The Care Quality Commission (CQC) has upgraded the rating of Birchwood, a care home in Chesham from inadequate to outstanding following an inspection in January.
Birchwood, run by Salutem LD BidCo IV Limited, is a residential care home for autistic people and people with a learning disability. There were 11 people living there at the time of the inspection.
This inspection was carried out to follow up on improvements CQC told the service to make as part of previous enforcement action, which included breaches of regulations related to safe care and treatment, safeguarding and management.
At this inspection, CQC found the service had made significant improvements and they are no longer in breach of regulations.
CQC has upgraded the rating for well-led from inadequate to outstanding and the rating for caring from good to outstanding. Safe improved from inadequate to good and effective improved from requires improvement to good. Responsive was re-rated as good.
Neil Cox, CQC’s deputy director for adult social care in the South East, said:
“When we last inspected Birchwood, we found serious failings in safety and leadership that were putting people at risk of unsafe care. It’s really encouraging to see the significant improvements the service has made since then.
“Inspectors found a much stronger, more positive culture at the home. Leaders are now hands-on, approachable and supportive. Staff told us they feel comfortable raising concerns with the registered manager and are confident those concerns will be acted on, meaning care was now consistently improving.
“Leaders are making sure the service is flexible enough to give people real choice and control over their lives, and to help them pursue their interests. Each person has their own individual activity programme, and staff support them to take part in the activities they choose.
“We saw people living there are empowered to engage with their local community in meaningful ways. For example, some take part in an arts programme and have their work displayed and sold at local exhibitions and galleries. That gives them a real sense of purpose and helps build their confidence and independence.
“Inspectors also found that leaders are committed to innovation and continuous improvement. As a result, people are receiving high-quality care that’s truly tailored to their needs. For example, one person who wasn’t able to speak is now being supported to use assistive technology that allows them to communicate through eye movements. Because of that support, they were able to go to Parliament, giving them a platform to share their views on changes to social care, and the opportunity to participate in the wider community.
“Everyone at Birchwood should be proud of these improvements and other services can look to this report as an example of how to use our inspection findings to transform the quality of care being provided.”
Inspectors found:
- Staff treat people as individuals and adapt their approach depending on each person's preferences, mood and communication needs.
- Leaders had embedded compassion and dignity into everyday practice. Staff knocked on people’s bedroom doors before entering and during the inspection, they asked inspectors not to observe a mealtime in order to protect someone’s dignity.
- The service supported someone to return to their old school to speak to teachers about their experiences there. This helped them feel that their lived experience would improve things for other young people.
- The service works closely with a speech and language therapist to assess people's communication and swallowing needs. This information is reflected in care plans and also in hospital passports so that people can communicate during any hospital admissions.
- Leaders ensure the service is learning from accidents and incidents, which are routinely discussed at team meetings. One staff member told us that when things go wrong, they discuss why it happened and what measures are required to prevent it happening again.