Attention: The information on this website is currently out of date and should not be relied upon..

Care Services

carehome, nursing and medical services directory


Welcome Home, Warden Bay, Sheerness.

Welcome Home in Warden Bay, Sheerness is a Homecare agencies and Residential home specialising in the provision of services relating to accommodation for persons who require nursing or personal care, caring for adults over 65 yrs, caring for adults under 65 yrs, dementia, eating disorders, learning disabilities, personal care, physical disabilities and sensory impairments. The last inspection date here was 22nd February 2020

Welcome Home is managed by Neil Tucker.

Contact Details:

    Address:
      Welcome Home
      Cliff View Gardens
      Warden Bay
      Sheerness
      ME12 4NH
      United Kingdom
    Telephone:
      01795510884
    Leaflet | © OpenStreetMap contributors

Ratings:

For a guide to the ratings, click here.

Safe: Requires Improvement
Effective: Requires Improvement
Caring: Good
Responsive: Requires Improvement
Well-Led: Requires Improvement
Overall:

Further Details:

Important Dates:

    Last Inspection 2020-02-22
    Last Published 2018-05-11

Local Authority:

    Kent

Link to this page:

    HTML   BBCode

Inspection Reports:

Click the title bar on any of the report introductions below to read the full entry. If there is a PDF icon, click it to download the full report.

27th March 2018 - During a routine inspection pdf icon

The inspection took place on 27 and 29 March and 4 April 2018. The inspection was unannounced on the first day. We told the registered manager when we would return to complete the inspection.

Welcome Home is registered with CQC as both an accommodation based care home and a community based domiciliary care agency (DCA) which delivers personal care to people in their own homes. The domiciliary care agency is run from an office within the grounds of the care home with a separate staffing group to the care home.

People in care homes receive accommodation and nursing and 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 the inspection of the care home. The care home provides care and support to up to five adults with a learning disability. Five people were living at the service at the time of our inspection. People had complex care needs, including learning disabilities, autism and physical health needs such as epilepsy and diabetes. People had limited verbal communication so were unable to speak directly to us.

A domiciliary care agency provides personal care to people living in their own houses and flats in the community. The Welcome Home care agency provides a service to any adults who require support. At the time of the inspection approximately 45 people were receiving personal care in their own homes. The provider also provided care and support to four people with a learning disability living in a ‘supported living’ setting, so that they can live in their own home as independently as possible. People’s care and housing are provided under separate contractual agreements within supported living. CQC does not regulate the premises used for supported living. Not everyone using Welcome Home supported living service receives regulated activity; CQC only inspects the service being received by people provided with ‘personal care’; help with tasks related to personal hygiene and eating. Where they do we also take into account any wider social care provided.

We have reported on the services provided by the care home and the care agency separately under the evidence sections of the report. Where the evidence we found related to both services we combined the reporting. We have reported on the evidence found within the supported living service under the care agency as this is where the regulated activity ‘personal care’ is reported.

A registered manager was in post within the service. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. Like registered providers, they are ‘registered persons’. Registered persons have legal responsibility for meeting the requirements in the Health and Social Care Act 2008 and associated Regulations about how the service is run.

At our last inspection on 20, 22 and 23 June 2017 we found breaches of Regulations 11,12,17 and 18 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014. Three breaches had continued since the previous inspection relating to, people’s basic rights and consent to care and treatment; staff support, training and supervision; management, leadership and monitoring of the service provided. One further breach was identified relating to the management of risk and safe medicines management.

We asked the provider to take action to meet Regulations 11 and 12. We took enforcement action against the provider and the registered manager and told them to meet Regulations 17 and 18 by 04 September 2017.

The provider sent us an email on 24 August 2017 telling us the action they were in the process of taking to comply with Regulations 11, 12, 17 and 18. They did not confirm a date with us when they would be meeting the regulations by.

At this inspection, we found the provider and registered manager had made some improvements to all the identified areas within the service, although further improvements were

20th June 2017 - During a routine inspection pdf icon

The Inspection took place over three days, 20, 22 and 23 June 2017. The inspection was unannounced.

Welcome home is registered as both an accommodation based care home and a community based domiciliary care agency (DCA) which delivers personal care to people in their own homes. The domiciliary care agency is run from an office within the grounds of the care home with a separate staffing group to the care home.

The care home provided accommodation, care and support for up five adults. People had complex needs, including learning disabilities, autism and physical health needs. At the time of this inspection five people were living at the care home. The DCA service provided home care services to people within the local area. People had varying needs, some were living with dementia and needed a range of support including personal care, prompting and monitoring. Times and days of visits varied to suit individual need. At the time of the inspection approximately 40 people were receiving personal care in their own homes from Welcome Home care agency.

We have reported on the services provided by the care home and the care agency separately under the evidence sections of the report. Where the evidence we found related to both services we combined the reporting.

We last inspected the service on 06 and 07 September 2017. At that inspection we found breaches of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014. These breaches were in relation to Regulation 11, 12, 17, 18, 19 and 20A. Following the inspection the provider sent us an action plan to show how they intended to improve the service and meet the requirements of the regulations. The provider said they had already completed some actions and those they hadn’t completed would be completed by the end of December 2016.

At this inspection we found that the provider had made some improvements to the service, mainly in the care agency, however many further improvements were necessary.

A registered manager was employed at the service and had been in the role since the service was set up. The registered manager was registered for both the care home and the care agency. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. Like registered providers, they are ‘registered persons’. Registered persons have legal responsibility for meeting the requirements in the Health and Social Care Act 2008 and associated Regulations about how the service is run.

Care Home

Although individual risk assessments were in place, these had not been reviewed since 2014 or 2015 so changes in people’s circumstances had not been taken into account to ensure the risks continued to be managed effectively. Some risks had not been identified.

Some improvements had been made to the management of people’s prescribed medicines, however, there were continued concerns which posed a risk to the management of medicines.

Although a fire risk assessment was in place and fire testing and servicing of equipment carried out, practiced fire evacuation drills had not taken place to ensure the safety of people and staff in the event of a fire. We have made a recommendation about this.

Staff continued to have limited or no one to one supervision sessions with their manager or the opportunity to attend staff meetings. Most of the staff training required to gain the basic knowledge to support people well had not been updated or completed by staff.

Some mental capacity assessments had been undertaken to determine people’s mental capacity to make less complex decisions, however, these had not been reviewed and assessments to make new decisions had not been completed. Where decisions had been made, a best interests process had not been followed as determined within the Mental Capacity Act 2005.

Staff knew people well and spent time with people individually, responding to their individual needs. Care plans were person centred with detailed information

6th September 2016 - During a routine inspection pdf icon

The inspection took place on 6, 7 and 9 September 2016. The inspection was unannounced.

Welcome home is registered as both an accommodation based care home and a community based domiciliary care agency (DCA) which delivers personal care to people in their own homes. The domiciliary care agency is run from an office at the care home.

The care home provides accommodation, care and support for up five adults, either male or female. People had complex needs, including mental health and physical health needs. At the time of this inspection five people were living at the home. The DCA service provides home care services to people within the local area. Some people are living with some degree of memory loss and need a range of support including care, prompting and monitoring. Visits range in number and time to suit individual need. At the time of the inspection 34 people were receiving personal care from Welcome Home. This DCA service is run from a separate office within the grounds of the care home with a separate staffing group, although on occasion staff working at the care home carried out visits to people in the community and vice versa.

We have reported on the services provided by the care home and the DCA separately under the evidence sections of the report, unless the evidence related to both services when we combined the reporting.

We last inspected the service on 12, 13 and 18 August 2015. At that inspection we found breaches of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014. These breaches were in relation to Regulation12, Safe care and treatment; Regulation 17, Good governance; Regulation 18, Staffing and Regulation 19, Fit and proper person’s employed. Following the inspection the provider sent us an action plan to show how they intended to improve the service and meet the requirements of the regulations. The provider said they would complete the actions in the plan by March 2016.

At this inspection we found that the provider had not taken action to address the breaches from the previous inspection and had made few improvements to the service provided. Improvements had been made to people’s care plans within the DCA service and people now had regular reviews of their care. Individual risk assessments had been improved within the DCA service.

Care Home

Risks to people’s safety and wellbeing were not managed effectively to make sure they were protected from harm. The care home did not have all associated individual risk assessments in place to identify and reduce risks that may be involved when caring for people in the home.

CQC is required by law to monitor the operation of the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards. Staff were trained in the Mental Capacity Act 2005 and showed they understood and promoted people’s rights through asking for people’s consent before they carried out care tasks. Where people lacked the mental capacity to make decisions the registered manager had not always been guided by the principles of the Mental Capacity Act (MCA) 2005 to ensure any decisions were made in the person’s best interests. Mental capacity assessments had not been undertaken with people living in the care home before care planning decisions had been made. There was no evidence of best interest’s decisions within the care home to make sure people’s rights were upheld.

There was plenty food and snacks available in the care home based around people’s preferences. Staff were aware of special diets people were advised to follow and factored this in when choices were made.

People living in the care home were clearly happy and relaxed within their home. Feedback from relatives was very positive about their loved one’s safety and welfare. The home had a pleasant atmosphere where people were at the centre of everything the staff did.

People living in the care home had many activities and each had their own car so they could access their interests outside of the home. People also took part in activi

31st March 2014 - During an inspection to make sure that the improvements required had been made pdf icon

Appropriate checks were undertaken before staff began work.

We served a warning notice following our visit to the service on 7 January 2014 as we found that the provider did not have effective recruitment procedures in place. This meant the provider could not ensure that persons employed were of good character and suitable to care for people using the service.

At this visit, we were told that the agency employed 12 support workers. We examined four staff recruitment files for the four newest members of staff. We found that improvements had been made and there were procedures in place to ensure that staff employed by the agency were suitable. We saw that the staff recruitment files had been put together using a structured order and filed appropriately.

The staff recruitment files we saw included a completed application form, and confirmation of any previous relevant training. We saw that a full employment history had been obtained and this included information in relation to any gaps in employment. Applicants were selected for interviews, and we saw that interview records were maintained.

Successful applicants had provided proof of their identity, and their eligibility to work in the UK. Other required checks were completed, including two written references and Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) criminal record checks. This showed that the service was taking suitable measures to employ people who were safe to work with vulnerable adults.

The improvements seen in the content of the staff recruitment files and record keeping showed the provider had a robust and effective recruitment and selection procedure in place.

7th January 2014 - During an inspection to make sure that the improvements required had been made pdf icon

We carried out a planned review of the service on the 16 October 2013. We judged the service non-compliant with Regulation 20 – Records, and Regulation 21 - Requirements relating to workers. Two compliance actions were made at that time. We asked the provider to send us an action plan, which would give us the details of what action was being taken to address these areas of non-compliance. We received an email from the manager sent on the 5 November 2013, informing us that all of the action planned would be completed within a month.

Two inspectors carried out a responsive follow up review visit on the 07 January 2014, in order to see what improvements had been made and to judge whether the service was compliant with Regulation 20 and Regulation 21. We focused our inspection on the domiciliary care agency records when checking compliance with Regulation 20 and Regulation 21, as this was where we had found non-compliance at our visit on 16 October 2013. During the visit we spoke with the registered manager, the office manager and the administration person for the domiciliary care agency services.

We found the support plan records for the domiciliary care agency service contained insufficient information to enable staff to meet the needs of people and records were not always appropriately signed and dated.

Insufficient recruitment checks had been undertaken before staff began work for the domiciliary care agency service. For example, criminal record checks had not always been sent for prior to the person starting work with the agency and reasons for any gaps in employment history had not been recorded.

Staff training records were not up to date, and the manager was unable to show us evidence that all staff had been suitably trained in for example, moving and handling.

We found overall that the service was non-compliant with Regulations 20 and 21, of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2010.

Where areas of non-compliance have been identified during inspection they are being followed up and we will report on any action when it is complete.

16th October 2013 - During a routine inspection pdf icon

At this visit we focused our inspection on the care home and domiciliary care agency services.

We spoke with staff and management, observed staff interaction in the care home, and spoke with two people on the telephone who used the domiciliary care agency service.

We saw that there was an action plan in place following a Local Authority Quality Monitoring visit. The manager told us that she was currently addressing the actions required and that she had already implemented a written record of staff meetings that took place and had set up regular staff supervision sessions.

Support plan records for the care home service showed that the people were supported with their care in a way that was individual and in accordance with their wishes. However, the support plan records for the domiciliary care agency service contained insufficient information to enable staff to meet the needs of the person being supported.

We found that the care home service handled medicines appropriately.

Appropriate checks had been undertaken before staff began work for the care home service, however a robust recruitment procedure was not evidenced for the domiciliary care agency service.

People who received a service from the agency said “This is the best service ever. They put themselves out to help” and “Very pleased with the service”.

Where areas of non-compliance have been identified during inspection they are being followed up and we will report on any action when it is complete.

17th January 2013 - During a routine inspection pdf icon

The people living at the home had varying levels of difficulty with communicating. Therefore verbal feedback was limited. We saw staff interacting with people living at the home, offering choices and encouraging people living at the home to take part in activities.

Relatives of people that used the service had answered positively to all the questions in the quality monitoring survey. One relative had commented “X appears well looked after, always clean and tidy. I miss X but I have never had any concerns about her wellbeing”.

We found that improvement actions made at the last inspection visit had been completed. These included the following changes. The garden area had been made safe. Medication records were appropriately completed and up to date with medication audits in place. The information currently being received from quality monitoring surveys was in the process of being collated by the manager.

The service had recently registered for the regulated activity of personal care and we saw that a small domiciliary care service was operated from an office in the grounds of the premises.

4th July 2011 - During a routine inspection pdf icon

The people living at the home had varying levels of difficulty with communicating. Therefore verbal feedback was limited. We saw staff interacting with people living at the home. Staff were seen offering choices and encouraging people living at the home to take part in activities. One person said she wanted to go to the seaside that day, as it was her birthday.

Staff and visitors to the home said “its great here, very good”, and “it’s a lovely home, nice staff”.

1st January 1970 - During a routine inspection pdf icon

Welcome Home combines a care home and a Domiciliary Care Agency (DCA). The care home provides accommodation, care and support for up five adults, either male or female. People had complex needs, including mental health and physical health needs. At the time of this inspection five people were living at the home. The DCA provides home care services to people within the local area. Some are living with some degree of memory loss and need a range of support including care, prompting and monitoring. Visits range in number and time to suit individual need. At the time of the inspection 25 people were receiving personal care from Welcome Home. This service is run from a separate office within the grounds of the care home with a separate staffing group, although on occasion staff working at the care home carried out visits to people in the community.

We carried out this inspection on the 12, 13 and 18 August 2015, and it was unannounced. We inspected this service due to concerns we had received about the care home service and the DCA service. It was alleged that a robust recruitment procedure was not being followed, staff were not provided with sufficient training and appropriate records were not in place at the care home. It was also alleged that a robust recruitment procedure was not being followed, staff were not provided with sufficient training, domiciliary care calls were being missed, and appropriate records were not in place at the DCA service.

The care home and the DCA services had a combined registered manager. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. Like registered providers, they are ‘registered persons’. Registered persons have legal responsibility for meeting the requirements in the Health and Social Care Act 2008 and associated Regulations about how the service is run.’

We have reported on the services provided by the care home and the DCA separately under the evidence sections of the report.

The provider did not follow safe recruitment practices. Essential documentation was not available for all staff employed in both services. Gaps in recruitment had not been explored to check staff suitability for their role.

Staff were not supported through individual one to one supervision meetings and appraisals in both the care home and DCA.

The provider did not follow appropriate guidance on the safe storage and recording of medicines administered in the care home.

People’s needs were not always adequately assessed and reviewed by management at the DCA.

Risks to people’s safety and wellbeing were not always managed effectively to make sure they were protected from harm. The DCA service did not have all associated risk assessments in place to identify and reduce risks that may be involved when meeting people’s needs living in the community.

Effective systems were not in place to enable the registered manager to assess, monitor and improve the quality and safety of the service or identify and manage all the risks to people’s safety. Shortfalls had not been identified by the registered manager and actions had not been taken in a timely manner to improve the quality of both services.

People’s views were obtained through a variety of sources and systems were in place to encourage feedback from people about the care home and DCA. This information was not always recorded, fully reviewed and reflected on. This did not allow for people’s views to be fully used when shaping the service or reflecting on its quality.

Feedback received from people and their representatives through the inspection process was positive about the care, the approach of the staff and atmosphere in the care home.

Feedback from people receiving a DCA service and their relatives was very positive. They told us that staff were experienced, kind and caring.

CQC is required by law to monitor the operation of the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards. The registered manager and staff showed that they understood their responsibilities under the Mental Capacity Act 2005 and Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS).

Where people lacked the mental capacity to make decisions the care home was guided by the principles of the Mental Capacity Act (MCA) 2005 to ensure any decisions were made in the person’s best interests. Staff were trained in the Mental Capacity Act 2005 (MCA) and showed they understood and promoted people’s rights through asking for people’s consent before they carried out care tasks.

Staff had been trained in how to protect people from abuse, and discussions with them confirmed that they knew the action to take in the event of any suspicion of abuse. Staff understood the whistle blowing policy and how to use it. They were confident they could raise any concerns with the registered manager or outside agencies if this was needed.

Staff were knowledgeable about the needs and requirements of people using the services. Staff involved people in planning their own care in formats that they were able to understand, for example pictorial formats. Staff supported them in making arrangements to meet their health needs.

People living in the care home were provided with food and fluids that met their needs and preferences. Menus offered variety and choice.

There were systems in place to review accidents and incidents and make any relevant improvements as a result.

The registered manager investigated and responded to people’s complaints and people said they felt able to raise any concerns with staff.

During this inspection, we found some breaches of regulations relating to fundamental standards of care. You can see what action we told the provider to take at the back of the full version of this report.

 

 

Latest Additions: