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Access to New Care Quality Commission website

Changes to the website

The Healthcare Commission, Commission for Social Care Inspection and the Mental Health Act Commission ceased to exist on 31 March 2009.

The Care Quality Commission is the new health and social care regulator for England. The  new web address is www.cqc.org.uk

“Please see interesting articles related to the changes and how they effect your business” Brian Bullock. Managing Director of Building Construction Partnership

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Priorities for the New Care Quality Commission

“Operating as of April 1st, the  Care Quality Commission (CQC) took over the role of the former Commission for Social Care Inspection”, stated Brian Bullock, Managing Director of Building Construction Partnership. “We believe it is important to keep our clients informed of how this effects them and offer 2 relevant articles for your consideration”.

By subscibing to this information source you can guarantee you will immediatley receive any essential information and new rules and regulations immediately they go on this site!

A recent article was written by Geoff Hodgson, Editor of Caring Times Magazine and published on their website;  www.careinfo.org introducing the changes and offered a brief into a presentation by Chair of the CQC; Baroness Barbara Young at a launch function.

Super-regulator opens for business

Caring Times, May 2009

Health and social care now have a ’super regulator’ in the shape of the Care Quality Commission (CQC).

Operating as of April 1st the CQC takes over the role of the former Commission for Social Care Inspection (CSCI) as the registration and regulation body for social care in England, as well as performing the functions of the former Healthcare Commission and the Mental Health Act Commission.

Speaking at a launch function on April 1st, CQC chair Barbara Young said the new body marked a new stage in the drive for quality and safety in health and adult social care.

“CQC will join up the regulation of health and adult social care across the public and independent sectors for the first time,” said Ms Young.

“The public wants good quality of care wherever it is provided and wants care that is joined up. Particularly as the population ages, the care people receive spans sectors and they should have assurance that, no matter where their care is delivered, the services are operating to the same essential common quality standards. Throughout our work, we will act with rigour, robustness and independence to safeguard the interests of the public.”

Ms Young said the CQC would be a modern, proportionate and responsive regulator, working with providers and commissioners of services to encourage improvement.

“That doesn’t mean we’ll be an easy touch,” she said.

“We will have a range of tough new enforcement powers and we won’t be afraid to use them when it is appropriate, but our first aim will be to prevent problems through encouraging improvement. We will act nimbly and flexibly to spot problems early and work with providers of services and their commissioners to tackle issues of quality early.”

On the day of its launch, the CQC announced a programme of special reviews for the coming year. On the social care front, these reviews will examine:

  • the healthcare needs of people in care homes;
  • meeting the physical health needs of people with mental health problems and learning disabilities in hospitals and residential homes.

In its first year CQC will also continue with quality ratings of care homes and homecare provision.

A second article was published on the Age Concern and Help the Aged website see below…

Article provided by Age Concern and Help the Aged on the priorities for the new Care Quality Commission (01.04.09)

Michelle Mitchell‚ Charity Director of Age Concern and Help the Aged‚ said:

“As recent cases have shown‚ too many older people and their families continue to be horribly let down by health and care services. The quality of care they experience is all too often not up to scratch‚ so it’s encouraging that this is one of the new Commission’s first reviews.

“Many care home residents have chronic health conditions‚ such as diabetes‚ yet they often find it difficult to establish routines with staff that would manage their health needs. It can also be difficult to see a GP or dentists as some practices are reluctant to visit care homes without being paid a retainer fee‚ when they should be supporting residents free through the NHS.”

Age Concern and Help the Aged has issued a ‘Seven Point Plan’ for the new Care Quality Commission:

  • Publicly report on shortcomings in the system in addition to making recommendations for improvement
  • Give equal priority to care and support services as to health services
  • Place as much emphasis on dignity‚ human rights and quality of life as physical safety in setting and measuring standards
  • Report transparently‚ frequently and clearly on performance to increase people’s confidence in services
  • Ensure health and care workers are trained by their employers to identify‚ support and report abuse or neglect
  • Give a stronger focus on nutrition to end the horror of older people being malnourished in health and care settings
  • Conduct a review of mental health services being provided in the community and care homes

Note: Age Concern England and Help the Aged have joined together to form a single charity dedicated to improving the lives of older people

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Fines For Failure To Comply With New Fire Regulations

A care home operator was recently fined a massive penalty of £100,000 for failing to comply with the new fire regulations.  As a care home operator you are under a duty to be aware of new rules and in most cases it is not lack of responsibility but lack of knowledge that leads to shortfalls within the Regulatory Reform Fire Safety Order, (RRFSO).

If you are building a new care home, please make sure your contractor or future contractor is up to date on the latest regulations.

The Fire Protection Association, the UK’s national fire safety organisation have produced a new training programme suitable for all levels of care home staff.

The DVDs are divided into two 14 minute-chapters, Chapter 1 covering; general hazard spotting, action in the event of fire, evacuation strategies, firefighting and fire safety equipment.

The second chapter is aimed at managers and senior staff and focuses on the main requirements of fire safety legislation, fire safety roles and responsibiltiies and the fire risk assessment process.

These DVD’s are available to purchase for £109.50 and for more information visit www.thefpa.co.uk.  You can also preview trailer clips of the DVD and purchase online.

In the case where the massive fine was handed out by the Crown Court, there was no loss of life or injury to any residents or staff.  This is a very serious area and we invite comments in relation to your views and any information you are able to provide related to fire safety and regulations.  This could be as a service provider or as a supplier of fire safety and preventative products.

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BCP Completes Tight Project One Month Ahead Of Schedule

Kavanagh Place, Liverpool

Kavanagh Place, Liverpool

National Care Sector development, design and construction specialist; Building Construction Partnership once again delivered their promise to their clients of project completion to time, to budget and to total satisfaction with the handover of Kavanagh Place Care Home, Liverpool 4 weeks ahead of schedule.                                                                                                                                    

Kavangh Place, a 40 bedroom care home designed and built for a national care provider  was constructed on the site of an existing 1960’s nursing home.  Precise planning involved the use of a self erecting tower crane for material handling.  The efficiency of this modern piece of equipment offset the double handling of material costs. Building Construction Partnership’s long term expertise and experience ensured the very tight construction programme was met, improved upon and despite of the recent severe weather conditions the client was able to take possession a month earlier than planned.

The traditionally built nursing home has a total floor area of 2345m2 enclosing 40 bedrooms all with off site designed and built ensuite wet rooms.  Each of the 4 individual wings has their own dining and kitchen facilities, two lounges, quite room and sensory bathroom. Kavangh Place, close to Goodison Park, is built on the corner of a busy intersection and has been designed to incorporate a large central courtyard and private outdoor space.

Building Construction Partnership is continuing to enjoy growth especially in the new build area, recently taking on a larger project: Moorgate, Rotherham and in addition BCP are working on two tight programme refurbishments and extensions in Derbyshire; Village Street, Derby and Hadfield, Glossop .  Watch this space for developement and completion.

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Residential Care Homes – Apply for a VAT refund now!

Steve Allen, Director of VAT Solutions, provides a VAT tip for owners of residential care homes.

Historically, care services supplied in residential care homes were always treated as being exempt from VAT.  However, several years ago, this treatment was challenged by the Kingscrest Care Group, who wanted to register for VAT in order to reclaim substantial amounts of VAT incurred on capital expenditure costs. The challenge ended up in the European Court , which ruled in Kingcrest’s favour by stating that UK law did not exempt care provided in residential homes that were not registered for the provision of nursing care.

Brian Bullock, Managing Director of Building Construction Partnership offers a reply to this suggestion…” This is a very interesting article provided by VAT solutions and is obviously written for commercial purposes.  We cannot recommend the Company itself, but, we will be looking further into the issues via the HMRC and as a subscriber to this site you will receive the information once it has been sourced.

Steve Allen, Director of VAT Solutions,  an established independent firm of Chartered Tax Advisers, concludes his article .

“In summary, if you own, or used to own, a residential care home where there is some capital expenditure and a good ratio of council-funded occupants, you may well be entitled to a VAT refund (some have been six-figure amounts)”.

                 

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Free Support & Advice a Phone Call Away

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BCP provide free professional support and advise sevice

National Care Sector development, design and construction specialist; Building Construction Partnership have recently improved their already excellent customer care service by offering to clients and non clients alike an invaluable FREE support and advice service.

Brian Bullock, Managing Director stated “Due to our recent increase in management staff we are now able to offer an even more personal and individual’ service.  We have a professional team at the end of the phone to offer support and answer any questions whatever stage of the plan or project. With our years of experience and long-term knowledge we understand the problems and issues faced within the design, development and build of care and residential homes. We can answer your questions and if required I personally or one of my Managers, will visit your premise to offer further assistance.

Please click here and leave your details. We will get back to you within 24 hours. If you require immediate advice please call 0800 0199750.

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Landmark Strategy to Transform Dementia Care

Government announces landmark strategy to transform dementia care

An article was published on Tuesday 3rd February 2009 in General News related to the publication of the first ever National Dementia Strategy for England today. The Alzheimer’s Society has published an article on their web site welcoming the objectives for improvement.  The Secretary of State for Health, Alan Johnson announced £150 million to improve the lives of people living with dementia. A plan was unveiled to invest in a network of memory clinics, improve support for people affected by the condition and launch major public awareness campaigns. 

Neil Hunt, Chief Executive of Alzheimer’s Society, says,

‘Today’s announcement sets out an ambitious national rescue plan to transform the lives of people living with dementia. One million people will develop dementia in the next ten years. This is a momentous opportunity to avert a dementia crisis that could overwhelm the NHS and social care. Further comments and details can be found on the Alzheimer’s website 

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Social networking is good for you

Social networking is good for you‚ says Age Concern

A recent report on the 25th February 2009 by Age Concern claim that  getting online has positive benefits for older people.

“Our research shows that over two thirds of ‘silver surfers’ say using the Internet has improved their lives. Whether it’s using Facebook to stay in contact with friends‚ Skype for international calls to family abroad or using blogs to just have their say‚ social networking empowers previously isolated older people to stay connected and engaged” says Leonie Vlachos‚ Manager of Digital Inclusion. 

Havenmere

Brian Bullock, Managing Director of BCP stated ” “With the growth of the internet and social networking, it is important to ‘build for the future’.  The provision of these services  can only increase the attractiveness of your nursing or residential care home to the potential client”.


“A prime example of the ‘future proof building’  concept,  is Immingham, a project we recently completed.  Each of the 40 en-suite bedrooms,  were individually equipped with internet broadband,  a phone line and TV point”.

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