Aarandale Lodge

Updated 26 June 2026

About the service

Aarandale Lodge is a residential care home providing personal care without nursing for up to 20 people. At the time of inspection 19 people were using the service. The service is set over two floors in the local community with access to a large garden.

Who the service is for

The service supports older people and people living with dementia.

Key findings

We carried out this assessment on the 26 June until the 2 July 2026. This service was previously rated as good. We carried out this assessment to confirm whether the rating of good remains accurate. This report does not provide detailed information on areas where we found practice continues to meet a good standard. Instead, our findings focus on any areas where the service needs to improve or where we found exceptional practice.

People were supported by enough staff who had the skills and knowledge to support them safely. New staff underwent a through recruitment process and a full induction programme. Staff were supported by the manager and given training appropriate to their role. Staff told us they had been supported to complete nationally recognised training courses. People were given their medicines as prescribed and were safeguarded from the risk of abuse by staff who understood their responsibilities to report concerns. Records we saw showed us the registered manager reported safeguarding concerns to the local authority safeguarding team and worked with them to ensure people were safe.

Risk assessments were in place to help staff mitigate risks of harm to people whilst maintaining their independence. A member of staff said, “We promote people’s independence to live their best possible life, whilst keeping them safe.” A relative told us, “Staff have put alarm pads in place, so they know if [person name] is trying to mobilise without support. This has worked to stop any falls.”
The provider employed maintenance staff to keep the building in a good state of repair. Where major works had needed to be completed such as replacing fire doors this had been done. Staff had received training in infection prevention control practices and had personal protective equipment available for them to use.

People can only be deprived of their liberty to receive care and treatment with appropriate legal authority. In care homes, this can be done through a procedure called the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS), which is part of the Mental Capacity Act 2005 (MCA). We checked whether the service was working within the principles of the MCA and how they managed DoLS within the service. We found that staff and management worked within the MCA. DoLS authorisations were appropriately applied for and overseen. People were not subject to unlawful or excessive restrictions they had choice, control and freedom over their lives.

Care was person centred and assessments of people’s needs were completed before they started using the service. People were supported to maintain hydration and eat a varied diet. We saw people were given choice over the food and drink they had and staff monitored they achieved recommended amounts of fluid intake where needed. People were referred to speech and language therapist for assessments when issues were identified and specialist diets were provided when needed.

We observed staff had positive relationships with people and were kind and caring towards people. The provider and registered manager promoted equality in experience and outcome for people. The registered manager had systems in place to measure and monitor outcomes for people, including surveys on meal experiences and surveys on people’s experience of living at the service. Staff held regular 1:1 meetings with people to gain their feedback and address any concerns. People told us if they had any complaints, they would raise these with the registered manager.

The registered manager had systems in place to keep a good oversight of the service. Staff communicated well together and shared ideas or lessons learned in staff meetings and during supervision.
Staff shared the registered managers and providers vision to provide good care to people with positive outcomes. One member of staff said, “We want people to enjoy the rest of their lives, to be as independent, safe and happy as possible.”
 

Updated 26 June 2026

People and their relatives spoke very positively of their experiences living at the service. One person said, “I enjoy being here it is very peaceful.” Another person said, “This is a very comfortable place, I enjoy sitting and watching the birds come down.”

We observed staff had good relationships with people they were supporting. A relative told us, “Since [person name] has lived here, there has been a consistent staff team, and they all know her very well.” They went on to say, “The communication here is very good, and all the staff seem happy.”

People told us they felt safe living at the service. One person told us, “This is a safe place to live, there is always staff around, plus you have a bell you can press and the staff come. If I press the bell staff come and see what I want, if I ask for a cup of tea they bring it for me.”

We observed a mealtime which we saw some people used as a social occasion sitting and talking with their friends and joking with staff. People told us they had a choice each day of what they wanted to eat with the cook asking them what they would like prepared. One person said, “The cook makes a lovely beef casserole and does a nice egg on toast.” A relative told us, “[Person name] enjoys her food and the staff give them whatever they want.”

People were supported to take part in activities they enjoyed. One person said, “The staff take us out, the other day three of us went out with staff for a walk.” People told us they enjoyed joining in with activities such as armchair yoga or playing group games. Other people told us they enjoyed sitting in the garden talking with their friends from the service. We saw where the service was central to the local community people enjoyed going out with their relatives and attending activities in the local community. One person told us they had a church group they regularly attended as they used to do this before they came to live at the service. A relative informed us there was a Facebook group they belonged to where they saw pictures posted of activities people enjoyed doing.

People told us they had access to other healthcare professionals when they needed to see them such as the district nurse or GP services. One person told us, “Staff arrange for the GP or nurse from surgery to see me when I need, like when I had a rash they prescribed cream.” A visiting health professional told us they supported people at the service as part of a hospital avoidance scheme to try and keep people in their homes or at services rather than needing to be admitted to hospital.

People and relatives gave positive feedback on the service, staff and level of communication they had with the service. People and relatives told us if they had any issues, they would feel able to discuss these with the registered manager and were confident they would be addressed.