Arbory Residential Home

Updated 5 May 2026

Date of Assessment: 27 and 28 May 2026. Arbory Residential Home provides accommodation with personal care for up to 60 people. Accommodation is arranged in 2 buildings, linked by a courtyard. Both buildings have stair and lift access. At the time of this inspection there were 42 people living at the service.

This was an assessment to check whether improvements had been made following our previous inspection. At our last assessment, the provider was in breach of 3 of the legal regulations in relation to safeguarding, fit and proper persons and governance. Some improvements were found at this assessment, and the provider was no longer in breach of the regulations in relation to safeguarding and fit and proper persons. However, the provider remained in breach of the regulation in relation to governance because further improvements were needed. ​ In addition, the provider was in breach of the legal regulation relating to safe care and treatment because of medicines management concerns.​ This was a comprehensive inspection, and we reviewed all the quality statements.

Medicines were not always managed safely. Although audits of medicines had been carried out and some issues had been identified, these had not been rectified.

People’s needs were assessed and reviewed regularly. People and their relatives were being encouraged to take part in care planning and reviews. Risk assessments were completed, and care plans provided guidance to staff on maintaining people’s safety; however, records did not always show that care plan guidance was being followed. Staff were appropriately skilled, qualified, and experienced to meet people’s needs. Safeguarding procedures were followed, and effective systems were in place to manage concerns. Records showed that people received enough food and drink to maintain their health.

We received mixed feedback about staffing levels from staff and health professionals.

Routine safety checks were carried out across the premises and on all equipment. Fire risks had been assessed, and action was being taken to appropriately manage these. Incidents were investigated by managers, and learning was shared with staff. Staff worked closely with other healthcare professionals and monitored people’s health to promote wellbeing.

The service was clean and generally well maintained, with staff following infection prevention and control guidelines. Staff reported feeling valued and respected and were supported to develop professionally. Overall, they spoke positively about their roles and the leadership team, telling us morale had improved since the appointment of the new manager. One staff member commented, “[Manager name] is more proactive and supportive. Everything, even the general vibe in the place is completely different and the residents feel that as well; they can pick up on things.”

There was a service improvement plan in place, and some improvements had been identified and made, however, concerns identified during this assessment showed governance systems were not fully effective.

We have asked the provider for an action plan in response to the concerns found at this assessment.

Updated 5 May 2026

We spoke with people living at the service, health professionals and relatives to help assess and understand how people’s care needs were being met. We used the Short Observational Framework for Inspection (SOFI). SOFI is a way of observing care to help us understand the experience of people who could not speak with us.

People told us they felt safe at the service. People’s views on the staffing levels at Arbory varied, although the majority felt that staff numbers could be increased. However, nobody we spoke with raised concerns about any impact of staffing levels. One person told us, “Everyone [staff] tries and everyone is kind.” Overall, people’s relatives raised no concerns about the quality of care provided. However, the majority told us they felt the service was short staffed, and that this impacted on their ability to enter and leave the service because they had to ask staff to let them in and out. One person’s relative said, “Care staff are all very attentive and caring, and I can’t fault them individually, but there are not enough of them.”

Everyone we spoke with told us they enjoyed living at the service. One person said, “I do like it here. I have a really nice room, and I have a lovely view of the trees, and I can see people walking outside.” People told us the food was “excellent” and that they had enough to eat and drink.

People told us activities provision had recently improved, and they now had access to a wide range of activities which also included community engagement. We observed people taking part in activities during both days of the inspection.

There was a friendly and welcoming atmosphere. One person’s relative said, “There’s a welcoming feel to the home once you are in.” People had access to large and small communal areas, both inside and outside. There was a large secure garden with shaded areas that we saw people enjoy. People’s friends and family told us they were able to visit whenever they wanted to and we saw a steady stream of visitors throughout the inspection.