CQC report explained · a residential care home
What the CQC found at George Mason Lodge
Rated Good: inspectors found the home performing well and meeting their expectations.
- Safe?
- Good
- People said they felt safe. Inspectors found suitable staffing, risk assessments, safe medicines management, safe recruitment and effective infection prevention procedures.
- Effective?
- Good
- Staff had the training and support needed for their roles. People received suitable food and drinks, and the home worked with health professionals to meet healthcare needs.
- Caring?
- Good
- People were treated with kindness, dignity and respect. Staff respected people's equality, diversity, privacy, independence and choices.
- Responsive?
- Good
- Care plans reflected people's physical, emotional and mental health needs, life histories and preferences. People were offered activities, support to maintain relationships and ways to raise complaints.
- Well-led?
- Good
- Inspectors found supportive management, regular staff meetings and a range of audits. People, relatives and staff felt able to approach the manager with concerns or suggestions.
What inspectors found, October 2023
George Mason Lodge is rated Good; inspectors found safe, kind and personalised care across all five areas.
Inspectors visited the home unannounced on 29 August, 4 September and 19 September 2023. They reviewed care records, risk assessments, medicines records, staff files, training records, audits and policies. They spoke with 10 people, 5 relatives, 8 care staff and the chef.
The inspectors found that people felt safe and were treated with dignity and respect. Staff knew people well and provided personalised care. Medicines, staffing, infection control and risk management were found to be safe. People had choices about their care, meals, activities and daily routines.
The home was rated Good in Safe, Effective, Caring, Responsive and Well-led. This was the same overall rating as the previous inspection, published on 17 March 2021.
Kind and respectful care
People and relatives spoke positively about staff. Inspectors saw people being treated as individuals, with their privacy and dignity respected.
“People told us the care they received was good, and staff treated them with dignity and respect.” from the report
Personalised support
Staff knew people's needs, preferences and risks. Care plans included information about people's health, life histories and choices.
“The staff team were knowledgeable about people's support needs and knew them well, which meant that staff were able to deliver personalised care and support to people.” from the report
Safe medicines and staffing
Inspectors found enough staff to meet people's needs. Medicines records were completed correctly and staff competency was checked.
“We reviewed people's medicine administration records (MAR), they were completed correctly by staff to evidence medicines had been administered as prescribed” from the report
Activities and relationships
People could take part in activities inside and outside the home. Staff supported people to keep in contact with relatives and friends.
“People were offered the opportunity to join in with a variety of planned activities both in and out of the home.” from the report
Strong management checks
The home used audits, feedback and spot checks to monitor quality. Staff said they received regular supervision and meetings.
“The provider had good systems and processes in place to help monitoring the quality of the home.” from the report
Inspectors raised no specific concerns in this report.
- 01How will you assess and review my relative's care plan, risks, choices and preferences?
- 02Which activities would be suitable for my relative, and how would you support them to maintain contact with family and friends?
- 03How do you check that medicines remain accurate, administered as prescribed and suitable for my relative?
- 04How would you support my relative to attend healthcare appointments and manage conditions such as diabetes, epilepsy or swallowing difficulties?
- 05How should my family raise a concern or complaint, and how will we be kept informed about the response?
This was an unannounced inspection covering all five key questions, including the care provided and the premises; the home is registered without nursing care. This explanation was written from the published report of 19 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, March 2021
George Mason Lodge was inspected but not rated; inspectors found strong infection control arrangements during the COVID-19 pandemic.
This was an announced, targeted inspection on 8 March 2021. It looked at infection prevention and control in response to the coronavirus pandemic, rather than reviewing every aspect of care.
Inspectors were assured that the home used personal protective equipment safely, followed social distancing and shielding guidance, carried out testing, and had suitable cleaning and hygiene arrangements. Staff worked on assigned units to reduce the risk of infection spreading.
The home had safe visiting arrangements and helped relatives keep in touch through video calls when visits were not possible. A garden visiting pod was being built and was expected to be ready by the end of March 2021.
The overall service and Safe question were both marked inspected but not rated. This means the inspection checked infection control arrangements but did not give a quality rating.
Infection control
The home followed infection prevention procedures to protect people, staff and visitors from infection.
“The provider followed safe infection prevention and control practices and procedures to ensure people, staff and visitors' safety and that they were protected from the risk of infection.” from the report
Safe visiting
The home had arrangements to allow visits safely and supported video calls when relatives could not visit in person.
“The provider had implemented suitable visiting arrangements to ensure people could receive visits safely.” from the report
Testing and protective equipment
The home checked temperatures, supplied PPE and followed guidance on COVID-19 testing for people, staff and visitors.
“The provider followed the government's guidance on carrying out COVID-19 testing and made suitable arrangements to test people, staff and visitors.” from the report
Staff support
Staff received infection control training and worked on assigned units to reduce the risk of cross infection. Their wellbeing was supported if they became unwell.
“All staff received training and support to prevent and control the spread of infection.” from the report
Further development needed
minorInspectors signposted the provider to resources to develop its infection prevention and control approach. The report does not explain what specific improvement was needed.
“We have also signposted the provider to resources to develop their approach.” from the report
- 01Was the garden visiting pod completed by the end of March 2021, and is it still available for visits?
- 02Are people, staff and visitors still offered COVID-19 testing under the home's current arrangements?
- 03How does the home now prevent infection spreading between different units?
- 04What changes were made after inspectors signposted the provider to resources to develop its infection prevention and control approach?
This was a targeted inspection of infection prevention and control only; the overall service and Safe question were inspected but not rated, and the other key questions were not covered. This explanation was written from the published report of 17 March 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 George Mason Lodge
3 rated inspections over 7 years: the service has improved, from Requires improvement to Good.
- October 2023Goodcurrent ratingSafe: GoodEffective: GoodCaring: GoodResponsive: GoodWell-led: Good
- March 2021Inspected but not ratedSafe: Inspected but not rated
- October 2017Goodup from Requires improvementSafe: GoodEffective: GoodCaring: GoodResponsive: GoodWell-led: Good
- June 2016Requires improvementSafe: Requires improvementEffective: GoodCaring: GoodResponsive: GoodWell-led: Requires improvement
- August 2013
Report published without a new overall rating.
- November 2012
Report published without a new overall rating.
- May 2011
Registered with the Care Quality Commission on 26 May 2011.
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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At least 100 live-in carers within about an hour of Waltham Forest
These are self-employed carers on PrimeCarers, the introductory agency that runs this directory. Each has a profile with their own rates and reviews from families, and you choose who to talk to.
Most charge £980 to £1,200 a week. 77 can care for a couple. 11 years' experience on average.
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