Stocks Hall Nursing Home - Burscough

Stocks Hall – Burscough (Stocks Hall) is a residential care home providing nursing and personal care for up to 52 adults, including those who are living with dementia. At the time of our inspection there were 40 people living at the home.

We found the following examples of good practice.

There were policies and procedures in place, which provided staff with clear guidance about good infection control practices, including the management of COVID-19 and visiting arrangements during the pandemic.

Government guidance was being followed in relation to isolation criteria and testing programmes for service users, staff, visitors and visiting professionals. All employees had received both COVID-19 vaccinations and all staff had completed specific training in relation to infection control and the management of COVID-19.

There were two domestic staff, plus a housekeeper on duty at the time of our site visit and cleaning schedules were in place. The environment was clean and hygienic throughout and fully stocked Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) stations were provided in the entrance hall and on both floors of the home. We were told enough supplies of PPE were available and we saw staff wearing PPE correctly.

At the last inspection, the service was rated good.

At this inspection we found the service remained good.

People were safe using the services of Stocks Hall Nursing Home - Burscough. The environment was well maintained and good infection control practices had been adopted by the home. Emergency contingency plans had been implemented. Recruitment practices and safeguarding policies helped to protect people from harm. Detailed assessments provided good guidance for staff about how health and social care risks could be minimised. We discussed the area of medicines management with the registered manager on the day of our inspection. She addressed an area of concern without delay. We recommend that any allergies are transcribed on to the MAR charts and that the clinic room temperatures are recorded daily.

People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible. The policies and systems of the service supported this practice.

Personal development for staff was an important aspect of the organisation’s ethos. This was supported by detailed induction programmes, regular supervisions, annual appraisals and a varied training schedule for all those who were employed. This helped to ensure the staff team was knowledgeable, competent and confident to deliver the care and support people needed.

Staff members were kind and caring towards those who used the service. People’s privacy, dignity and independence were consistently promoted. The policies and practices of the home helped to ensure that everyone was treated equally and were afforded the same opportunities.

Complaints were being well managed and people were offered appropriate choices at all times. The plans of care were person centred; providing staff with clear guidance about people’s assessed needs and how these needs were to be best met. This helped to ensure people received the care and support relevant to their individual health and social care needs.

Regular audits, surveys and environmental risk assessments had been conducted, so the quality of service could be closely monitored. Meetings for staff and service users were held at regular intervals. This enabled people to be involved in decisions about how the service was run.

People told us they were able to make decisions about what they wanted to do and how they spent their day. They also said their needs were being met by a kind and caring staff team and that they felt safe when care and treatment was being provided.

Comments received from people living at the home and their relatives included:

'Senior staff are very helpful with information about what has occurred during my mother's day. Her care levels appear to be very good.'

"It is very nice living here. We all get on so well. The staff genuinely care about us."

"There is no place like home, but at least I have the company here and it is very comfortable and lovely and warm."

During our inspection we assessed how people's needs were being met and how they agreed to the care and treatment delivered. We also looked at how the quality of service was monitored, the management of medications and how complaints were handled. We did not find any concerns in the outcome areas we assessed.