CQC report explained · a residential care home
What the CQC found at St Claire's Care Home
Rated Good: inspectors found the home performing well and meeting their expectations.
- Safe?
- Good
- Inspectors were assured that infection prevention and control procedures were being followed. This included the safe use of protective equipment, social distancing, testing, admissions and outbreak management.
- Effective?
- Good
- Does the care work? Training, consent, food and drink, working with GPs and nurses.
- Caring?
- Good
- Are people treated with kindness and dignity?
- Responsive?
- Good
- Is care built around the person? Care plans, activities, complaints.
- Well-led?
- Good
- Is the home run well? The manager, the culture, how problems get found and fixed.
What inspectors found, January 2021
St Claire's Care Home: inspected but not rated; inspectors were assured that infection prevention and control arrangements were safe.
The inspection took place on 16 December 2020 and was announced. It was a targeted inspection because of coronavirus outbreaks in care homes.
Inspectors looked at infection prevention and control arrangements. They were assured that the home was using protective equipment safely, supporting social distancing, managing admissions and testing people and staff.
The home was closed to visitors in line with government guidance. Inspectors also found clear safety signs and arrangements to help people use shared areas safely.
The home was inspected but not rated. This was not a full inspection of all five areas of care.
Infection control
Inspectors were assured that the home had safe infection prevention and control procedures in place.
“We were assured the service were following safe infection prevention and control procedures to keep people safe.” from the report
Safe shared areas
Staff supported people to use communal areas while maintaining social distancing.
“Staff supported people to use the communal areas of the service in a way which supported social distancing.” from the report
Clear safety guidance
The home used prominent signs and instructions about protective equipment and safety.
“There was prominent signage and instructions to explain what people should do to ensure safety in accordance to the use of PPE (personal protective equipment).” from the report
Inspectors raised no specific concerns in this report.
- 01What are the current arrangements for visits, and have they changed since the inspection?
- 02How are people and staff currently tested for coronavirus or other infections?
- 03How would the home manage a new infection outbreak?
- 04What are the home's current ratings for caring, effective, responsive and well-led care?
- 05How are communal areas currently managed to support people's safety?
This was a targeted inspection of infection prevention and control practices only; the service was inspected but not rated overall. This explanation was written from the published report of 27 January 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.
What inspectors found, August 2019
Rated Good; inspectors found safe, kind and personalised care, with improvements since the previous Requires Improvement rating.
This was an unannounced inspection on 10 and 11 July 2019. One inspector and one Expert by Experience spoke with people, relatives, staff and health professionals. They also reviewed care records, medicines records, staff recruitment files and management records.
The inspectors found that people were safe and supported by enough trained staff. Medicines were managed safely. People were treated with kindness and respect, had choices about their care, and were supported to stay independent. The home was clean and adapted for people living with dementia.
The home was rated Good in all five areas: Safe, Effective, Caring, Responsive and Well-led. This was an improvement from the previous Requires Improvement rating, published in July 2018. The report says there were no breaches of regulation at that earlier inspection.
Safe medicines support
Medicines were administered as prescribed, with complete records and safe storage. Staff training and competency checks were in place.
“Medicines were ordered, administered, disposed of and stored safely and securely.” from the report
Kind and respectful care
People said staff knew them well and treated them with kindness. Inspectors observed patient, calm and respectful interactions.
“Staff treated people with kindness. Staff were gentle and patient with people” from the report
Personalised support
Staff used detailed information about people's lives, preferences and communication needs to shape their care and activities.
“There was very detailed information on people's life history for staff.” from the report
Positive management
The report describes regular audits, staff involvement and a positive atmosphere. Leaders had acted on earlier concerns and continued to make improvements.
“There was a positive culture at the service which promoted good standards of care and had led to good outcomes for people.” from the report
Activity coordinator vacancy
minorThe activity coordinator had recently left and the manager was recruiting a replacement. Other staff continued activities and supported people to go out, but families may want to check the current position.
“The activity co-ordinator had recently left the service and the registered manager was recruiting a new one.” from the report
- 01Has the activity coordinator role been filled, and what activities are currently available each week?
- 02How are staffing levels calculated when people's needs change or staff are absent?
- 03How are medicines, care plans and risk assessments checked regularly?
- 04How are residents and relatives involved in reviewing care and suggesting improvements?
- 05How would you support someone living with dementia who becomes anxious or distressed?
This was an unannounced planned inspection covering all five CQC question areas, following the previous Requires Improvement rating. This explanation was written from the published report of 9 August 2019 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 St Claire's Care Home
4 rated inspections over 2 years: the service has improved, from Requires improvement to Good.
- January 2021Inspected but not ratedcurrent ratingSafe: Inspected but not rated
- August 2019Goodup from Requires improvementSafe: GoodEffective: GoodCaring: GoodResponsive: GoodWell-led: Good
- July 2018Requires improvementup from InadequateSafe: Requires improvementEffective: Requires improvementCaring: GoodResponsive: Requires improvementWell-led: Requires improvement
- December 2017Inadequatedown from Requires improvementSafe: InadequateEffective: Requires improvementCaring: InadequateResponsive: InadequateWell-led: Inadequate
- February 2017Requires improvementSafe: InadequateEffective: Requires improvementCaring: Requires improvementResponsive: Requires improvementWell-led: Requires improvement
- October 2014
Report published without a new overall rating.
- April 2014
Report published without a new overall rating.
- December 2013
Report published without a new overall rating.
- November 2012
Report published without a new overall rating.
- June 2012
Report published without a new overall rating.
- February 2011
Registered with the Care Quality Commission on 15 February 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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39 live-in carers within about an hour of Kent
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Most charge £980 to £1,260 a week. 33 can care for a couple. 12 years' experience on average.
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