant national guidance.

For more details, please see the full report which is on the Care Quality Commission (CQC) website at www.cqc.org.uk

Rating at last inspection and update

The last rating for this service was requires improvement (published 22 January 2022) and there were breaches of regulation. 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.

At our last inspection we recommended the provider works in line with the principles of The Mental Capacity Act 2005 to ensure robust mental capacity assessments are in place and include multidisciplinary involvement. At this inspection we found the provider had acted on this recommendation and improvements had been made.

Why we inspected

We carried out an unannounced comprehensive inspection of this service on 2 and 8 December 2021. Breaches of legal requirements were found. The provider completed an action plan after the last inspection to show what they would do and by when to improve safe care and treatment, consent and good governance.

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, effective 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 St Andrews Court on our website at www.cqc.org.uk.

Recommendations

We have made a recommendation in relation to good governance.

Follow up

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