CQC report explained · a residential care home
What the CQC found at Northbourne Court
Rated Good: inspectors found the home performing well and meeting their expectations.
- Safe?
- Good
- People were protected from abuse and avoidable harm. Inspectors found enough staff, safe risk management, suitable infection controls and safe medicines administration, but waste medicines had not been handled correctly until this was fixed during the inspection.
- Effective?
- Good
- People's needs were assessed and care plans were regularly reviewed. Staff were trained and supported, and people received suitable food, healthcare and support with their individual needs.
- Caring?
- Good
- People were treated with kindness, dignity and respect. People and relatives were involved in choices about care, including preferences about food, activities and the gender of care staff.
- Responsive?
- Good
- Care plans recorded people's needs, preferences and interests. The home offered varied activities, supported communication needs, investigated complaints and provided end-of-life care when needed.
- Well-led?
- Good
- The home had clear management arrangements and systems for checking quality and safety. The provider used audits, feedback and incident reviews to identify and act on improvements.
What inspectors found, October 2023
Northbourne Court is rated Good; inspectors found safe, kind and personalised care, with some improvements needed in medicines waste and dementia-unit design.
This was an unannounced inspection on 5 and 11 October 2023. Inspectors spoke with people living at the home, relatives, staff and health professionals. They reviewed care and medicines records, staff recruitment and training files, and records about quality and safety.
Inspectors rated all five areas Good: Safe, Effective, Caring, Responsive and Well-led. They found enough staff, safe medicines administration, suitable training, good support with food and healthcare, kind staff and a range of activities.
There were some shortfalls. Waste medicines were not handled correctly, although this was fixed during the inspection. The dementia units did not yet have enough artwork or signs to support reminiscence and orientation, but improvements had started. The report also made a recommendation about managing waste medicines.
Enough staff
Inspectors found enough staff to meet people's needs. The home had recruited additional staff and no longer needed agency staff, according to the registered manager.
“There were enough staff available to meet people's needs.” from the report
Kind and respectful care
People said staff were kind and caring. Inspectors observed positive interactions and staff supporting people's privacy, dignity, independence and choices.
“The staff are kind and caring, I cannot fault them.” from the report
Personalised support
Care plans included individual health needs, preferences, communication needs and interests. People and relatives were involved in assessments and reviews.
“People and their relatives where appropriate, were consulted and involved in making decisions and choices about their care and support.” from the report
Activities and social contact
The home offered activities including music, exercise, church services, quizzes, dancing and entertainment. Inspectors saw people taking part in activities and being supported to enjoy social contact.
“The home offered a range of activities to support people's need for social interaction and stimulation.” from the report
Quality monitoring
Managers used audits, incident reviews, feedback and a service improvement plan to monitor care and make changes. Inspectors found that learning from falls had led to extra morning support.
“The provider had effective systems in place to assess and monitor the quality of service that people received.” from the report
Waste medicines
needs fixingStaff were not returning or handling waste medicines correctly. The provider and prescribing pharmacist corrected this during the inspection, but inspectors made a recommendation to review the relevant guidance and legislation.
“Waste medicines were not being returned in a timely manner or handled in line with legislation.” from the report
Dementia-unit design
minorThe dementia units lacked interesting artwork and features to support reminiscence and orientation. The manager had started buying pictures and equipment during the inspection.
“We pointed out to the registered manager that the dementia units lacked any interesting artwork or anything to trigger reminiscence or to aid with people's orientation.” from the report
Occasional waiting
minorAlthough inspectors found staffing levels sufficient overall, one relative said people sometimes had to wait a long time for attention.
“Mostly there are enough staff but occasionally we must wait a long time for their attention.” from the report
Complaints information
minorThe complaints procedure was not displayed clearly around the home at first. The manager updated and displayed it during the inspection.
“We noted that the providers complaints procedure was not displayed conspicuously around the home.” from the report
- 01How are waste medicines now returned and recorded, and how do you check that staff follow the correct process?
- 02What dementia-friendly artwork, signs and sensory equipment have now been added to the dementia units?
- 03How do you monitor whether people are waiting too long for staff help, especially at busy times?
- 04Where can relatives and residents now find the complaints procedure, and how are complaints followed up?
- 05How will you keep relatives informed about changes in care plans, appointments or people's health?
This was an unannounced inspection covering all five key questions, including the premises and care provided, with infection prevention and control also checked. This explanation was written from the published report of 25 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, April 2021
Northbourne Court was inspected but not rated; inspectors found good infection control and safe arrangements during the COVID-19 pandemic.
This was an announced, targeted inspection on 9 March 2021. It focused on infection prevention and control because of the coronavirus pandemic.
Inspectors found safe arrangements for visits, including symptom screening, personal protective equipment, social distancing and separate visiting areas. The visiting pods and room were cleaned between visits.
The home was clean and hygienic. Inspectors found appropriate COVID-19 testing, staff training, risk assessments and plans for managing emergencies or outbreaks.
The service was inspected but not rated. Only infection prevention and control was examined, so this report does not give an overall quality rating or ratings for most care areas.
Safe visiting
The home had several visiting arrangements, with screening, protective equipment, social distancing and cleaning between visits.
“Arrangements were in place for relatives to visit people at the home safely.” from the report
Clean environment
Inspectors found the home clean and hygienic, with its layout and use of space supporting safety and good hygiene.
“The home was clean and hygienic throughout and was following government guidance in relation to infection prevention and control.” from the report
Testing and outbreak planning
The provider had arrangements for COVID-19 testing and plans for safe care during emergencies or outbreaks.
“The home had business continuity and Covid 19 contingency plans in place that made provisions for safe care in the event of an emergency, or outbreak of Covid 19.” from the report
Inspectors raised no specific concerns in this report.
- 01How are visitors currently screened and supported to follow infection control measures?
- 02How often are people using the service and staff tested, and what happens if a test is positive?
- 03How would you manage an infection outbreak while keeping relatives informed?
- 04How are visiting areas cleaned between visits?
- 05How are infection control arrangements adapted to my relative's individual needs?
This was a targeted inspection of infection prevention and control only; the service was inspected but not rated and other care areas were not assessed. This explanation was written from the published report of 16 April 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 Northbourne Court
4 rated inspections over 8 years: the service has improved, from Requires improvement to Good.
- October 2023Goodcurrent ratingSafe: GoodEffective: GoodCaring: GoodResponsive: GoodWell-led: Good
- April 2021Inspected but not ratedSafe: Inspected but not rated
- April 2018Goodstayed GoodSafe: GoodEffective: GoodCaring: GoodResponsive: GoodWell-led: Good
- February 2016Goodup from Requires improvementSafe: Requires improvementEffective: GoodCaring: GoodResponsive: GoodWell-led: Good
- May 2015Requires improvementSafe: Requires improvementEffective: Requires improvementCaring: GoodResponsive: Requires improvementWell-led: Requires improvement
- March 2014
Report published without a new overall rating.
- July 2013
Report published without a new overall rating.
- August 2012
Report published without a new overall rating.
- May 2011
Report published without a new overall rating.
- November 2010
Registered with the Care Quality Commission on 9 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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