CQC report explained · a residential care home, run by Lifeways Community Care

The Croft

Heath Farm, Heath Road, Ashby De La Launde, Lincoln, LN4 3JD

Goodpublished 4 January 2024, 2 years ago

Rated Good: inspectors found the service performing well and meeting their expectations.

The five questions inspectors ask

Safe?: Good; People were protected from abuse and avoidable harm. Inspectors found suitable risk plans, enough staff, safe recruitment and safe medicines management.
Effective?: Good; People's needs were assessed and reviewed, and staff received induction, training and supervision. People were supported with healthcare, nutrition and decisions made under the Mental Capacity Act.
Caring?: Good; Staff promoted privacy, dignity, independence and people's ability to express their views. Relatives said people were treated with kindness and well supported.
Responsive?: Good; Care plans recorded what mattered to people and staff supported meaningful activities, relationships and preferred communication methods. Relatives said concerns were dealt with appropriately.
Well-led?: Good; Management and quality monitoring systems had improved and were identifying and addressing shortfalls. Inspectors found an open, positive culture and better maintenance of the home.

The latest report, explained

What inspectors found, January 2024

Rated Good; inspectors found safe, kind and person-centred care, with improvements since the previous inspection.

This was an unannounced comprehensive inspection. The inspection activity ran from 15 November to 5 December 2023, with visits on both dates. One inspector observed care, spoke with relatives, staff and managers, and checked care, medicines, recruitment and management records.

The home supports up to six autistic people and people with a learning disability. Inspectors found people were safe, treated with dignity, supported to make choices and helped to take part in meaningful activities. Medicines, staffing, risk management, healthcare support and infection controls were found to be good.

All five areas were rated Good: Safe, Effective, Caring, Responsive and Well-led. The previous rating was Requires Improvement, with a continued breach of Regulation 17. Inspectors found enough improvement had been made and the home was no longer in breach.

What inspectors praised

Safety and risk support
Staff understood people's risks and followed their management plans. Safeguarding incidents were reported, investigated and used to reduce the chance of recurrence.
“People were safeguarded from abuse and avoidable harm.” from the report
Training and healthcare
Staff received induction, ongoing training and supervision. People could access a range of healthcare services and had support with nutrition.
“Staff told us and records confirmed they received a comprehensive induction and on-going training programme.” from the report
Respect and communication
Staff understood how people communicated through actions, expressions, pictures, signing and objects of reference. People were supported with privacy, dignity and independence.
“At this inspection we saw staff actively promoting people's privacy and dignity.” from the report
Meaningful lives
People were supported to take part in activities they enjoyed, try new activities and maintain relationships with relatives.
“People were supported to engage in daily activities which had meaning for them and that they enjoyed.” from the report
Improved leadership
The home had improved its governance, maintenance and learning systems since the previous inspection. Analysis of incidents had helped reduce distress and restrictive practice.
“Governance systems were effective in identifying and addressing shortfalls within the service.” from the report

What inspectors were concerned about

Infection control detail
minor
Inspectors saw one instance of nail polish being worn at work. The registered manager dealt with it immediately, so this was a minor issue rather than a wider failure found by inspectors.
“We observed an instance of nail polish being worn to work, which the registered manager dealt with immediately.” from the report
Flooring repair
needs fixing
An infection control audit had identified flooring problems in one part of the building. Plans were in place to resolve them, so ask whether the work has now been completed.
“a recent infection prevention and control audit had identified issues with flooring in one part of the building and plans were in place to resolve this.” from the report

Questions to ask them, based on this report

01Has the flooring issue identified in the infection control audit now been repaired?
02How will you make sure staff continue to follow my relative's risk plans and preferred ways of communicating?
03How are medicines given when needed, and how do you check that they remain appropriate and person-centred?
04What activities and community opportunities would be available for my relative based on their interests and communication needs?
05How would our family be involved in best-interest decisions and reviews of our relative's care?

This was an unannounced comprehensive inspection covering all five rating areas, with visits on 15 November and 5 December 2023. This explanation was written from the published report of 4 January 2024 by an AI system and checked against the report text: every quoted line appears in the report. It is a guide to the report, not a substitute for it. Read the full report on cqc.org.uk.

The story over the years

Every inspection of The Croft

6 rated inspections over 8 years: the service has held its Good rating throughout.

January 2024Goodcurrent ratingup from Requires improvement
Safe: GoodEffective: GoodCaring: GoodResponsive: GoodWell-led: Good
Read what inspectors found at The Croft →
March 2022Requires improvementup from Inadequate
Safe: Requires improvementWell-led: Requires improvement
We are reading this report · the original is on cqc.org.uk
February 2021Inadequatedown from Requires improvement
Safe: InadequateWell-led: Inadequate
Read this report on cqc.org.uk
December 2019Requires improvementstayed Requires improvement
Safe: Requires improvementEffective: Requires improvementCaring: Requires improvementResponsive: Requires improvementWell-led: Requires improvement
Read this report on cqc.org.uk
August 2018Requires improvementdown from Good
Safe: Requires improvementEffective: GoodCaring: GoodResponsive: GoodWell-led: Requires improvement
Read this report on cqc.org.uk
January 2016Good
Safe: GoodEffective: GoodCaring: GoodResponsive: GoodWell-led: Good
Read this report on cqc.org.uk
September 2014
Report published without a new overall rating.
Read this report on cqc.org.uk
June 2014
Report published without a new overall rating.
Read this report on cqc.org.uk
January 2014
Report published without a new overall rating.
Read this report on cqc.org.uk
July 2012
Report published without a new overall rating.
Read this report on cqc.org.uk
October 2011
Report published without a new overall rating.
Read this report on cqc.org.uk
December 2010
Registered with the Care Quality Commission on 23 December 2010.

Ratings and report dates from the Care Quality Commission. A service can also be visited without a new rating being published, so the timeline shows published inspections, not every contact the CQC has had with the service.

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Lincoln, LN4

Good

Residential

Lincoln, LN4 · 4.2 km

Requires improvement

Residential

Rated 20 months agocare home

What inspectors found, January 2024

Safety and risk support

Training and healthcare

Respect and communication

Meaningful lives

Improved leadership

Infection control detail

Flooring repair

Every inspection of The Croft

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