CQC report explained · a residential care home
What the CQC found at Westmeade
Rated Good: inspectors found the home performing well and meeting their expectations.
- Safe?
- Good
- Risks were assessed and managed, staffing was sufficient, and medicines were stored and administered safely.
- Effective?
- Good
- Staff had suitable training and supported people's health, choices and legal rights. Inspectors noted limited meal variety and no weekly menu.
- Caring?
- Good
- Staff treated people with care, dignity and respect. People were involved in their care and supported to stay in contact with family and friends.
- Responsive?
- Good
- Care plans included people's histories, likes and preferences. People took part in activities and were supported to give feedback and raise complaints.
- Well-led?
- Requires improvement
- There was no registered manager, and an acting manager was covering the role. Audits had improved, but the home needed to show more proactive development in its approach.
What inspectors found, November 2017
Rated Good overall, but well-led was Requires Improvement because there was no registered manager and the home needed to show more proactive development.
Inspectors carried out an unannounced comprehensive inspection over two visits. They spoke with people living in the home, staff, relatives and health and social care professionals. They also reviewed care records and management records, and observed people in the communal lounge.
People were found to be safe, supported by enough trained staff, and given their medicines safely. Staff knew people well and treated them with kindness, dignity and respect. People were supported with their health, choices, activities and contact with family and friends.
The home was rated Good overall. Safe, Effective, Caring and Responsive were all rated Good. Well-led was rated Requires Improvement, although this was unchanged from the previous inspection. The report says the home had a positive caring culture but needed to show more proactive development and improvement.
Managing risks
Inspectors found that risks to people's safety and wellbeing were assessed and managed. Staff understood how to respond to concerns and keep people safe.
“Risks to people's safety and wellbeing were identified across all aspects of their lives and control measures were in place to reduce these risks.” from the report
Kind and respectful care
People were treated with dignity and staff knew how to support them calmly. Relatives and professionals were also positive about the care.
“We observed people were treated with care and dignity and had a relaxed and easy relationship with the care staff.” from the report
Staff skills
Staff received induction, regular supervision and ongoing training. Inspectors found staff had the knowledge needed to support people's health and care needs.
“Staff had regular supervisions and all said they worked as a team for the best outcome for the people living in the service.” from the report
Personalised support
Care plans included people's histories, likes and preferences. They had been updated with pictures and more accessible language.
“People's care plans held information about their personal history, their likes and preferences.” from the report
No registered manager
needs fixingThe registered manager had left and another manager was acting in the role while the provider decided on future arrangements. This contributed to the Requires Improvement rating for well-led.
“There is no registered manager at Westmeade. Since the manager left a registered manager of a local home within the group was acting manager” from the report
Limited meal variety
minorThere was no weekly menu, so it was difficult to see the overall balance and variety of people's diets. Staff agreed that a more creative visual aid could help promote choice.
“Whilst each person was encouraged to eat healthily it was difficult to see the overview of each person's diet as there was no menu for the week” from the report
Environment needed updating
minorSome rooms and the bathroom needed refreshing and redecorating to make them more homely. The acting manager said improvements were planned.
“Whilst the atmosphere in the home was warm and welcoming the environment was tired and in need of more homely aspects.” from the report
More individual activities
minorPeople had meaningful activities, but they often did the same things together. Inspectors wanted clearer evidence that community links reflected each person's individual choices.
“However, people tended to do the same things and we discussed with staff giving people a broader choice of activities they may wish to engage with.” from the report
- 01Who is responsible for managing the home now, and when will a registered manager be appointed?
- 02What changes have been made to provide more variety in meals and to offer people clearer choices?
- 03How do you make sure activities and community outings reflect each person's individual preferences rather than everyone doing the same things?
- 04What improvements have been completed to people's rooms and the bathroom, and what work is still planned?
- 05How are audits and feedback used to show that the home is becoming more proactive and follows current practice?
This was an unannounced comprehensive inspection covering all five questions, and the report says the overall Good rating and the Requires Improvement well-led rating remained unchanged from the previous inspection. This explanation was written from the published report of 1 November 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.
Every inspection of Westmeade
2 rated inspections over 3 years: the service has held its Good rating throughout.
- November 2017Goodcurrent ratingstayed GoodSafe: GoodEffective: GoodCaring: GoodResponsive: GoodWell-led: Requires improvement
- March 2015GoodSafe: GoodEffective: GoodCaring: GoodResponsive: GoodWell-led: Requires improvement
- December 2013
Report published without a new overall rating.
- February 2013
Report published without a new overall rating.
- January 2011
Registered with the Care Quality Commission on 24 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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