CQC report explained · a residential care home
What the CQC found at Ward Green Lodge
Rated Good: inspectors found the home performing well and meeting their expectations.
- Safe?
- Good
- People said they felt safe, and inspectors found enough staff, safe medicine procedures, suitable risk assessments and effective infection control. Some recruitment files lacked a written health declaration.
- Effective?
- Good
- Staff had relevant training, supervision and appraisals. People received support with healthcare, food and drink, consent and decision-making.
- Caring?
- Good
- Inspectors saw kind, patient and respectful care. Staff protected people's privacy and dignity, asked for consent and knew people well.
- Responsive?
- Good
- Care plans were personalised and regularly reviewed. People had choices about their daily lives and access to activities, community links and end of life support.
- Well-led?
- Good
- The managers were approachable and staff described good teamwork and communication. Regular audits, feedback and follow-up checks were used to monitor and improve the service.
What inspectors found, November 2018
Rated Good; inspectors found safe, kind and personalised care, with minor improvements needed in recruitment records and medicine checks.
This was an unannounced, comprehensive inspection on 29 October 2018. Inspectors spoke with people living at the home, relatives, health professionals and staff. They observed care, looked around the building and checked care, medicine, staff and quality records.
The home remained Good in all five areas: Safe, Effective, Caring, Responsive and Well-led. Inspectors found enough staff, safe medicines procedures, suitable training, respectful care, personalised care plans and a range of activities.
There were two minor record-keeping points. Some staff files did not contain a written health declaration, and inspectors discussed more frequent checks for some controlled medicines that were not given every day. Managers said these points would be addressed.
People felt safe
People and relatives said they had no safety concerns. Inspectors found enough staff and effective safeguarding, building safety and risk management arrangements.
“People living at Ward Green lodge said they felt safe and they liked the staff.” from the report
Safe medicines support
Medicines were stored, given and recorded safely in the records checked. Staff were observed giving medicines calmly and without interruption.
“Medicines were obtained, stored, administered and disposed of safely by staff.” from the report
Kind and respectful care
Staff treated people with dignity and respect. They knocked before entering rooms, asked permission and supported people to choose where they spent their time.
“We saw people were cared for and supported by staff that were kind, patient and respectful.” from the report
Personalised support
Care plans included people's needs, interests, likes and dislikes. Staff knew people's preferences and provided a range of activities.
“They included clear information on the person's identified need, interests, hobbies, likes and dislikes so that these could be respected.” from the report
Good oversight
Managers used regular audits and feedback to monitor the home. Inspectors saw evidence that identified improvements were checked later.
“We saw that where audits identified something could be improved, the next audit checked the improvement had been made” from the report
Missing health declarations
needs fixingThe three staff recruitment files checked did not contain written health declarations. Managers said the discussions had happened verbally and agreed to record them for all staff.
“We found some improvements to staff recruitment files were needed because the files we checked did not contain a staff health declaration” from the report
Controlled medicine checks
minorInspectors asked the service to increase the frequency of checks for some controlled medicines that were not administered daily. The manager said this would happen immediately.
“We discussed with the business and compliance manager about increasing the frequency of checks for some CDs that weren't administered on a daily basis.” from the report
- 01Have written health declarations now been completed and recorded for every member of staff?
- 02How often are controlled medicines now checked when they are not administered every day?
- 03How do you check that staffing levels continue to match residents' changing needs?
- 04How are activities adapted for people who cannot join group activities or who have changing interests?
- 05How will my relative and our family be involved in reviewing the care plan when needs change?
This was an unannounced comprehensive inspection covering all five questions, and the Good ratings remained unchanged from the previous inspection. This explanation was written from the published report of 27 November 2018 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 Ward Green Lodge
2 rated inspections over 3 years: the service has held its Good rating throughout.
- November 2018Goodcurrent ratingstayed GoodSafe: GoodEffective: GoodCaring: GoodResponsive: GoodWell-led: Good
- April 2016GoodSafe: GoodEffective: GoodCaring: GoodResponsive: GoodWell-led: Good
- November 2014
Registered with the Care Quality Commission on 12 November 2014.
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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At least 99 live-in carers within about an hour of Barnsley
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 £1,260 a week. 82 can care for a couple. 12 years' experience on average.
“Carla has been a god send with the implementation of bringing mum back home from respite care.”
“Ivy was very kind and gentle in all her dealings with my late mother. They got on very well and were able to share a joke and a laugh.”
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.