- Care home
Sovereign Court
Report from 18 November 2024 assessment
Contents
Ratings
Our view of the service
Date of Assessment: 11 February to 28 February 2025. Sovereign Court is a residential care home providing personal care for up to 12 people with mental health needs. From 2019 to 2022 Sovereign Court was registered with the sister home Sovereign Lodge. The provider took the decision to revert back to registering the homes separately. At the time of the inspection 12 people used the service.
In September 2023 the registered manager came into post, as the previous long-standing manager was promoted to a regional post. Over the last 18 months, they have focused on making the service more person-centred, improving the quality of the food people receive and the oversight of the service. The provider operated a model of promoting staff from within the company and how measures could be put in place to more effectively support staff to learn managerial and communication skills as they progressed through the service.
People felt safe. Staff understood people's needs and how to manage any presenting risks. The management team ensured assessments were completed in a timely manner and were accurate. These were used as the basis for the care records. We discussed enhancements that could be made to these, such as providing more information about the impact of people’s mental health on their day-to-day life. Staff had received training around the application of the Mental Capacity Act 2005 and associated code of practice. We discussed the need to ensure capacity assessments, and ‘best interest’ decisions covered all decisions. The registered manager immediately made these improvements.
Staff treated people with dignity and kindness. People experienced a wide range of activities within and outside the home. Relatives and professionals were impressed by how staff were supporting people to be involved in decisions and get enjoyment from their lives.
People's experience of this service
People were overwhelmingly positive about the quality of their care. Everyone we spoke with told us how extremely caring and supportive the staff were and how they often went the extra mile to ensure people’s needs were met. A person said, “The staff are so good, always very kind and caring. They really help me make my life better. We do such fun things such as going to the local art gallery and such like.” Some individuals had very limited verbal communication skills. We used a structured observation tool to assess whether they received good care. This approach showed people were included and listened to and staff consistently interacted positively with them. We observed staff worked with people in a sensitive, caring and considerate manner.
People felt safe and their dignity and human rights were fully promoted. They were encouraged to make decisions. People and their relatives told us about the positive impact the service had had on their lives. A relative said, “This has been a great move for [person’s name]. The home is far better to the previous home they lived at, as they do more. There are people with similar needs here who they can chat to and do things with.” A person said, “They [staff] have been great. They are such a real help and have made sure I am fine. It has been a difficult time for me but together we have sorted things out. My relatives visit regularly and staff help make this happen.”
People told us they felt listened to and consulted around how their care and support should be provided. Relatives discussed how skilled staff were and how well they treated their loved ones. All felt staff were competent and knowledgeable. People felt able to complain and were confident action would be taken and improvements would be made. A relative said, “We have no concerns at all. It is such a good service.”