CQC report explained · a residential care home
What the CQC found at The Shires
Rated Good: inspectors found the home performing well and meeting their expectations.
- Safe?
- Good
- People were protected from avoidable harm. Inspectors found suitable risk assessments, enough staff, safe recruitment, well-managed medicines and systems for learning from accidents and incidents.
- Effective?
- Good
- Staff were trained and supported, and people received help with food, healthcare and healthy living. The home was adapted to people's needs and staff supported people to make choices.
- Caring?
- Good
- Inspectors saw kind and respectful relationships. People were involved in decisions, supported to express their views and encouraged to remain independent.
- Responsive?
- Good
- Care plans reflected people's needs and preferences and were reviewed. People had individual activities, accessible information and ways to raise concerns.
- Well-led?
- Good
- The home had a clear management structure and effective quality checks. People, relatives and staff had opportunities to give feedback, and information from incidents and reviews was used to improve care.
What inspectors found, April 2019
Rated Good; inspectors found safe, kind and personalised care across all five areas they assessed.
The inspection took place on 20 March 2019. One inspector spoke with three people living at the home, two relatives and three staff members. They also reviewed two care plans, medicines records, accident and incident information, meeting notes and quality checks.
Inspectors found that people were safe, supported by trained staff and given their medicines properly. Staff understood people's needs, treated them with kindness and respect, and supported choice, independence, activities and access to healthcare.
All five areas were rated Good: Safe, Effective, Caring, Responsive and Well-led. This was the same overall rating as the previous inspection, published on 30 July 2016.
Safe staffing and medicines
Inspectors found enough staff to keep people safe. Medicines were stored, given and recorded using safe procedures, and staff had their competence checked.
“Medicines systems were well organised and people received their medicines when they should.” from the report
Kind and respectful care
People were treated with kindness, dignity and respect. Staff knew people's likes and dislikes and involved them in decisions about their care.
“We saw caring interaction between staff and people throughout the inspection.” from the report
Personalised support
Care plans gave staff guidance about people's needs and were updated when circumstances changed. Activities were arranged around individual interests and needs.
“The arrangements for social activities were based around people's individual needs.” from the report
Effective leadership
The management team used audits, feedback, care plan reviews and incident information to monitor safety and improve care.
“We saw that quality checks were effective and identified areas where actions needed to be taken.” from the report
Inspectors raised no specific concerns in this report.
- 01How would you assess and update my relative's risk assessments if their needs or circumstances changed?
- 02How would you support my relative to choose activities and maintain their independence?
- 03What training and competency checks have staff completed for my relative's specific needs and medicines?
- 04How would you support someone receiving end of life care, given that no one was receiving it during the inspection?
- 05How can my relative or family raise a concern, and who would be their keyworker or main contact?
This was a planned inspection covering the overall service and all five CQC questions; the inspector reviewed two care plans and there was no one receiving end of life care at the time. This explanation was written from the published report of 26 April 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 The Shires
2 rated inspections over 3 years: the service has held its Good rating throughout.
- April 2019Goodcurrent ratingstayed GoodSafe: GoodEffective: GoodCaring: GoodResponsive: GoodWell-led: Good
- July 2016GoodSafe: GoodEffective: GoodCaring: GoodResponsive: GoodWell-led: Good
- October 2014
Report published without a new overall rating.
- November 2013
Report published without a new overall rating.
- September 2012
Report published without a new overall rating.
- November 2011
Report published without a new overall rating.
- January 2011
Registered with the Care Quality Commission on 10 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
How to read CQC ratings and reports
What to check when you visit
13 live-in carers within about an hour of Norfolk
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 £990 to £1,120 a week. 9 can care for a couple. 14 years' experience on average.
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.