CQC report explained · a residential care home
What the CQC found at Kent House Residential Home
Rated Good: inspectors found the home performing well and meeting their expectations.
- Safe?
- Good
- Inspectors found that risks, accidents, safeguarding and medicines were managed safely. There were enough staff with the skills and experience needed, and infection control arrangements were effective.
- Effective?
- Good
- People received support with health care, nutrition and personal needs. Staff followed health professionals' advice and helped people make choices.
- Caring?
- Good
- Caring was not inspected during this focused visit. The report says the rating from the last inspection was used when calculating the overall rating.
- Responsive?
- Good
- Responsive was not inspected during this focused visit. The report says the rating from the last inspection was used when calculating the overall rating.
- Well-led?
- Requires improvement
- The home had improved its records, audits and working culture, but leadership was still inconsistent. There was no registered manager in post and staff survey responses were too limited to show staff views clearly.
What inspectors found, March 2023
Kent House Residential Home is rated Good; inspectors found safe, effective and caring support, but leadership still Requires Improvement.
This was an unannounced focused inspection on 7 February 2023. One inspector spoke with people, relatives and staff, and reviewed care, medicines, recruitment and management records. The inspection looked only at Safe, Effective and Well-led.
People said they felt safe and were happy with the care. Inspectors found enough skilled staff, safer risk management, safe medicines, good infection control and prompt access to health professionals. People were supported with food, choice, visitors and daily decisions.
The overall rating improved from Requires Improvement to Good because earlier problems had been addressed. However, Well-led remained Requires Improvement. There was no registered manager in post, although an experienced manager was leading the home temporarily and improvements had been made.
People felt safe
People and relatives said people were safe. Inspectors found that risks had been identified, reviewed and managed.
“People and their relatives told us they were safe at the service.” from the report
Kind and respectful support
People described staff as kind and respectful. Staff supported people to remain independent and make everyday choices.
“No one is rough with me. I am treated with respect and can have a laugh and joke with the staff” from the report
Health and nutrition
Staff noticed changes in people's health and contacted health professionals. People at risk of weight loss or choking received support suited to their needs.
“This had been effective and people had gained weight.” from the report
Safer management systems
Records, checks and audits had improved since the previous inspection. The provider acted on identified shortfalls and increased the frequency of external checks.
“Enough improvement had been made at this inspection and the provider was no longer in breach of regulation 17.” from the report
No registered manager
needs fixingThe registered manager had left in September 2022 and no replacement had yet been appointed. An experienced manager was running the home temporarily, but inspectors kept the Well-led rating at Requires Improvement.
“At the time of our inspection there was not a registered manager in post.” from the report
Limited staff feedback
minorOnly three staff completed the recent survey, so the provider could not use it to understand staff views properly. Staff could still share views at meetings.
“Only 3 staff had completed the October to December 2022 survey and the provider had not been able to use this information to understand staff's views.” from the report
- 01Who is currently responsible for managing the home, and when do you expect a registered manager to be appointed?
- 02How will you make sure the improvements in care records, audits and risk management continue?
- 03How do you gather staff views when survey responses are limited?
- 04What checks are now in place to make sure medicines, including medicated patches, are managed correctly?
- 05How will you keep families informed about changes in a person's health or care?
This was a focused inspection of Safe, Effective and Well-led only; Caring and Responsive were not inspected and their previous ratings were used to calculate the overall rating. This explanation was written from the published report of 1 March 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, December 2022
Kent House Residential Home had a targeted inspection and was not rated; inspectors found some improvements but continuing concerns about management and infection control.
This was an unannounced targeted inspection on 21 November 2022. One inspector checked infection control, risk management, staffing, care records, audits and management oversight. The inspector spoke with four people, one relative, the area manager and two senior carers.
Some things had improved since the previous inspection. Risks had been assessed, staff had clearer guidance, checks and audits were being completed, and action plans were used when problems were found. There were enough staff, including regular agency staff who knew people.
There were still shortfalls. Some staff were not wearing face masks until they knew the inspector had arrived. Risk guidance was not always easy to find. There was no registered manager and day-to-day oversight was inconsistent.
This inspection did not give new ratings. The overall rating remained Requires Improvement from the previous comprehensive inspection. Safe was previously Requires Improvement and Well-led was previously Inadequate, but neither was reassessed in full during this visit.
Enough staff
Inspectors found enough staff to meet people's needs. Regular agency staff were used and knew the people they supported.
“There were enough staff to meet people's needs.” from the report
Quality checks
Audits were being completed and action plans were created when shortfalls were found. Care records and incidents were being reviewed for patterns and trends.
“When shortfalls had been found an action plan had been developed and the actions had been completed by the area manager.” from the report
Family visiting
People were supported to spend time with family, including social leave and days out. Visitors were encouraged to visit people in their rooms.
“Visitors were encouraged to visit people in their rooms as often as they wished.” from the report
Unstable management
needs fixingThere was no registered manager. The area manager provided only limited support, and oversight was not consistent from day to day.
“There was no consistent day-to-day oversight of the service.” from the report
Infection control practice
needs fixingSome staff, including senior carers, were not wearing face masks when the inspector arrived. They put masks on after they knew the inspection was taking place.
“On arrival at the service, some staff including senior carers, were not wearing face masks.” from the report
Risk information was hard to find
needs fixingSome important guidance was not cross-referenced in the most relevant care plan. This created a risk that staff might not find it when needed.
“There was a risk staff would not access all the guidance when needed.” from the report
Previous leadership rating
seriousThe previous comprehensive inspection rated Well-led as Inadequate. This inspection did not reassess the whole key question, so that rating was not changed.
“At our last inspection this key question was rated Inadequate.” from the report
- 01What progress has been made in appointing a registered manager, and who is responsible for the home each day until then?
- 02How do you check that all staff follow the face-mask and infection control policy when the area manager is not present?
- 03How are staff shown where to find important risk guidance, including diabetes and epilepsy information?
- 04What actions from the quality improvement plan remain open, and how are they checked for completion?
- 05How do you make sure agency staff continue to know each person's needs if staffing levels or agency use change?
This was a targeted inspection of infection control, risk management and leadership oversight; it did not assess the full Safe or Well-led key questions, and the other key questions were not inspected. This explanation was written from the published report of 30 December 2022 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 Kent House Residential Home
4 rated inspections over 5 years: the service has held its Good rating throughout.
- March 2023Goodcurrent ratingSafe: GoodEffective: GoodCaring: GoodResponsive: GoodWell-led: Requires improvement
- December 2022Inspected but not ratedSafe: Inspected but not ratedWell-led: Inspected but not rated
- December 2022Requires improvementup from InadequateSafe: Requires improvementEffective: Requires improvementWell-led: Inadequate
- April 2022Inadequatedown from GoodSafe: InadequateWell-led: Inadequate
- September 2017GoodSafe: GoodEffective: GoodWell-led: Good
- February 2017
Registered with the Care Quality Commission on 25 February 2017.
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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39 live-in carers within about an hour of Kent
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Most charge £980 to £1,260 a week. 33 can care for a couple. 12 years' experience on average.
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