CQC report explained · a residential care home
What the CQC found at Norfolk House Care Home
Rated Good: inspectors found the home performing well and meeting their expectations.
- Safe?
- Good
- Inspectors found enough staff, appropriate risk assessments, safe recruitment and safe systems for storing, administering and recording medicines. Risk assessments for emollient creams were missing on the inspection day but were added afterwards.
- Effective?
- Good
- People's needs were assessed and reviewed, and care plans reflected their needs and preferences. Staff had appropriate training, healthcare advice was acted on, and the home followed the Mental Capacity Act framework.
- Caring?
- Good
- People were treated with kindness, dignity and respect. Staff involved people and relatives in care decisions and respected privacy, independence, cultural needs and religious beliefs.
- Responsive?
- Good
- Care was personalised and daily records showed people's agreed needs were met. People had access to activities, relationships, alternative communication formats and a complaints process.
- Well-led?
- Good
- Inspectors found a person-centred and respectful culture. Audits, feedback, partnership working and learning from concerns were used to monitor and improve the service.
What inspectors found, September 2023
Rated Good; inspectors found safe, kind and personalised care, with one medicines-related risk assessment added after the inspection.
This was the first inspection since the service registered under a new provider. Inspectors carried out unannounced inspection activity on 5 and 6 September 2023. They spoke with people living in the home, relatives, staff and healthcare professionals, and reviewed care records, medicines records, risk assessments and quality checks.
Inspectors rated all five areas Good: Safe, Effective, Caring, Responsive and Well-led. They found enough staff, safe medicines systems, suitable training, personalised care plans, respectful care and good support for people's health, choices, communication and relationships.
One shortfall was found on the inspection day. There were no risk assessments for emollient creams, but the manager told inspectors this was put in place after the inspection. The report says this was a newly registered service, so there was no earlier rating to compare with.
Safe staffing and medicines
Inspectors found enough staff to meet people's needs and keep them safe. Medicines were stored, given and recorded safely, and staff were trained and assessed as competent.
“There were enough staff to meet people's needs and keep them safe.” from the report
Personalised care
Care plans included people's needs, wishes, likes, dislikes and life history. People and relatives were involved in reviewing care.
“Care plans were personalised and reflected people's needs and aspirations.” from the report
Kind and respectful relationships
People told inspectors they were happy with their care. Staff respected privacy, dignity, independence and personal choices.
“People were treated well and respected and staff had a caring approach towards them.” from the report
Good leadership and learning
The home used audits and feedback to monitor quality. Lessons from concerns were shared with staff, and the manager worked with healthcare professionals to improve care.
“Lessons learned were shared with staff to reduce the risk of issues reoccurring and to improve the quality of care provided.” from the report
Missing emollient cream risk assessments
needs fixingOn the inspection day, risk assessments were not in place for emollient creams. The manager told inspectors after the visit that these had been added.
“We found on the day of the inspection that there were no risk assessments in place for the use of emollient creams.” from the report
- 01What risk assessments are now in place for emollient creams, and how are staff checking that they are followed?
- 02How do you decide how many staff and what mix of skills are needed on each shift?
- 03How are my relative and our family involved in creating and reviewing their personalised care plan?
- 04How do you record and review medicines given when required?
- 05What activities and communication support would be available for my relative's specific interests and needs?
This was an unannounced first inspection covering all five CQC key questions, including care, the premises and infection prevention and control; there was no previous rating under the new provider. This explanation was written from the published report of 30 September 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 Norfolk House Care Home
5 rated inspections over 8 years: the service has improved, from Requires improvement to Good.
- September 2023Goodcurrent ratingSafe: GoodEffective: GoodCaring: GoodResponsive: GoodWell-led: Good
- April 2021Inspected but not ratedSafe: Inspected but not rated
- October 2019Goodstayed GoodSafe: GoodEffective: GoodCaring: GoodResponsive: GoodWell-led: Good
- March 2017Goodup from Requires improvementSafe: GoodEffective: GoodCaring: GoodResponsive: GoodWell-led: Good
- November 2015Requires improvementstayed Requires improvementSafe: Requires improvementEffective: Requires improvementCaring: GoodResponsive: GoodWell-led: Good
- May 2015Requires improvementSafe: Requires improvementEffective: Requires improvementCaring: Requires improvementResponsive: Requires improvementWell-led: Requires improvement
- September 2022
Registered with the Care Quality Commission on 5 September 2022.
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 Wigan
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 £1,260 a week. 92 can care for a couple. 11 years' experience on average.
“Primrose is a very kind and compassionate healthcare professional”
“He developed a close affinity with Terence, spending time talking with him before he retired to bed and looking after his needs during the night.”
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.