Jericho Lodge

We undertook this unannounced responsive assessment because we received information of concern about staffing levels at the care home. We reviewed all 15 quality statements related to the 2 key questions, Is the service safe and well-led? For those key questions not inspected, we used the ratings awarded at their last inspection to calculate the overall rating. This onsite assessment was conducted by a single inspector.

An assessment has been undertaken of a service that is used by autistic people or people with a learning disability but is not registered as a specialist service. We have assessed the service against ‘Right support, right care, right culture’ guidance to make judgements about whether the provider guaranteed people with a learning disability and autistic people respect, equality, dignity, choices, independence and good access to local communities that most people take for granted.

As part of this inspection we spoke in-person to managers and staff who worked for the provider including, a regional manager who was overseeing the service at the time of this assessment, a deputy manager who worked at another of the providers care homes in the area and 3 support workers. Based on the findings of this assessment the care home remains rated good overall and requires improvement for the key question, Is the service well-led?

At the services last inspection it was recommended they improve the effectiveness of how they operated their governance systems. This was because the provider had failed to identify and/or address a number of concerns we found at the time, including how they maintained records they were legally obliged to keep in relation to staff recruitment and assessing and managing risk.

At this inspection we found their governance systems and record keeping had not improved despite the previous recommendation. We found 2 breaches of the legal regulations in relation to managing risk and governance.

This was because the provider had failed to improve how they kept records. This included records relating to assessing and managing risks people living in the care home might face and detecting and mitigating potential health and safety risks posed by the services environment. The providers established governance systems and audits were still not being effectively operated to ensure they always identified and addressed the aforementioned issues in a timely manner, despite this being highlighted as an issue at their last CQC inspection. In addition, the service was no longer being consistently managed because they had not had a registered manager in day-to-day charge of the care home for the last 6 months.

We have asked the provider for an action plan in response to the concerns we identified.

All the issues described above notwithstanding, there were enough staff visible in the home throughout our inspection. We observed staff respond to people requests for assistance in a timely manner throughout our inspection. Staff were valued, understood their roles and responsibilities and supported with their learning and development. Staff recruitment practices remained safe. People continued to be protected from risk of abuse. The environment was clean and a comfortable place for people to live. Infection risks were managed well. Staff helped people manage their medicines safely.

The service supported staff wellbeing who were treated equally, and were free from bullying or harassment. Staff were encouraged to raise concerns and these were listened to. Staff worked with partners to help people achieve positive outcomes.