Archived: Friendship Care & Housing Association - 25 Manor Park Grove

' Is the service safe?

' Is the service effective?

' Is the service caring?

' Is the service responsive?

' Is the service well-led?

This is a summary of what we found '

Is the service safe?

People indicated that they felt safe in this home. They looked relaxed and content in the company of staff.

There were good systems for checking that the environment was safe.

Staff had received training in safeguarding people and there were good arrangements for staff to report colleagues should they suspect that their practice could lead to people being harmed.

CQC monitors the operation of the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards, (DoLS), which applies to care homes. We found that proper policies and procedures were in place and the manager demonstrated a good level of awareness of this area.

Is the service effective?

People indicated that they were happy with the care and support and their needs were being met.

It was clear from our observations and from speaking with staff that they had a good understanding of people's care and support needs and they knew them well. The staff team was settled.

Staff had received relevant training to meet the needs of the people living at the home.

Staff were well supported and they told us that they enjoyed their job.

Is the service caring?

People were supported by kind and attentive staff. We saw that care workers showed patience when communicating with people.

People told us that they liked the staff and found them helpful.

Staff demonstrated that they knew people's needs and preferences and showed that they took these into account when supporting people. We saw staff offering people choices and respecting the decisions people had made.

Is the service responsive?

People's needs had been assessed before care plans had been drawn up. We saw that people's plans took account of their needs and choices and had been updated when these had changed.

Records confirmed that people's preferences, interests, aspirations and diverse needs had been recorded. Staff showed that they were aware of the contents of people's plans. Care and support had been provided in accordance with people's wishes.

People had access to a range of activities in the community and had been supported to maintain relationships with their friends and relatives.

Is the service well-led?

There were good systems for quality assurance.

People in the home and their relatives were consulted about the service.

Staff and relatives told us that the manager was accessible and took account of their comments.

The manager demonstrated a good level of knowledge about the people in the home, the staff and the systems used in the home.

We met three people who lived in this home. They told us how they were supported by staff to live their lives in the way they preferred. They provided examples to show that their choices were respected and they were encouraged to maintain their individuality.

We spoke with three members of staff. They demonstrated a good level of knowledge about the needs of the people who lived in the home.

People were supported to be part of the community. They went out on a regular basis to places of interest, shops and places to eat, in addition to taking holidays. People looked relaxed and happy in the company of staff.

We found that staff made sure that people received appropriate nutrition and hydration. Staff supported people to eat meals in pubs and restaurants.

There were good arrangements for the storage and administration of medication. These included the maintenance of good records.

There were systems for making sure that the high standards in this home were maintained and improved upon where possible.

We saw that people were relaxed and at ease with staff and within the home. Two people were not able to tell us in detail about their experiences. When we met with them they smiled when we asked them how they were. We found that staff knew people as individuals and understood their personal needs and ways of communicating those needs. One person who lived at the home told us 'It's a good home, I'm happy here.'

We found people who used the service had staff support to do the things they enjoyed, such as shopping, going to community centres and taking regular holidays. The home was furnished and decorated to provide a homely environment with framed photographs displayed of people enjoying their holidays and other activities they did.

We found that the systems for managing medicines were not sufficiently robust and improvements were needed.

Staff told us they felt supported by the manager and had the skills they needed to deliver the care people using the service needed.

Quality audits completed by staff at the home had not ensured that standards were being maintained. People's views about the service had not been gathered, this meant the provider could not be sure that the service provided fully met people's needs.