Starmount Villa Residential Care Home is a two storey detached house set in its own well maintained grounds and is situated on the outskirts of Bury and Bolton. The home is registered to provide personal care and support for up to 30 older people. This was an unannounced inspection that took place on 29 April 2015. There were 30 people using the service at the time of the inspection.
We last inspected the home on 15 November 2013. At that inspection we found the service was meeting all the regulations that we reviewed.
The home had a manager registered with the Care Quality Commission (CQC) who was present on the day of the inspection. A registered manager is a person who has registered with CQC to manage the service. Like registered providers they are ‘registered persons’. Registered persons have legal responsibility for meeting the requirements in the Health and Social Care Act and associated regulations about how the service is run. The registered manager is also the co-owner of the home.
Staff were able to demonstrate their understanding of the whistle-blowing procedures and they knew what to do if an allegation of abuse was made to them or if they suspected that abuse had occurred.
We found people were cared for by sufficient numbers of suitably skilled and experienced staff who were safely recruited. We saw that staff received the essential training and support necessary to enable them to do their job effectively and care for people safely.
People who used the service told us they felt the staff had the skills and experience to meet their needs. People were happy with the care and support they received and spoke positively of the kindness and caring attitude of the staff.
We found the system for managing medicines was safe and we saw how the staff worked in cooperation with other health and social care professionals to ensure that people received appropriate care and treatment.
We saw there were risk assessments in place for the safety of the premises. All areas of the home were clean and well maintained. Procedures were in place to prevent and control the spread of infection.
Systems were in place to deal with any emergency that could affect the provision of care, such as a failure of the electricity and gas supply.
People’s care records contained enough information to guide staff on the care and support required. The care records showed that risks to people’s health and well-being had been identified and plans were in place to help reduce or eliminate the risk. People and their relatives were involved and consulted about the development of their care plans. This helped to ensure the wishes of people who used the service were considered and planned for.
We saw that appropriate arrangements were in place to assess whether people were able to consent to their care and treatment. We found the provider was meeting the requirements of the Mental Capacity Act 2005 (MCA) and the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS); these provide legal safeguards for people who may be unable to make their own decisions.
Staff we spoke with had a good understanding of the care and support that people required. We saw people looked well cared for and there was enough equipment available to promote people’s safety, comfort and independence.
Food stocks were good and the meals provided were varied and nutritionally balanced. People told us they enjoyed the meals and that mealtimes were a pleasant experience.
To help ensure that people received safe and effective care, systems were in place to monitor the quality of the service provided. Regular checks were undertaken on all aspects of the running of the home and there were opportunities, such as questionnaires and meetings, for people to comment on the facilities of the service and the quality of the care provided.