CQC report explained · a residential care home
What the CQC found at Springfield Road
Rated Good: inspectors found the home performing well and meeting their expectations.
- Safe?
- Good
- Inspectors found that risks were assessed and reviewed, medicines were given safely, and there were enough staff to respond to people's needs. Recruitment included references and Disclosure and Barring Service checks.
- Effective?
- Good
- Staff had relevant training and understood people's needs. Care plans included health action plans, people and relatives were involved in assessments, and staff followed consent and best-interest processes.
- Caring?
- Good
- People were treated with kindness, compassion, dignity and respect. They were supported to communicate, make daily choices and develop their independence.
- Responsive?
- Good
- Care was personalised and reflected people's preferences. People helped decide activities, visitors were not restricted, communication needs were considered, and complaints were used to improve practice.
- Well-led?
- Good
- The home had an open, inclusive culture and systems to review care plans, risks, medicines and the environment. People, relatives and staff were asked for their views and feedback was used to develop the service.
What inspectors found, March 2020
Real Life Options - Springfield Road was rated Good; inspectors found safe, kind and person-centred care across all five areas.
This was a planned inspection visit on 18 December 2019. Inspectors reviewed information held about the home, spoke with people, relatives, staff and a healthcare professional, and observed care. They also checked care records, staff files, medicines systems, training records and quality checks.
The home provided accommodation and personal care for up to 12 people, with all 12 places occupied during the visit. Inspectors found people were safe, received medicines as prescribed, and were supported by enough trained staff.
People were treated with kindness and respect. They were involved in decisions about their care, daily activities and health needs. The home had systems to listen to feedback, learn from mistakes and monitor the quality of care.
All five areas were rated Good: Safe, Effective, Caring, Responsive and Well-led. The home had also been rated Good at the previous inspection, published in June 2017.
Person-centred support
The home aimed to give people control, choice and independence. Inspectors found that support was planned around individual needs.
“People using the service receive planned and co-ordinated person-centred support that is appropriate and inclusive for them.” from the report
Enough trained staff
Inspectors saw enough staff on duty to respond to people's needs. Staff had appropriate training and recruitment checks were in place.
“During our visit we saw there were sufficient numbers of staff to respond to people's needs when required.” from the report
Kind and respectful care
People and relatives described staff positively. Inspectors observed caring interactions and found that privacy, dignity and independence were respected.
“People and relatives told us staff treated them with kindness and compassion.” from the report
People involved in decisions
People were involved in care planning and everyday choices, including what to eat, where to spend time and whether to go out.
“We saw people making decisions about their daily lives, for example; when they wanted a drink or snack, if they wanted to go out of the home, or whether they spent time in communal areas or in their own rooms.” from the report
Quality checks
The provider used audits and feedback to review care, risks, medicines and the environment. It also reported working with other organisations to improve the service.
“Quality assurance and audit systems were in place for monitoring service provision.” from the report
Inspectors raised no specific concerns in this report.
- 01How are my relative's risk assessments reviewed when their needs or risks change?
- 02How will you involve my relative, or their representative, in reviewing their care plan?
- 03What training do staff have for my relative's specific health, communication and support needs?
- 04How do you record and review medicines, including any changes made by health professionals?
- 05What activities are available, and how will my relative choose activities and maintain relationships with family and friends?
This was a planned inspection covering all five CQC questions; all ratings remained Good compared with the previous inspection published in June 2017. This explanation was written from the published report of 13 March 2020 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, June 2017
Real Life Options - Springfield Road was rated Good; inspectors found kind, safe and personalised care, with minor gaps in staff competency checks and hoist guidance.
This was an unannounced, comprehensive inspection on 23 May 2017. One inspector and an expert by experience visited for one day. They met everyone living there, observed care, spoke with staff and relatives, and checked care plans, medicines, recruitment records and management checks.
The home supported 11 people, against a maximum of 12, who had learning disabilities. Inspectors found enough staff, safe medicine management, suitable training, support with health needs, respectful care and regular activities. People were supported to make choices, maintain relationships and take part in everyday life.
All five areas were rated Good: safe, effective, caring, responsive and well-led. The home had also been rated Good at the inspection on 4 December 2014, so the overall rating remained unchanged.
Kind and respectful care
Inspectors saw staff treating people with patience, compassion and respect. Staff used their knowledge of people's communication to help them express choices.
“All the care and support we observed was offered with kindness and compassion.” from the report
Personalised activities
People had activity schedules based on their interests. They were supported with activities at home and in the community, including college, art, music, films and games.
“People had individualised activity schedules for the week based on things they enjoyed.” from the report
Good staffing and recruitment
Inspectors found enough staff to meet people's needs safely. Recruitment included checks designed to ensure staff were suitable to work in adult social care.
“The provider had robust recruitment practices to ensure staff employed were safe to support people.” from the report
Strong management checks
The manager and provider used audits, incident reviews and spot checks to monitor safety and quality. These checks included different times of day and night.
“The registered manager and the registered provider had developed and utilised a wide range of audits and checks” from the report
Hoist guidance was incomplete
needs fixingStaff used the hoist safely during the inspection, but the written guidance did not record which sling loops should be used. The manager said this would be added as a priority.
“The guidelines did not record this, providing this information would further support staff to deliver good and safe care.” from the report
Medicine competency checks were informal
minorStaff who gave medicines had been trained and medicines were checked, but there was no formal system to assess their competency.
“There was not currently a system in place to formally assess staff competency” from the report
- 01How do you now formally check that each member of staff is competent to administer medicines?
- 02Has the written hoist guidance been updated to record the correct sling loops for each person?
- 03The report says the provider intended to cease providing nursing care. Has this happened, and what would it mean for someone who needs nursing support?
- 04How will my relative's individual activity schedule, community activities and important relationships be maintained?
- 05How are care plans reviewed with people and their relatives when someone cannot communicate their wishes verbally?
This was an unannounced comprehensive inspection covering all five key questions, with observations, discussions and checks of selected records. This explanation was written from the published report of 22 June 2017 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 Springfield Road
3 rated inspections over 5 years: the service has held its Good rating throughout.
- March 2020Goodcurrent ratingstayed GoodSafe: GoodEffective: GoodCaring: GoodResponsive: GoodWell-led: Good
- June 2017Goodstayed GoodSafe: GoodEffective: GoodCaring: GoodResponsive: GoodWell-led: Good
- March 2015GoodSafe: GoodEffective: GoodCaring: GoodResponsive: GoodWell-led: Good
- December 2013
Report published without a new overall rating.
- March 2013
Report published without a new overall rating.
- March 2012
Registered with the Care Quality Commission on 21 March 2012.
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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