CQC report explained · a nursing home
What the CQC found at Bridgeside Lodge Care Centre
Rated Outstanding: inspectors found the home performing exceptionally well.
- Safe?
- Good
- Inspectors found that people were safe and protected from avoidable harm. There were enough staff, risks were assessed, medicines were managed safely and recruitment checks had been completed.
- Effective?
- Outstanding
- This question was not inspected during this visit. Its rating was carried over from the previous inspection.
- Caring?
- Outstanding
- This question was not inspected during this visit. Its rating was carried over from the previous inspection.
- Responsive?
- Outstanding
- This question was not inspected during this visit. Its rating was carried over from the previous inspection.
- Well-led?
- Outstanding
- Inspectors found exceptional leadership, a strong person-centred culture and highly effective systems for checking quality and making improvements.
What inspectors found, October 2023
Bridgeside Lodge Care Centre was rated Outstanding overall; inspectors found safe care and exceptional leadership.
The unannounced inspection took place on 21 September 2023. Inspectors spoke with people living at the home, relatives, staff and health professionals. They observed care and checked care records, staff files and management documents.
The home was rated Good for Safe and Outstanding for Well-led. Inspectors found enough staff, safe medicines systems, suitable risk assessments and safe recruitment. They also found strong safeguarding, infection control and learning from incidents.
The home was described as welcoming, inclusive and exceptionally well managed. People and relatives gave very positive feedback about the care, kindness of staff and communication from managers.
The overall Outstanding rating was calculated using the new ratings from Safe and Well-led and ratings from the previous inspection for the other areas. The previous inspection also rated the home Outstanding overall.
Kind and personalised care
People and relatives consistently praised staff for their kindness, respect and individualised support. Inspectors found that people were treated as partners in their care.
“People who lived at this home received exceptionally high-quality, personalised care and support from an extremely well-led service.” from the report
Strong leadership
The management team created an inclusive culture and kept people at the centre of the service. Staff said they were supported, listened to and valued.
“The management team were dedicated and determined to ensure people were at the heart of the service.” from the report
Safe staffing and recruitment
Inspectors found enough staff to meet people's needs safely. Staff were recruited with checks on references, employment history, qualifications and criminal records.
“There were enough staff to keep people safe and meet their individual needs.” from the report
Safe medicines and risk management
Medicines were recorded, stored and administered safely. Staff assessed risks such as falls, nutrition, skin damage and choking, while supporting people's independence.
“People received their medication safely and at the right time.” from the report
Learning and improvement
The home used audits, incident reviews and feedback to identify improvements and check that actions had been completed.
“Any areas identified for improvement were actioned and reviewed again to check the actions were appropriate.” from the report
Inspectors raised no specific concerns in this report.
- 01How do you decide how many staff are needed for my relative's individual needs, including at weekends?
- 02How will you manage and review my relative's specific risks, such as falls, choking, nutrition or skin damage?
- 03How will you support my relative to make their own decisions and involve relatives or health professionals when they cannot make a decision?
- 04How will you provide culturally appropriate communication, meals and activities for my relative?
- 05How will you tell us about incidents, concerns or changes in our relative's care?
This was an unannounced focused inspection of Safe and Well-led only; the other ratings carried over from the previous inspection in 2017. This explanation was written from the published report of 27 October 2023 by an AI system and checked against the report text: every quoted line appears in the report. It is a guide to the report, not a substitute for it. Read the full report on cqc.org.uk.
What inspectors found, February 2021
Bridgeside Lodge Care Centre: inspected but not rated; inspectors found good infection control and efforts to support residents during lockdown.
This was an announced, targeted inspection on 28 January 2021. It focused on infection prevention and control during the coronavirus pandemic, rather than a full inspection of the home.
Inspectors said they were assured that the home was managing visitors, social distancing, admissions, protective equipment, testing, cleaning and infection outbreaks appropriately. They also found that the home had learned from an earlier Covid-19 outbreak and introduced more extensive testing.
The home continued social activities during lockdown. These included live music, remote activities and workshops with a theatre and a local school. The service was inspected but not rated, so this report does not give an overall quality rating.
Activities during lockdown
The home continued to provide social and recreational activities despite lockdown, including live music and remote workshops.
“The home had created opportunities to maintain fun and recreational social events and activities for residents during lockdown.” from the report
Learning from an outbreak
The home introduced wider and faster testing after an earlier Covid-19 outbreak. Inspectors said this helped identify the likely source and limit the spread.
“The home's proactive approach led to rapid identification of the likely initial source of infection and swift and effective measures to limit infection spread.” from the report
Infection control measures
Inspectors were assured that the home was using protective equipment safely, supporting social distancing and shielding, and managing infection risks.
“We were assured that the provider was using PPE effectively and safely.” from the report
Inspectors raised no specific concerns in this report.
- 01How are you continuing the wider testing arrangements introduced after the previous Covid-19 outbreak?
- 02What protective equipment and infection control arrangements are currently used for visitors and staff?
- 03How would you manage a new infection outbreak, and how would families be kept informed?
- 04What social and recreational activities are available to residents now?
- 05How do you safely provide activities involving visitors, musicians or people from the local community?
This was a targeted inspection of infection prevention and control during the coronavirus pandemic; it was not a full inspection and the other questions were not rated. This explanation was written from the published report of 13 February 2021 by an AI system and checked against the report text: every quoted line appears in the report. It is a guide to the report, not a substitute for it. Read the full report on cqc.org.uk.
Every inspection of Bridgeside Lodge Care Centre
3 rated inspections over 8 years: the service has held its Outstanding rating throughout.
- October 2023Outstandingcurrent ratingSafe: GoodEffective: OutstandingCaring: OutstandingResponsive: OutstandingWell-led: Outstanding
Read what inspectors found at Bridgeside Lodge Care Centre →
- February 2021Inspected but not ratedSafe: Inspected but not rated
Read what inspectors found at Bridgeside Lodge Care Centre →
- December 2017Outstandingstayed OutstandingSafe: GoodWell-led: Outstanding
- September 2015OutstandingSafe: GoodEffective: GoodCaring: OutstandingResponsive: OutstandingWell-led: Good
- January 2015Inspected but not ratedSafe: Inspected but not ratedEffective: Inspected but not ratedCaring: Inspected but not ratedResponsive: Inspected but not ratedWell-led: Inspected but not rated
- October 2013
Report published without a new overall rating.
- September 2013
Report published without a new overall rating.
- November 2012
Report published without a new overall rating.
- March 2012
Report published without a new overall rating.
- November 2010
Registered with the Care Quality Commission on 23 November 2010.
Ratings and report dates from the Care Quality Commission, Open Government Licence v3.0. A home can also be visited without a new rating being published, so the timeline shows published inspections.
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