The Lawns Nursing and Residential Care

Updated 30 March 2021

We carried out this inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 as part of our regulatory functions. This inspection was planned to check whether the provider is meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Health and Social Care Act 2008.

As part of CQC’s response to the coronavirus pandemic we are looking at the preparedness of care homes in relation to infection prevention and control. This was a targeted inspection looking at the infection control and prevention measures the provider has in place.

This inspection took place on 2 March 2021 and was announced.

Updated 30 March 2021

About the service: The Lawns Nursing and Residential Care (referred to as The Lawns) is a care home that is registered to provide personal and nursing care for up to 30 older people who might also be living with dementia or a physical disability. At the time of the inspection, 28 people were living at the home.

People’s experience of using this service:

Without exception all the people and relatives we spoke with praised the home. Prior to and during the inspection, relatives contacted us to tell us about the exceptional care at the home.

People told us they felt safe and well cared for. People’s preferences were respected, and staff were sensitive and attentive to people’s needs. Staff were seen to be kind, caring and friendly: we heard staff engaging people in conversation and heard laughter between them. It was clear staff knew people and their relatives well.

The home was well-led by an experienced manager who had managed the home for many years and who was willing to seek advice and act on suggestions. Relatives and staff praised them for their dedication and support.

There were sufficient numbers of care staff and nursing staff employed to ensure people’s needs were met. Staff had time to sit and engage people in conversation and to support people’s involvement in social activities. Recruitment practices were safe, and staff received the training they required for their role. This included specialist training for nursing staff to maintain their registration with the Nursing and Midwifery Council.

Risks to people’s health, safety and well-being were assessed and management plans were in place to ensure risks were mitigated as much as possible. Although not all care plans gave as detailed a description of people’s needs as staff described to us, changes had been made, and were ongoing, to update the care plans and risk assessments. People’s daily care notes also needed more detail to record the care provided by staff and to demonstrate people received the care they needed to keep them safe. Staff were aware of their responsibilities to safeguard people. The registered manager was committed to improving the records to reflect the good care we observed.

People and their relatives were involved in making decisions about their care.

People received their medicines safely and as prescribed. Medicine management practices were safe.

The home was spacious and well furnished. The environment was safe, and equipment regularly serviced to ensure it remained in safe working order.

Quality assurance systems were in place to assess, monitor and improve the quality and safety of the service provided.

Rating at last inspection: The home was previously inspected in October 2016 and was rated ‘Good’ in all five key questions. The report was published in December 2016.

At this inspection, the home continued to meet the characteristics for ‘Good’, and the rating for the home remains unchanged.

Why we inspected: This was a planned inspection based on previous rating.

Follow up: We will continue to monitor intelligence we receive about the home until we return to visit as per our re-inspection programme. If any concerning information is received, we may inspect sooner.

For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk