A Newark care home has been rated ‘outstanding’ following its first inspection by a Government watchdog.
The Care Quality Commission (CQC) has praised The Old Orchard, run by Witham Valley Care Group Limited, a care home providing personal care and support for up to six people under 65 who are autistic or living with a learning disability.
In its first inspection of the service since it was registered, the CQC rated how safe, effective, caring, responsive and well-led the service is as ‘outstanding’.
The Care Quality Commission has praised The Old Orchard in Newark. Photo: iStock
Greg Rielly, the CQC’s deputy director of adult social care in the East Midlands, said: “During our inspection of The Old Orchard, we found the service was delivering exceptional care made possible by strong leaders who fully understood the service and staff committed to making a difference to people’s lives.
“People were happy living in the home and gave clear positive feedback. We saw people look to staff for reassurance and were calm and comfortable in their presence, demonstrating a strong sense of trust.
“Most relatives told us their loved ones had made progress since living in the home in relation to their emotional wellbeing, confidence and stability. They trusted the staff team in place and valued their open communication.”
The CQC assessed the service using its ‘right support, right care, right culture’ guidance.
This determines whether a service guarantees autistic people and people with a learning disability the “respect, equality, dignity, choice, independence and access to local communities that most people take for granted”.
Mr Rielly added: “It was clear staff had a deep understanding of each person’s care needs, preferences and communication styles which meant they could provide highly tailored and personalised care.
“When people showed signs of anxiety or distress, staff responded proactively and compassionately to support them and used personalised strategies to help calm them.
“We found staff helped people build their independence and confidence in new or unfamiliar situations. They helped people achieve their goals by setting manageable steps and supporting them to accomplish these. This approach meant people made progress at their own pace and experienced a strong sense of achievement.
“By working closely in partnership with other services, the service ensured people received coordinated support. They supported people to access essential healthcare services including GP and hospital appointments, and where appropriate arranged for healthcare professionals to visit the home, which reduced people’s anxiety by ensuring they received care in a comfortable, familiar environment.
“We were incredibly impressed with The Old Orchard, and leaders and staff should be delighted with the many positive findings in our report which reflect their hard work and dedication.”
Inspectors found:
• Leaders promoted a strong culture of safety, with staff actively listening to any concerns and thoroughly investigating incidents to identify learning opportunities to improve the service.
They sought regular feedback from people, their relatives, partners and staff to ensure learning opportunities were identified consistently and not only following an incident.
The home implemented improvements promptly and reduced the risk of incidents reoccurring or happening at all.
• Staff always accompanied people to hospital and provided detailed communication passports for hospital staff to understand how best to communicate and support each individual.
• Leaders ensured there were enough staff in place the required skills and experience to provide safe care. They deployed staff flexibly which helped people take part in activities and go out in the community, strengthening their independence.
This also helped people receive consistent care and maintain their routines when there were unplanned absences. People had a nominated key worker which helped provide consistency, emotional security and confidence to explore new challenges.
• Staff supported people to make meaningful choices about their lives. They supported individuals to enjoy trips to Wales, Cornwall and Amsterdam, and others took part in activities including swimming and horse riding which supported and grew their independence and confidence.
They also helped people to build confidence with everyday practical skills such as cooking and laundry.
• Leaders were compassionate and inclusive, going above and beyond to remove barriers and promote equity.
They worked closely with staff external professionals where needed to put tailored workplace adjustments in place, ensuring staff had the support in place that enabled them to deliver care.