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CQC report explained · a residential care home, run by Finbond

Whitchurch Lodge

154-160 Whitchurch Lane, Edgware, HA8 6QL

Goodpublished 19 July 2023, 3 years ago

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

The five questions inspectors ask
Safe?
Good
Inspectors found enough skilled staff, suitable safeguarding procedures, up-to-date risk assessments and safe systems for medicines. They were also assured about infection prevention and control.
Effective?
Good
People's needs were assessed and care plans were reviewed with families and staff. Staff had relevant training, people were supported with eating and drinking, and the home worked with health and social care professionals.
Caring?
Good
Are people treated with kindness and dignity?
Responsive?
Good
Is care built around the person? Care plans, activities, complaints.
Well-led?
Good
Inspectors found active management, regular checks on quality and safety, and a culture of learning when things went wrong. People, relatives and staff gave positive feedback about how the home was run.
The latest report, explained

What inspectors found, July 2023

Whitchurch Lodge was rated Good; inspectors found safe, effective and well-managed care.

This was an unannounced focused inspection. The inspection activity took place from 23 to 26 June 2023, with visits on both dates. One inspector and an Expert by Experience spoke with people, relatives, staff and managers, and reviewed care files, medicines records, staff files, policies and audits.

The home was rated Good overall and for Safe, Effective and Well-led. Inspectors found enough trained staff, safe medicines systems, suitable risk assessments and good infection control. The home was clean, well maintained and people had access to healthcare and support with food and drink.

The inspection found that managers monitored the quality of care, investigated incidents and acted on learning. The rating was unchanged from the previous Good rating published in January 2020.

This inspection only looked at Safe, Effective and Well-led. Caring and Responsive were not inspected, so this report does not provide new findings or ratings for those areas.

What inspectors praised

  • Enough trained staff

    Inspectors found enough staff with the skills, experience and knowledge to meet people's needs and keep them safe.

    “The provider had recruited enough skilled staff to meet people's needs and keep people safe.” from the report

  • Safe medicines

    The home had systems for prescribing, giving, recording and storing medicines. Monthly audits were used to identify and deal with errors.

    “People were supported by staff who followed systems and processes to prescribe, administer, record and store medicines safely.” from the report

  • Good partnership working

    The home worked with health and social care professionals, and guidance from them was included in people's care plans.

    “Staff worked in partnership with health and social care professionals to plan and deliver positive outcomes for people.” from the report

  • Active management and monitoring

    Managers used audits, meetings and feedback to monitor the service and identify improvements. Inspectors found a culture of learning after incidents.

    “There were systems in place to monitor the quality and safety of the service on a regular basis.” from the report
What inspectors were concerned about

Inspectors raised no specific concerns in this report.

Questions to ask them, based on this report
  1. 01How will you make sure my relative's risk assessments and care plans are updated when their needs change?
  2. 02How will you support my relative to choose meals and manage any eating or drinking needs?
  3. 03How often will you review my relative's medicines and explain any changes to the family?
  4. 04How will you involve my relative and our family in care plan reviews and feedback about the service?
  5. 05As Caring and Responsive were not inspected in this visit, how do you support personal preferences, activities and changing needs?

This was an unannounced focused inspection of Safe, Effective and Well-led; Caring and Responsive were not inspected in this visit. This explanation was written from the published report of 19 July 2023 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 Whitchurch Lodge

4 rated inspections over 7 years: the service has improved, from Requires improvement to Good.

  1. July 2023Goodcurrent ratingstayed Good
    Safe: GoodEffective: GoodCaring: GoodResponsive: GoodWell-led: Good

    Read what inspectors found at Whitchurch Lodge →

  2. January 2020Goodstayed Good
    Safe: GoodEffective: GoodWell-led: Good

    We are reading this report · the original is on cqc.org.uk

  3. April 2017Goodup from Requires improvement
    Safe: GoodEffective: GoodCaring: GoodResponsive: GoodWell-led: Good

    Read this report on cqc.org.uk

  4. May 2016Requires improvement
    Safe: Requires improvementEffective: GoodCaring: GoodResponsive: GoodWell-led: Requires improvement

    Read this report on cqc.org.uk

  5. September 2014

    Report published without a new overall rating.

    Read this report on cqc.org.uk

  6. September 2013

    Report published without a new overall rating.

    Read this report on cqc.org.uk

  7. April 2013

    Report published without a new overall rating.

    Read this report on cqc.org.uk

  8. June 2012

    Report published without a new overall rating.

    Read this report on cqc.org.uk

  9. April 2012

    Report published without a new overall rating.

    Read this report on cqc.org.uk

  10. November 2011

    Report published without a new overall rating.

    Read this report on cqc.org.uk

  11. December 2010

    Registered with the Care Quality Commission on 14 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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