Nova House

People were safe and protected from avoidable harm. Staff were trained to recognise abuse in all forms and knew the steps to take if they saw something of concern. Some staff needed prompting about who to refer safeguarding incidents to and one safeguarding policy was out of date but this was being addressed by the registered manager. Policies and procedures were in place to support staff with managing risk. Risks to people had been identified and documented with clear guidelines for staff to take in the event of an accident or incident. Staff knew people well and were attentive, spending time with them and getting to know their needs and concerns. The staffing team were supported regularly by agency staff but these staff all worked regularly at the home and similarly knew people well. There were enough trained staff on every shift to meet people’s needs. Staff had been safely recruited.

People were supported by a staffing team that knew them well and who treated them with kindness, respect and dignity. Staff understood the importance of gaining consent from people and used their skills, training and knowledge of people to help them communicate with them. People’s independence was promoted safely with staff encouraging people to achieve tasks themselves but remaining close to step in and support if needed. People were given choices each day and told us that they felt in control of their daily lives. The registered manager underpinned this support through auditing and regularly updating people’s care plans and maintaining an overview of people’s care and support needs.

People had their care and support needs assessed by experienced staff before moving to the home. A comprehensive pre-assessment was carried out and documented to make sure that the home had the right staff with the right skills and training to meet people’s needs. After moving to the home people’s needs were under regular review with any changes noted on care plans and associated documents. This ensured that people received the best care appropriate to their needs.