Sancroft Community Care Limited- Sancroft Hall

Everyone entering the home was required to wash and sanitise their hands and received a temperature check before being allowed to leave the reception area. All staff and visitors were required to don personal protective equipment (PPE) such as face masks, and disposable gloves and aprons, where appropriate, before entering any part of the home. Visitors were required to take a COVID-19 lateral flow test and wait for a negative result prior to entering the home. An area with seating was provided for visitors to wait for their results.

During the COVID-19 pandemic 'lock-down' period the home had supported relatives to visit family members receiving end of life care. All visits by family members and friends were arranged by appointment to enable staff to ensure that cleaning was undertaken between appointments.

Staff used laptop computers/tablets to enable people to keep in touch with friends and family where they or their loved ones were isolating. This enabled people to stay in contact with their loved ones, whilst keeping other people and staff safe.

In addition to the COVID-19 testing programme for care homes, which followed government guidance, staff were required to demonstrate a negative lateral flow test result before commencing work shifts. A room had been set aside for testing and staff had access to a safe area to wait for a negative result before starting work. The provider paid full salary to staff who were required to isolate following a positive test result to ensure they were not financially disadvantaged.

An area of the home had been allocated and used specifically to isolate and care for people diagnosed with COVID-19 should this be necessary. All staff received training on COVID-19, infection control and the safe use of PPE. A lead infection control champion was responsible for ensuring training and up-to-date guidance was followed.

Members of the housekeeping team cleaned frequently touched surfaces, such as light switches and door handles throughout the day. Care staff carried out these cleaning tasks during the evenings and at weekends. This helped prevent and control infection within the home.

Staff worked on one unit only, creating a 'bubble' with the people who lived there. Activities were repeated in each unit so that small groups of people could participate with their regular staff members in a socially

distanced way. Where people had been confined to their rooms due to a need to isolate, staff provided personalised activities for them, such as videos, music and chats.

During our inspection we met a person who had recently moved to the home and was required to isolate in their room for a period of COVID-19 testing. They understood the reasons for this and confirmed that staff visited regularly for chats. Although their personal items had not yet been moved to the home, they had been provided with a television so they could watch programmes of their choice.

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