CQC report explained · a residential care home
What the CQC found at Somerforde Limited
Rated Good: inspectors found the home performing well and meeting their expectations.
- Safe?
- Good
- Inspectors found safe systems for medicines, safeguarding, risk management, staffing, recruitment and infection control. They also found that visiting was supported in line with government guidance.
- Effective?
- Good
- This question was not rated in this inspection.
- Caring?
- Good
- This question was not rated in this inspection, although inspectors observed positive interactions and close relationships between people and staff.
- Responsive?
- Good
- This question was not rated in this inspection.
- Well-led?
- Good
- Inspectors found positive leadership, a strong team culture, regular quality checks and systems for getting feedback from people, relatives and staff.
What inspectors found, June 2022
Somerforde Limited was rated Good; inspectors found safe care, enough staff and strong management.
This was an unannounced inspection on 23 May 2022. One inspector spoke with people, staff and relatives, observed care, and checked care, medicines, recruitment, safety and quality records.
The home was rated Good overall. Safe was rated Good, and inspectors found that medicines, staffing, safeguarding, risks, infection control and visiting arrangements were managed safely.
Well-led was also rated Good. Inspectors found positive leadership, good feedback systems, regular checks on quality and constructive links with healthcare professionals and the local community.
Safe medicines
The home had improved its medicines management since the previous recommendation. Inspectors found safe systems, accurate records and regular checks.
“There were safe and effective systems for the ordering, storage, administration and returns of medicines.” from the report
Enough staff
Inspectors found enough staff to meet people's needs. Short-notice sickness was covered by existing staff or management, and the home did not use agency staff.
“The provider and registered manager ensured there were sufficient numbers of staff deployed to meet the needs of the people at the service.” from the report
Positive relationships
People appeared comfortable with staff, and inspectors saw positive interactions. Feedback from people and relatives about the care and management was very positive.
“People felt safe in the company of staff.” from the report
Quality oversight
The home used audits, observations, feedback and checks of the environment to monitor safety and care quality.
“There was an extensive range of effective quality monitoring and governance systems embedded in the service.” from the report
Inspectors raised no specific concerns in this report.
- 01How will you continue the medicines checks and staff competency checks that inspectors found were working well?
- 02How do you make sure there are enough staff when sickness or other short-notice gaps occur?
- 03How will you keep relatives informed about visits and any changes to visiting arrangements?
- 04What feedback do you collect from people and relatives, and what changes have you made as a result?
- 05Which aspects of care were not rated in this inspection, and how do you monitor them?
This was a focused inspection of Safe and Well-led; the report does not give ratings for Effective, Caring or Responsive. This explanation was written from the published report of 1 June 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, April 2020
Inspected but not rated; inspectors found safe, kind care and improvements in staffing and management, while the previous Good rating remained unchanged.
This was an unannounced targeted inspection on 11 February 2020. Inspectors looked at specific concerns about safety, staffing, medicines, risk management, infection control, management and the culture of the home. They spoke with people, a relative, staff and a visiting health professional, and reviewed care, medicines, recruitment and management records.
Inspectors found people felt safe and were treated with kindness and respect. They found suitable staffing, safe recruitment, medicines systems, risk assessments, infection control and activities that supported people's wellbeing. Staff worked with health professionals when people needed extra support.
The provider and manager had introduced stronger checks, clearer roles and a service improvement plan. There had previously been high staff turnover and sickness, but inspectors found the staff team was stabilising and agency staff were no longer needed.
The home was inspected but not rated at this visit. The previous overall rating was Good, published on 16 May 2019, and the report says that rating remained Good. This inspection did not assess every part of the five key questions.
People felt safe
People told inspectors they felt safe. Safeguarding concerns were acted on and staff knew how to report abuse.
“People told us they felt safe at the service.” from the report
Kind and respectful care
Staff supported people's privacy, dignity, choices and communication. People, relatives and staff spoke positively about the care and the culture.
“People were treated as active partners in their care.” from the report
Safer staffing
The home checked new staff carefully, provided training and had enough staff to meet people's needs. Agency staff were no longer being used at the time of the inspection.
“There were enough staff available to support people and meet their care needs.” from the report
Stronger management checks
The management team had introduced clearer responsibilities, regular checks and a service improvement plan that was reviewed every three months.
“There were effective systems in place to monitor the quality and safety of the service.” from the report
Safe medicines
Inspectors found suitable systems for storing, giving, monitoring and disposing of medicines. Staff had training and competency checks.
“This ensured people received their medicines safely, and in the way prescribed for them.” from the report
Earlier staffing instability
needs fixingThe home had experienced high staff turnover and sickness, linked to changes in the staff team and recruitment difficulties. Inspectors said the team was now stabilising, but this is worth checking for your relative's care.
“There had been a high staff turnover and high levels of sickness.” from the report
- 01How stable is the current staff team, and how many permanent staff and agency staff are now working here?
- 02What progress has been made on the service improvement plan since this inspection?
- 03How do you check that staffing levels remain sufficient when staff are off sick or leave?
- 04How will you assess and respond if my relative's needs become too complex for a residential setting?
- 05How will you keep me informed about any safeguarding concern, mistake or change in my relative's care?
This was a targeted inspection of specific parts of Safe and Well-led; it did not assess the whole of either key question, and the other areas were not assessed at this visit. This explanation was written from the published report of 1 April 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 Somerforde Limited
4 rated inspections over 6 years: the service has held its Good rating throughout.
- June 2022Goodcurrent ratingSafe: GoodEffective: GoodCaring: GoodResponsive: GoodWell-led: Good
- April 2020Inspected but not ratedSafe: Inspected but not ratedWell-led: Inspected but not rated
- May 2019Goodup from Requires improvementSafe: Requires improvementWell-led: Good
- April 2018Requires improvementdown from GoodSafe: Requires improvementEffective: GoodCaring: GoodResponsive: GoodWell-led: Requires improvement
- January 2016GoodSafe: GoodEffective: GoodCaring: GoodResponsive: GoodWell-led: Good
- December 2013
Report published without a new overall rating.
- February 2013
Report published without a new overall rating.
- May 2012
Report published without a new overall rating.
- January 2011
Registered with the Care Quality Commission on 13 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.
Weigh the report against the rest
Fees, photos and reviews from families
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17 live-in carers within about an hour of Devon
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 £1,020 to £1,270 a week. 15 can care for a couple. 13 years' experience on average.
“She is such a warm and gentle person while being professional and competent at the same time.”
“She looked after my mum, who can be incredibly challenging, so well and so gently, and we always felt confident that my mum was getting the best care available.”
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.