Oaklands Court Nursing Home

On this page

• Overview
• Shared direction and culture
• Capable, compassionate and inclusive leaders
• Freedom to speak up
• Workforce equality, diversity and inclusion
• Governance, management and sustainability
• Partnerships and communities
• Learning, improvement and innovation

The management structure at Oaklands Court Nursing Home had been changed. There is a new registered manager and operations director and a recently appointed deputy manager. They were working hard to establish an effective management team. They were well respected and had the support of staff to do so. Although some audits were in place further governance was needed to ensure best practice and outcomes for people. Shortfalls identified included records not being up to date or complete. The management team demonstrated they were committed to improving the service by actions they took to address shortfalls identified during the assessment process. They had also implemented progress through a service improvement plan they had written and were working through.

This service scored 75 (out of 100) for this area. Find out what we look at when we assess this area and How we calculate these scores.

We did not look at Shared direction and culture during this assessment. The score for this quality statement is based on the previous rating for Well-led.

There had been a change in the whole management team recently, this had included a new registered manager operations director and the recent re-appointment of a deputy manager. The registered manager had worked hard to maintain the high standards of care and good outcomes for people during a difficult time. She had worked in the service for a long time as a nurse and had the respect of the staff working in the service. Feedback from visiting health care professionals were positive about the registered manager and deputy manager. One said, ‘The new manager is very good well organised.’ The new team was now gelling with an understanding of designated roles and were focussing on planned improvements. They recognised the need for changes and development. The registered manager said, ‘I am learning on the job and being supported by the operations director. We have an improvement plan to work through.’ The manager was knowledgeable and enthusiastic about the service and quality of the care and support provided. They were involved in the day to day running of the service and knew people and staff very well. Staff were very complimentary about the management and leadership in the service and were confident that ‘things would now settle’ in the service. Staff told us the registered manager and deputy manager were very supportive and always available for advice and support. One said, ‘The manager is very approachable and has offered me support. She always says, you can come to me.’ Another said, ‘I have been supported through a difficult time I had to reduce my hours and everyone is supportive I have a slightly different role now.’

Changes to the financial investors in the service had caused some instability in the service and resulted in the changes in the management structure. Staff had raised some concern about changes in the way they were being paid and availability of monies to pay for people’s entertainment and activities. One staff member said, ‘I love the job and the people, but it is all the other stuff, being messed around with pay, not having petty cash, what care home does not have petty cash?!’ These concerns were being addressed by the operations director to ensure processes within the service support best outcomes for people and staff.

We did not look at Freedom to speak up during this assessment. The score for this quality statement is based on the previous rating for Well-led.

We did not look at Workforce equality, diversity and inclusion during this assessment. The score for this quality statement is based on the previous rating for Well-led.

The registered manager and operations director described the quality audits and governance systems within the service. Staff described a number of quality assurance checks and monitoring systems. A nurse demonstrated the systems in place to monitor and ensure medicines were safely managed.

Whilst some systems were effective and well completed it was identified that a number were not. For example, the quality records relating to the general maintenance in the service were not adequately completed and did not provide an overview of the checks and maintenance completed. The registered manager and operations director have worked on an improvement plan to address shortfalls that they have identified through a governance process. This included ensuring all staff had completed required training and had received regular supervision. They were continually reviewed and updated and was added to with dates for achievement. They had used the CQC assessment process to refine and add to the improvement plan. For example, they had included a commitment to governance systems and effective completion, and a review and improvement to the IT systems ensuring staff had suitable access to support the provision of care and support.

We did not look at Partnerships and communities during this assessment. The score for this quality statement is based on the previous rating for Well-led.

We did not look at Learning, improvement and innovation during this assessment. The score for this quality statement is based on the previous rating for Well-led.