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Inspection on 12/11/09 for St Marks

Also see our care home review for St Marks for more information

This is the latest available inspection report for this service, carried out on 12th November 2009.

it is an annual review prepared by CQC after examining previous reports and information from the provider. At the time of this report, CQC judged the service to be Good.

The inspector made no statutory requirements on the home as a result of this inspection and there were no outstanding actions from the previous inspection report.

What follows are excerpts from this inspection report. For more information read the full report on the next tab.

Annual service review Name of Service: St Marks The quality rating for this care home is: The rating was made on: two star good service A quality rating is our assessment of how well a care home, agency or scheme is meeting the needs of the people who use it. We give a quality rating following a full review of the service. We call this review a ‘key’ inspection We do an annual service review when there has been no key inspection of the service in the last 12 months. It does not involve a visit to the service but is a summary of new information given to us, or collected by us, since the last key inspection or annual service review.   Has this annual service review changed our opinion of the service?   No You should read the last key inspection report for this service to get a full picture of how well outcomes for the people using the service are being met. The date by which we will do a key inspection: Name of inspector: Michele Etherton Date of this annual service review: 0 7 1 0 2 0 0 9 Annual Service Review Page 1 of 7 Information about the service Address of service: 23 Collier Road Hastings East Sussex TN34 3JR 01424200854 01424200854 carolsawatzky@tiscali.co.uk Telephone number: Fax number: Email address: Provider web address:   Name of registered provider(s): Conditions of registration: Category(ies) : learning disability Conditions of registration: A S D Unique Services Ltd Number of places (if applicable): Under 65 Over 65 6 0 The maximum number of service users to be accommodated is 6. The registered person may provide the following category/ies of service only: Care home only ? (PC) to service users of the following gender: Either Whose primary care needs on admission to the home are within the following categories: Learning disability (LD) Have there been any changes in the ownership, management or the No service’s registration details in the last 12 months? If yes, what have they been: Date of last key inspection: Date of last annual service review (if applicable): Brief description of the service St Marks provides long term care for people over the age of eighteen who have been diagnosed as having an autistic spectrum disorder. This can include people with Aspergers syndrome. Each residents needs in respect of education and leisure time are assessed and a programme of activities arranged. The property is situated in a residential area on the West Hill of Hastings and is within walking distance of Hastings. St Marks is a three-storey building. There is no lift so residents need to be able to use the stairs. St Marks is one of four homes owned by the proprietors Mr and Mrs Kennard. The Registered manager is Carol Sawatzky. The fees for the service range Annual Service Review Page 2 of 7 from £1,080 to £1,180 each week. Additional charges are made for hairdressing, toiletries, magazines and papers. Inspection reports are made available via the home upon request. Annual Service Review Page 3 of 7 Service update since the last key inspection or annual service review: What did we do for this annual service review? We looked at all the information that we have received, or asked for, since the last key inspection or annual service review. This included: The annual quality assurance assessment (AQAA) that was sent to us by the service. The AQAA is a self-assessment that focuses on how well outcomes are being met for people using the service. It also gave us some numerical information about the service. Information we may have about how the service has managed any complaints. Surveys returned to us by residents and staff using the service. What the service has told us about things that have happened in the service, these are called notifications and are a legal requirement. The previous key inspection. Relevant information from other organisations. What other people have told us about the service. What has this told us about the service? The home sent us their annual quality assurance assessment (AQAA) when we asked for it. This was clear gave us all the information we asked for and was completed to an excellent standard. The AQAA provided us with detailed information to illustrate the day to day operation of the service, improvements made and future plans. From this and other information we have received it is our judgement that the home is still providing a good service and that they know what further improvements they need to make. The AQAA informs us that in response to listening to people living in the home a programme of redecoration and refurbishment is underway, with redecoration of the ground floor hallway and some bedrooms already accomplished. The kitchen has been refitted in a style preferred by the people in the home and further work is planned to redecorate and provide new flooring to this area. Individuals living in the home are being more actively involved in personalising their bedrooms, and upgrading these more in line with adult themes than previously. The central heating system has been replaced, as well as a top floor toilet. Furnishings and fabrics in communal areas have also been replaced with furnishings more reflective of the male environment people living in the home wish to convey. There are plans for additional refurbishment over the next year. The AQAA tells us that home staff are actively promoting independence amongst the people living there. That they are encouraged to make everyday decisions and choices for themselves and are made aware of the responsibilities this brings. People in the home are made aware by staff of the importance of self awareness and self worth. Their views are actively sought about the service they receive in a range of forums available to them, and these are given consideration and acted upon. If needed, people in the home can access independent advocacy and have attended advocacy meetings as a group. Annual Service Review Page 4 of 7 Staff are working with the people living in the home to create a more welcoming and friendly atmosphere, enabling better integration of a newer resident into an established and largely resistant group of residents. Staff awareness of Autistic Spectrum disorder has increased through the provision of specialist training for all staff, and a more open discussion of autism with the people living in the home, and how best staff can support individuals with their specific needs. Whilst the home does not make a correlation between better stability within the resident group, and the more open approach to discussing autism with the people in the home and raising their awareness of it and how it effects them, there has been a marked decrease in the number of recorded behaviour incidents. People living in the home are encouraged to make use of the local community, access activities and pursue interests with support of staff where needed. In survey feedback staff indicate that provision of additional funding would enable more choice of activities and opportunities for people in the home. Whilst funding is a barrier, the AQAA informs us that there are future plans to increase the availability of weekend and evening activities and we would urge that this is pursued to enhance the quality of life currently experienced by people in the home. The health and well being of people in the home has been sustained, people in the home have been encouraged to attend well man checks and foot health assessments, a healthy eating regime has been introduced, and for some people this has resulted in a significant weight loss, improved health and lifestyle. Staff are actively promoting good hand washing and personal hygiene habits in response to concerns about pandemic flu and have posted reminder notices to people living in the home. We are aware from other sources of information that the staff team are supportive of concerns raised by people living in the home and are proactive in raising alerts on their behalf and supporting them through this process. There are currently no active alerts open. The AQAA tells us that the service has received and dealt with 3 complaints in the last twelve months. The AQAA further informs us that there has been some staff turnover, and new staff are signed up to undertake NVQ training. Recruitment procedures have been standardised and recruitment is now handled centrally. Staff performance and practise is routinely monitored and inconsistencies within this have led to actions being taken to improve this At present 50 of the staff team have achieved NVQ2 training. We have surveyed people who live at the home to ask about their experiences of living there,unfortunately no responses have been received to date to inform our review of the service. We have received a number of staff survey responses that predominantly reflect a positive view of the service. Most staff felt that they are provided with enough information, given relevant training and given support to undertake their role. Some staff commented on underlying dissent within the staff team which impacts on the working relationships within the team, there are also low levels of dissatisfaction in regard to whether there are always enough staff and communication within the team. We would urge the home management to look at these issues and try to work with Annual Service Review Page 5 of 7 staff to address their obvious concerns in some areas of their work. We are concerned that one staff response highlighted a lack of awareness as to what to do if they had concerns about the home, we would suggest that adult safeguarding protocols, whistle-blowing and complaints procedures are revisited with staff generally to ensure all staff have an understanding of these processes and their responsibilities therein. When we asked staff what they thought the home did well they commented: Supports individuality and rights of service users, free choice Puts residents first, always listening to residents, good management, good team work, lovely place to work Provides updated information, receive staff and user comments, takes into account wishes of others not all about finance and the company Asked how the service could be improved staff reported that: Cant see anything could do better unless finance is larger and service users had more choice. All is well as far as I am concerned, if I see a problem I approach the senior or manager Maybe more care taken amongst staff Some staff dont get on and this makes it not a nice place to work If there was more money we could do more activities and provide more opportunities The home continues to let us know about things that have happened since our last key inspection and annual service review and they have shown that they have managed issues well. They work well with us and have shown us that their service continues to provide good outcomes for the people who use it. What are we going to do as a result of this annual service review? We are not going to change our inspection plan, and will do a key inspection by 20th November 2010. However we can inspect the service at any time if we have concerns about the quality of the service or the safety of the people using the service. However Annual Service Review Page 6 of 7 Reader Information Document Purpose: Author: Audience: Further copies from: Annual service review CQC General Public 0870 240 7535 (national contact centre) Our duty to regulate social care services is set out in the Care Standards Act 2000. The content of which can be found on our website. Helpline: Telephone: 03000 616161 Email: enquiries@cqc.org.uk Web: www.cqc.org.uk We want people to be able to access this information. 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