Ellsworth House

Updated 7 April 2020

The inspection

We carried out this inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (the Act) as part of our regulatory functions. We checked whether the provider was meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Act. We looked at the overall quality of the service and provided a rating for the service under the Care Act 2014.

Inspection team

The inspection was carried out by one inspector.

Service and service type

Ellsworth House is a ‘care home’. People in care homes receive accommodation and nursing or personal care as a single package under one contractual agreement. CQC regulates both the premises and the care provided, and both were looked at during this inspection.

The service had a manager registered with the Care Quality Commission. This means that they and the provider are legally responsible for how the service is run and for the quality and safety of the care provided.

Notice of inspection

This inspection was unannounced.

What we did before the inspection

We reviewed information we had received about the service since the last inspection. We sought feedback from the local authority who work with the service. We used the information the provider sent us in the provider information return. This is information providers are required to send us with key information about their service, what they do well, and improvements they plan to make. This information helps support our inspections. We used all of this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

We spoke and interacted with five people who used lived at the home. We spoke with the registered manager, four members of care staff in detail and had conversations with other staff.

We observed care and support in communal areas. We looked at two people’s care records. We looked at two staff files. We looked at information received in relation to the general running of the home including medication records, auditing systems, policies and procedures, and environmental files.

After the inspection

We continued to seek clarification from the provider to validate evidence found. We looked at training data, policies, quality assurance records and other information the registered manager sent us. We contacted some health professionals who regularly visited the home.

Updated 7 April 2020

About the service

Ellsworth House is a residential care home providing personal care without nursing for up to seven people with learning disabilities and/or autism. At the time of the inspection seven people were using the service. All of them had limited or no verbal communication so we carried out observations and interacted with them during the inspection.

Five of the people lived in the main house and shared communal spaces. Although, one of the people had their own self contained flat within the house with their own lounge. Two people lived in a bungalow and flat in the grounds of the home.

The service has been developed and designed in line with the principles and values that underpin Registering the Right Support and other best practice guidance. This ensures that people who use the service can live as full a life as possible and achieve the best possible outcomes. The principles reflect the need for people with learning disabilities and/or autism to live meaningful lives that include control, choice, and independence. People using the service receive planned and co-ordinated person-centred support that is appropriate and inclusive for them.

People’s experience of using this service and what we found

People appeared happy and settled at the home. All people seemed comfortable in the presence of staff and there were times they had jokes with them. Health professionals complemented the improvements they had seen with individuals whilst they had lived at the home.

Small improvements were required around one fire safety exit, one person’s potential allergy and the timeliness of some of the provider level support received. Medicines were managed safely and there were systems to learn from errors in the home. Recruitment of new staff had some shortfalls or omissions and we made a recommendation to the provider.

The new registered manager had been driving improvements at the home which were appreciated by staff. People who had behaviours which could challenge were supported by staff who knew them well and how to reduce their anxiety levels. Positive risk taking was now being promoted by the registered manager.

Care plans were detailed and contained lots of information; although there were some contradictions in ones which were yet to be reviewed by the manager. Systems were in place to monitor the care and safety of people at the home and there were enough staff to meet their needs.

People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible and in their best interests; the policies and systems in the service supported this practice.

The service applied the principles and values of Registering the Right Support and other best practice guidance. These ensure that people who use the service can live as full a life as possible and achieve the best possible outcomes that include control, choice and independence. The outcomes for people using the service reflected the principles and values of Registering the Right Support by promoting choice and control, independence and inclusion. People's support focused on them having as many opportunities as possible for them to gain new skills and become more independent.

For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk

Rating at last inspection

The last rating for this service was good (published 2 August 2017).

Why we inspected

This was a planned inspection based on the previous rating.

Follow up

We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service until we return to visit as per our re-inspection programme. If we receive any concerning information we may inspect sooner.