CQC report explained · a residential care home
What the CQC found at SCC Adult Social Care Supported Living and Mallow Crescent short breaks service
Not yet rated: the CQC has not published a rated inspection for this home, which is usual for a new registration.
What inspectors found, September 2022
Mallow Crescent is rated Good; inspectors found safe, kind and personalised support, although two areas previously rated Outstanding are now Good.
Inspectors visited on 5 and 7 July 2022. They spoke with seven people using the service, eight relatives and 14 staff. They reviewed care plans, medicines records, recruitment and training records, and management documents.
The home provides supported living and short-stay respite care for people with learning disabilities and autistic people. Inspectors found that people were safe, treated with kindness and involved in decisions. Staff supported people with medicines, health appointments, communication, activities and relationships.
All five CQC areas were rated Good. This means inspectors found a consistently good service, but not an outstanding one. Caring and Responsive fell from Outstanding at the previous inspection, while Safe, Effective and Well-led remained Good.
Personal goals and choice
People received person-centred support and were encouraged to work towards their own goals. Staff supported people to make choices and take positive risks.
“People received person-centred support which encouraged them to work towards their own goals and to live the life they wanted.” from the report
Kind and respectful staff
People and relatives described staff as kind and caring. Inspectors saw staff respond patiently and respectfully when people were upset or needed help.
“People and their relatives told us staff were kind, compassionate and caring.” from the report
Safe medicines support
Staff were trained and checked as competent to support people with medicines. Records and reviews were used to check that medicines were given as prescribed.
“People were supported to take their medicines safely. When possible, staff encouraged and enabled them to take their medicines independently and this was risk assessed with people.” from the report
Communication and activities
Care records explained how people communicated and what support they needed. People were supported to take part in activities, go out and maintain important relationships.
“People's individual communication needs and ways of expressing themselves were assessed in their support records with clear guidelines for staff on how to best communicate with people.” from the report
Open management
People, relatives and staff said managers were approachable and listened to concerns. The home used audits, feedback and improvement plans to monitor its work.
“The management team had a continuous improvement action log which supported them to ensure improvement needs identified were implemented.” from the report
Assessment arrangements still being improved
minorThe provider was reviewing its assessment process. Inspectors noted that the way tenancy and support arrangements were kept separate still needed work.
“Some aspects of the service still needed work and this was planned by the provider, for example, around how people's tenancy and support were clearly not dependent on each other.” from the report
- 01What changes have been made to the assessment process since the inspection?
- 02How do you keep a person's tenancy and support arrangements separate where this applies?
- 03What actions were taken after medicines errors, and how are medicines records checked now?
- 04How will you maintain the quality of caring and responsive support, given both ratings fell from Outstanding to Good?
- 05How will my relative be involved in planning activities, holidays, healthcare and their individual goals?
This was an inspection of the supported living services and the residential short-stay respite home, covering all five CQC questions and infection prevention and control. This explanation was written from the published report of 8 September 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.
What inspectors found, January 2020
Mallow Crescent is rated Outstanding; inspectors found exceptionally caring, personalised support, with safe and effective care and good leadership.
This was a planned inspection. The inspector visited the office, spoke with people, relatives, staff and health and social care professionals, and checked care records, recruitment, training, medicines and quality checks. The inspection activity ran from 28 November to 2 December 2019.
The home supported people with learning disabilities or autism, older people, physical disabilities and younger adults. The short-break care home could support up to six people. Inspectors found enough staff, safe medicines systems, individual risk assessments and clean homes.
Care was highly personalised. People were supported to make choices, build independence, maintain relationships and take part in activities. The home was rated Outstanding overall, with Outstanding ratings for Caring and Responsive, and Good ratings for Safe, Effective and Well-led.
Kind and respectful care
Inspectors found staff were exceptionally kind and understood people's feelings, anxieties and wishes. People were treated as individuals and supported to feel valued.
“Staff were exceptionally kind, caring, and committed to the people they supported.” from the report
Personalised support
Care records gave staff detailed information about each person. Support was adapted to people's communication needs, interests, health needs and goals.
“Care records were exceptionally detailed with a consistently high degree of personalisation and provided staff with an excellent guide to understanding each person” from the report
Safe medicines and staffing
There were enough staff and recruitment checks had been completed. Medicines records had no gaps or errors, and staff were trained and assessed before administering medicines.
“Medicine administration records showed they were appropriately completed without any gaps and errors.” from the report
Useful communication methods
The home used pictures, easy-read information, tablets and social stories to help people understand choices, care plans, appointments and changes.
“The service had excelled in their approach to presenting information in different ways to help involve people.” from the report
Recent management change
minorThe previous registered manager had retired shortly before the inspection. The new manager was applying to become registered, so families may want to check how leadership and continuity are being maintained.
“The registered manager had just recently retired after working for the service for a number of years.” from the report
- 01What progress has been made with the new manager's registration since this inspection?
- 02How will the home maintain continuity of staff and support for people using short breaks?
- 03How will you adapt communication for my relative's specific needs, including medical appointments or anxiety?
- 04How will you support my relative to make choices and build independence while keeping risks safely managed?
- 05How are medicines checked if my relative wants to manage or take more responsibility for their own medicines?
This inspection covered the care home, personal care in the supported living settings and community outreach, but did not assess the premises used for supported living. This explanation was written from the published report of 30 January 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.
Every inspection of SCC Adult Social Care Supported Living and Mallow Crescent short breaks service
3 rated inspections over 6 years: the service has held its Good rating throughout.
- September 2022Goodcurrent ratingdown from OutstandingSafe: GoodEffective: GoodCaring: GoodResponsive: GoodWell-led: Good
- January 2020Outstandingup from GoodSafe: GoodEffective: GoodCaring: OutstandingResponsive: OutstandingWell-led: Good
- March 2017GoodSafe: GoodEffective: GoodCaring: GoodResponsive: GoodWell-led: Outstanding
- October 2013
Report published without a new overall rating.
- April 2013
Report published without a new overall rating.
- March 2011
Registered with the Care Quality Commission on 7 March 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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77 live-in carers within about an hour of Surrey
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 £1,250 a week. 66 can care for a couple. 11 years' experience on average.
“Without his support we wouldn't have been able to navigate bringing and keeping Dad at home.”
“Not only has she looked after him beautifully, she has also been great company for him with lively conversation, kindness and humour.”
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.