CQC report explained · a residential care home
What the CQC found at Gibralter Crescent
Rated Good: inspectors found the home performing well and meeting their expectations.
- Safe?
- Good
- People were protected from avoidable harm. Risks were assessed and staff understood safeguarding. Medicine recording had not always followed the provider's policy, but this was corrected during the inspection and had not caused a known risk.
- Effective?
- Good
- Care plans reflected people's needs and choices. People were supported with food, health appointments and communication. Some staff training was not fully up to date, and an action plan was being used to address this.
- Caring?
- Good
- Staff treated people with kindness, dignity and respect. People were supported to communicate, make choices and maintain relationships with family and friends.
- Responsive?
- Good
- Care was personalised and reflected people's preferences, communication needs and routines. People were supported with activities and community links, although end-of-life plans were not always complete or easy to read.
- Well-led?
- Good
- The manager used audits and meetings to monitor the service and involve relatives, staff and professionals. Some relatives felt incidents could sometimes be communicated more promptly, although they felt informed overall.
What inspectors found, January 2023
Gibralter Crescent was rated Good; inspectors found kind, personalised care, with some records, training and home repairs needing attention.
This was the first CQC inspection since the service was newly registered. Inspectors visited without notice on 22 November 2022. They spoke with people, staff, relatives and a health professional, and reviewed care, medicine, staffing and management records.
The home supported five people with learning disabilities and people who were deaf or hearing impaired. Inspectors found that people were safe, treated with kindness and supported to make choices. Staff understood people's communication methods, needs and routines.
All five areas were rated Good: Safe, Effective, Caring, Responsive and Well-led. This means inspectors found the service was meeting the required standards at the time of the visit. They also found some improvements were still needed, including medicine recording, staff training, repairs and some care records.
Choice and independence
People were supported to make choices and take control of everyday parts of their lives. Staff used communication tools and encouraged people to keep practical skills.
“People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives.” from the report
Kind and respectful care
Inspectors saw staff treating people with compassion, dignity and respect. Staff knew people's preferences and supported their relationships.
“People received kind and compassionate care. Staff respected people's privacy and dignity and talked about people respectfully and fondly.” from the report
Understanding individual risks
Staff knew people's risks and used personalised approaches to keep them safe while supporting independence. Risk records were updated when needs changed.
“Risks to people were assessed, clearly recorded and updated to be current and relevant to enable positive risk taking.” from the report
Communication support
The home used British Sign Language, Makaton, pictures, objects and body language. Communication passports helped people express choices both at home and outside it.
“Consistent availability of necessary communication tools throughout the home gave people the opportunity to have choice and control as frequently as possible.” from the report
Partnership working
Staff worked with health professionals, relatives and other agencies when people's needs changed. A health professional praised the service's approach to health reviews and concerns.
“the care manager and staff comply with our programme of learning disability annual reviews and are proactive in addressing any interim health concerns” from the report
Medicine records
needs fixingMedicine recording did not always follow the provider's policy. The manager corrected this immediately, and inspectors found no resulting incidents of risk.
“The recording of medicines was not always in line with the provider's medication policy and this was brought to the attention of the registered manager who rectified this immediately.” from the report
Staff training
needs fixingSome staff training was not fully up to date because the service was moving to a new training application. The manager had an action plan to address this.
“Training was not always fully up to date but there was no evidence of a negative impact on people.” from the report
Home repairs and decoration
needs fixingRelatives and staff said parts of the home looked tired and repairs or redecoration were taking too long. Work was under way and the manager was working with the provider on this.
“The repairs in the house need to happen, and be done in a better timeframe” from the report
End-of-life plans
needs fixingNo one was receiving end-of-life care at the time. Plans existed but were not always complete or easy to read, and this was included in an improvement action plan.
“End of life plans were in place but were not always fully complete or easy to read.” from the report
Updates about incidents
minorSome relatives felt they could be told about incidents more quickly. They had not raised this as a concern and felt informed overall.
“Some relatives felt they could be informed of incidents more promptly but had not raised this as a concern with the provider as they did feel informed overall.” from the report
- 01What has been done since the inspection to make sure medicine records always follow the medication policy?
- 02Are all staff now up to date with their required training, and how is this checked?
- 03Which repairs and redecoration have been completed, and what work is still outstanding?
- 04Have the end-of-life plans been completed and made easier to read?
- 05How quickly will the home tell families about incidents involving their relative?
This was the first inspection of the newly registered service and covered all five CQC questions, with infection prevention and control also checked; the previous provider's rating was Requires Improvement in 2019. This explanation was written from the published report of 21 January 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.
Every inspection of Gibralter Crescent
3 rated inspections over 6 years: the service has held its Good rating throughout.
- January 2023Goodcurrent ratingup from Requires improvementSafe: GoodEffective: GoodCaring: GoodResponsive: GoodWell-led: Good
- November 2019Requires improvementdown from GoodSafe: GoodEffective: GoodCaring: GoodResponsive: Requires improvementWell-led: Requires improvement
- January 2017GoodSafe: GoodEffective: GoodCaring: GoodResponsive: GoodWell-led: Good
- June 2021
Registered with the Care Quality Commission on 30 June 2021.
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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77 live-in carers within about an hour of Surrey
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 £1,250 a week. 66 can care for a couple. 11 years' experience on average.
“Without his support we wouldn't have been able to navigate bringing and keeping Dad at home.”
“Not only has she looked after him beautifully, she has also been great company for him with lively conversation, kindness and humour.”
Every carer has had an enhanced DBS check in the last 18 months, ID and right-to-work checks and an online interview. Their skills and training are for you to check with them. Carers set their own rates, and who is free changes week to week.