28 September 2016
During a routine inspection
This comprehensive inspection took place on 28 September 2016 and was unannounced.
We last inspected the home on 13 September 2013, when we found the service to be compliant with all the regulations we assessed at that time.
Lakelands care home is situated on the outskirts of Wigan. The home is registered to provide care and support for up to 40 people. The bedrooms are single occupancy and a number of the bedrooms have en-suite facilities. Bedrooms are located across two floors and are accessible by a lift. At the time of the inspection, there were 38 people living at Lakelands.
At the time of our visit there was a registered manager in post. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. Like registered providers, they are ‘registered persons’. Registered persons have legal responsibility for meeting the requirements in the Health and Social Care Act 2008 and associated Regulations about how the service is run.
All the people we spoke with told us they felt safe. We saw that the home had appropriate safeguarding policies and procedures in place and the staff we spoke with knew how to report any safeguarding concerns.
Staff were recruited safely with references from previous employers being sought and DBS (Disclosure Barring Service) checks undertaken.
The manager used a dependency tool to determine staffing levels and we found there were sufficient staff deployed to meet people’s needs safely.
Appropriate risk assessments had been completed and were reviewed regularly and changed timely to meet people’s needs. People and their relatives were involved in the assessments and planning of their health and social care. Regular reviews were undertaken collaboratively and relatives expressed feeling involved.
We saw that medicines were managed and administered appropriately. We saw that staff who gave out medicines had their competency assessed before being able to do so and regular medicines audits were carried out at both the location and provider level.
Staff received an induction when they started working at the home, as well as receiving appropriate training and supervision to support them in their role.
We saw that the dining experience in the home was a positive one. People we spoke to were very complimentary about the food provided. The home offered a wide choice of meals and catered for individual wishes, including those made on the day. We saw that people’s likes, dislikes, allergies or specialist diets were accounted for, with systems in place to ensure this was recorded.
Staff understood the Mental Capacity Act 2005 (MCA) regarding people who lacked capacity to make a decision. They also understood the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS) to make sure people were not restricted unnecessarily.
Throughout the inspection we saw evidence of positive and caring interactions between staff and people who lived at the home. Staff were observed treating people with kindness, dignity and respect. The people we spoke to told us how much they enjoyed living at Lakelands and how well the staff looked after them.
All of the people we spoke with during the inspection, relatives and health professionals were positive about the care provided.
People were supported to follow their interests and engage socially with others in ways that were meaningful to them. The home had a number of activities and outings on offer.
People we spoke with told us that the home was well-led and managed and they would recommend living there. Staff stated that they enjoyed working at the home and felt supported.