CQC report explained · a nursing home
What the CQC found at Plane Tree Court
Rated Good: inspectors found the home performing well and meeting their expectations.
What inspectors found, September 2023
Plane Tree Court is rated Good; inspectors found safe, kind care, but some medicines and care records needed improvement.
Inspectors visited the home without notice on 21 and 22 June 2023. They reviewed records, watched staff and residents together, and spoke with residents, relatives, staff and other professionals.
The home was rated Good overall. Safe, Responsive and Well-led were rated Good. Inspectors found enough staff, safe recruitment, suitable risk checks, appropriate safeguarding and good infection control. Relatives generally spoke positively about the staff and said people were supported well.
There were some shortfalls. Medicines were not always stored at the right temperature, and some records and instructions for medicines were incomplete. Care plans were not always personal enough, and quality checks did not always show that actions had been completed.
This was a focused inspection after concerns about staffing and cleanliness. Effective and Caring were not inspected, so the previous ratings were used when calculating the overall rating. The overall rating remained Good, as it was at the inspection published in March 2020.
Enough trained staff
Inspectors found safe recruitment and enough staff to support people. Staff were up to date with training and completed the Care Certificate.
“There were sufficient staff at the service.” from the report
Safeguarding and risk checks
The home had safeguarding processes, responded appropriately to a concern and had suitable environmental and personal risk assessments.
“The service had processes in place to safeguard people from the risk of abuse.” from the report
End of life support
Staff were committed to supporting people at the end of life and worked with health professionals to avoid unnecessary hospital admissions where possible.
“Staff were passionate about supporting people with good end of life care.” from the report
Open management
Staff, residents and relatives were encouraged to give feedback. Inspectors found positive relationships with other professionals.
“The registered manager promoted a positive culture at the service.” from the report
Medicine storage and records
needs fixingSome medicines were kept in rooms that were too warm or in storage that was not lockable. One medicine instruction was missing and the timing of some paracetamol doses was not consistently recorded.
“Medicines were not always stored safely.” from the report
Care plans not personal enough
needs fixingSome care plans did not include enough detail about the individual person's preferences or how to support distressed behaviour. End of life plans did not always reflect what staff knew about people.
“Care plans were not always personalised.” from the report
Improvement actions not always followed through
needs fixingAudits found issues, but action plans were not always marked as completed. The checks had not led to better personalisation of care plans.
“Action plans had not always been recorded as completed and had not driven improvement in personalising the care plans.” from the report
Cleaning product left unlocked
minorInspectors found a cleaning product in an unlocked bathroom cabinet. Staff removed it when it was pointed out.
“We found a cleaning product in an unlocked bathroom cabinet.” from the report
- 01How do you now monitor medicine room temperatures and record any action taken when they are too warm?
- 02Have all medicines been moved into secure, lockable storage, including medicines kept on shelving?
- 03How do you make sure 'when required' medicine protocols and medicine administration times are complete and up to date?
- 04How are each person's likes, dislikes and ways of responding to distress recorded in their care plan?
- 05How do you check that actions from audits have been completed and have improved care plans?
This was an unannounced focused inspection of Safe, Responsive and Well-led; Effective and Caring were not inspected and their previous ratings were used to calculate the overall rating. This explanation was written from the published report of 2 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.
What inspectors found, January 2022
Inspected but not rated; inspectors found good infection control and visitor arrangements during a targeted COVID-19 inspection.
The inspection took place on 12 January 2022 and was announced three days beforehand. It was a targeted inspection because the CQC had received concerns about infection prevention and control.
Inspectors found the home clean and uncluttered. Cleaning of frequently touched areas had increased. Visitors were allowed in line with guidance, and people, staff and visitors took part in routine COVID-19 testing.
The inspectors were assured about the home's use of protective equipment, testing, social distancing, admissions, outbreak management and visiting arrangements. The home was also meeting the COVID-19 vaccination requirement for staff and visiting professionals.
This was not a full inspection and the service was not given an overall quality rating. The inspectors also asked about staffing pressures linked to COVID-19, and the provider said measures were in place to reduce the risks.
Clean environment
The home appeared clean and uncluttered, with regular cleaning and extra cleaning of high-touch areas to reduce the risk of cross infection.
“The home appeared clean and uncluttered, rooms were being regularly cleaned and an increased cleaning schedule was in place for high touch areas” from the report
Infection control
Inspectors were assured that the home was using protective equipment safely, arranging testing and managing infection outbreaks.
“We were assured that the provider was using PPE effectively and safely.” from the report
Keeping people connected
Visitors were allowed in line with guidance, and people were supported to stay in regular contact with loved ones by video and telephone.
“People were also supported to maintain regular contact with loved ones through video calls and telephone calls.” from the report
Staff confidence
Staff spoke positively about the home and its management and said they had no concerns.
“Staff spoke positively about the service and management and had no concerns.” from the report
Inspectors raised no specific concerns in this report.
- 01What measures are currently in place if COVID-19 or other illness causes staffing pressures?
- 02How often are high-touch areas cleaned now, and how is this checked?
- 03How are visitors currently screened and supported to visit safely?
- 04How often are residents and staff tested for COVID-19, and what happens if someone tests positive?
- 05What is the home's most recent full CQC rating, since this inspection was not rated?
This was a targeted inspection of infection prevention and control and COVID-19-related staffing pressures; it did not assess the other four CQC questions or give an overall rating. This explanation was written from the published report of 25 January 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 Plane Tree Court
4 rated inspections over 9 years: the service has held its Good rating throughout.
- September 2023Goodcurrent ratingSafe: GoodEffective: GoodCaring: GoodResponsive: GoodWell-led: Good
- January 2022Inspected but not ratedSafe: Inspected but not rated
- February 2021Inspected but not ratedSafe: Inspected but not rated
- March 2020Goodstayed GoodSafe: GoodResponsive: GoodWell-led: Good
- August 2017Goodstayed GoodSafe: Requires improvementEffective: GoodCaring: GoodResponsive: GoodWell-led: Good
- January 2015GoodSafe: GoodEffective: GoodCaring: GoodResponsive: GoodWell-led: Good
- October 2013
Report published without a new overall rating.
- June 2013
Report published without a new overall rating.
- February 2013
Report published without a new overall rating.
- July 2012
Report published without a new overall rating.
- April 2012
Report published without a new overall rating.
- December 2011
Report published without a new overall rating.
- September 2011
Report published without a new overall rating.
- April 2011
Report published without a new overall rating.
- January 2011
Registered with the Care Quality Commission on 26 January 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 Stockport
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. 88 can care for a couple. 10 years' experience on average.
“Primrose is a very kind and compassionate healthcare professional”
“She is an exemplary carer, she is knowledgable empathetic and very respectful in the home.”
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.