CQC report explained · a residential care home
What the CQC found at Wellcroft
Rated Good: inspectors found the home performing well and meeting their expectations.
- Safe?
- Good
- Inspectors found risk assessments, equipment checks, safe recruitment and safe medicines systems. Some people and relatives felt there were not enough staff, and one medicines guidance gap was corrected during the inspection.
- Effective?
- Good
- People received suitable food, staff training and healthcare support. The environment was adapted to support independence and people living with dementia.
- Caring?
- Good
- Staff were generally kind, respectful and supportive of independence. Inspectors also saw times when staff were task-focused and did not always consider people's preferences.
- Responsive?
- Good
- The home provided activities, responded to complaints and involved people in care decisions. Electronic care plans were still being updated to make them more detailed and person-centred.
- Well-led?
- Good
- People, relatives and staff were positive about the new manager, and the home used meetings, surveys and audits to improve. This rating had fallen from Outstanding at the previous inspection.
What inspectors found, January 2020
Wellcroft was rated Good overall; inspectors found safe, kind care, but some staffing, record-keeping and person-centred care needed attention.
Inspectors visited on 27 November and 12 December 2019. The first visit was unannounced. They spoke with people, relatives, staff and health professionals, observed care and reviewed care, medicines and management records.
The home was rated Good in all five areas: Safe, Effective, Caring, Responsive and Well-led. People were generally safe, received suitable food and healthcare, and were treated with kindness and respect. Staff supported independence and offered activities and choices.
There were some shortfalls. People and relatives gave mixed views about staffing levels. Staff could sometimes be task-focused, and a new electronic care-record system still needed more detailed and personal care plans. One medicines guidance issue and one infection-control incident were dealt with during the inspection.
The overall rating stayed Good, as it was at the previous inspection in June 2017. However, the Well-led rating fell from Outstanding to Good.
Risk management
The home used individual risk assessments and emergency plans. Equipment, utilities and the environment were checked and maintained.
“There were a variety of individual risk assessments completed in people's care plans which included choking and falls, and risk management plans were in place.” from the report
Food and healthcare
People had meal choices and staff understood dietary needs, including modified diets. The home worked closely with healthcare professionals and local GP services.
“People were given a choice of meals and could request a different option if they did not like what was on the menu.” from the report
Respect and independence
Staff generally treated people with dignity and encouraged them to do as much as possible for themselves.
“We observed staff provided people with encouragement and support to enable them to do as much as they could for themselves and care plans reflected this.” from the report
Activities and relationships
There was a range of activities, including music, exercise, arts and crafts, animal therapy and trips out. The home also supported access to talking books and religious support.
“The activities included music and singing, physical activities and arts and crafts as well as monthly trips out.” from the report
Staffing concerns
minorAlthough inspectors saw people's needs met in a timely way, feedback about staffing was mixed. Some people said they waited for help or that call bells were not answered quickly enough.
“There isn't enough staff on duty. I have to wait for my needs to be met.” from the report
Staff sometimes task-focused
needs fixingInspectors saw kind interactions, but staff did not always consider people's preferences about things such as music or television.
“However, there were times when staff were task focused and did not always consider people's preferences.” from the report
Care plans being updated
needs fixingA new electronic care-record system had been introduced. Work was still needed to make care plans more detailed and centred on each person.
“A new electronic system for care records had recently been introduced in the home and work to update and ensure electronic care plans were detailed and person-centred was on going.” from the report
Medicines guidance
needs fixingGuidance for some as-needed medicines was missing from the new electronic system. The manager took immediate action so staff knew how to support people when giving these medicines.
“guidance for people who had 'as required' medicine such as paracetamol for pain, were not in place on this system.” from the report
Infection control
minorInspectors saw one occasion when a staff member did not use protective equipment during support at mealtime. The manager was aware that infection-control practice needed to be reinforced.
“We observed one occasion where a member of staff did not wear PPE when provide support at meal time” from the report
- 01How many staff are normally on each shift, and how do you respond when people wait for help or call bells are not answered?
- 02How are the new electronic care plans being checked to make sure they are detailed and personalised?
- 03What has been done since the inspection to make sure guidance for as-needed medicines is available at the point staff give them?
- 04How are staff being supported to focus on people's preferences, rather than only completing tasks?
- 05What changes led to the Well-led rating falling from Outstanding to Good, and what improvements are still planned?
This was a planned inspection that assessed all five CQC questions, with the first inspection day unannounced. This explanation was written from the published report of 10 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.
What inspectors found, June 2017
Rated Good overall, with Outstanding leadership and inspectors finding safe, kind and personalised dementia care.
This was an unannounced inspection on 6 and 7 March 2017. The inspector spoke with people living at the home, relatives and staff. They reviewed care records, staff files, training records, medicine records, safety checks and management records.
The home was rated Good in Safe, Effective, Caring and Responsive. Inspectors found enough trained staff, safe medicine systems, detailed care plans and good links with health professionals. People were treated with dignity and supported according to their individual needs.
Well-led was rated Outstanding. Inspectors found a strong dementia-focused culture, effective checks on quality and a clear commitment to improving the service. The overall rating remained Good, the same as at the inspection in March 2015.
Good staffing and training
Inspectors found enough suitably trained staff. Staff had safeguarding training, dementia training and regular supervision.
“People were supported by sufficient numbers of suitably trained care workers who often worked in excess of their paid hours.” from the report
Personalised activities
Activities were based on people's interests, communication needs and abilities. These included hobbies, reminiscence, community visits and local activities.
“Meaningful activities were in place to prevent people from feeling isolated. A dedicated activities facilitator helped people to continue hobbies and participate in the community.” from the report
Strong leadership
The home had a clear dementia-focused approach. Management used feedback and audits to improve the service and worked with outside organisations.
“Auditing systems were continually used as a learning tool to monitor the quality of the service and promote continuous service improvement.” from the report
Inspectors raised no specific concerns in this report.
- 01How many care workers are usually on duty for the number and needs of residents, and what happens if needs increase?
- 02How will you use my relative's history, communication style and interests to create their care plan?
- 03How are medicines checked, including medicines such as anticoagulants or medicines given covertly?
- 04What dementia training and supervision do care workers receive now?
- 05How will my relative and our family be involved in care reviews and end of life decisions?
This was an unannounced comprehensive inspection of all five key questions; the first inspection day was unannounced and the overall rating was assessed. This explanation was written from the published report of 3 June 2017 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. The report was longer than we could read in one go; the later sections may not be reflected.
Every inspection of Wellcroft
3 rated inspections over 5 years: the service has held its Good rating throughout.
- January 2020Goodcurrent ratingstayed GoodSafe: GoodEffective: GoodCaring: GoodResponsive: GoodWell-led: Good
- June 2017Goodstayed GoodSafe: GoodEffective: GoodCaring: GoodResponsive: GoodWell-led: Outstanding
- April 2015GoodSafe: GoodEffective: GoodCaring: GoodResponsive: GoodWell-led: Good
- November 2013
Report published without a new overall rating.
- February 2013
Report published without a new overall rating.
- December 2011
Report published without a new overall rating.
- January 2011
Registered with the Care Quality Commission on 18 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.
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