- Care home
Mill View Care Home
Assessment report published 23 June 2025
Contents
Ratings
Our view of the service
Date of Assessment: 18 March to 6 May 2025. The service is a residential nursing home, registered to support 150 people, although one 30 bedded unit is not currently in use. At the time of the assessment 90 people were living at the home, 3 of whom were in hospital. The assessment included 3 site visits with additional information and evidence uploaded to a secure portal by the provider and reviewed remotely. We also completed telephone calls to relatives of people living at the home to gather their views.
This assessment was completed to follow up on our previous inspection in August 2023, which was a focussed inspection of the safe and well-led key questions. At that inspection, we rated the home as requires improvement overall and in both key questions. We identified one breach of legal regulations relating to the safe management of medicines. We also recommended the provider reviewed how staffing levels were determined to account for all tasks care staff were required to provide.
During our most recent assessment, we identified 3 breaches of legal regulation in relation to the safe management of medicines, risk management and staffing. We identified issues with record keeping linked to the administration of covert medicines, ‘as required’ medicines, for example paracetamol, and also the management of medicines in patch form. We found some people's risk assessments lacked detail and risk management strategies had not always been followed. Supervision had not been provided in line with the provider’s policy, and we were not assured processes for determining staffing levels were robust and took into account all of the tasks care staff were required to complete.
There was a lack of activities and stimulation within the home. Care staff were responsible for activity completion, but did not have time to do this, alongside their caring responsibilities.
We identified continued issues with governance processes and contemporaneous record keeping. These issues had already been identified by the provider and actions were in place to drive improvements. However, as we identified the same issues in August 2023, improvements were either slow to be made or had not been sustained over time.
We identified the provider’s audit processes were more robust than those completed within the home. Most of the action and improvement plans in place, were made up of issues identified through provider oversight, which had not been identified through audits carried out by management. Work was being done to address this, which included the appointment of a new home manager.
The provider had been proactive in addressing issues with unplanned weight loss, with a focus on meal planning, fortification of food, such as by adding extra butter or cream, and portion sizes. People had been supported to access medical professionals as and when required, for example their GP, Speech and Language Therapists or the District Nursing team.
People's experience of this service
Overall people told us they felt safe living at Mill View Care Home, though we received mixed feedback on whether there was enough staff. Comments included, “I do feel safe here, most of the staff are alright”, “I’ve been here many years, the staff try their best but there are not enough of them” and “I’ve been here a while, the staff are quick enough when I need them.”
People told us they got enough to eat and drink and were offered a couple of options at mealtimes, though comments on the quality of the food provided was variable. One person stated, “The food is good, there are different choices every day and if I want a snack they’ll make me one. I get plenty of drinks too.” Another person stated, “The food is 50/50, sometimes it’s not that appetising, but there are a couple of choices each day.”
People largely spoke positively about the staff who cared for them, especially those they had known for a while and developed bonds with. One person told us, “The staff are very helpful, couldn’t be better.”
During the assessment we noted a lack of activities within the home. We asked people if their social and recreational needs were being met. Comments included, “There’s not much going on, I stay in my room a lot” and “There’s not a lot to do, except watch TV.” Due to each unit being run by a nurse or senior carer, when we asked if the home was well managed, it was apparent people were referring to these staff in their responses. People were happy with how their unit was run and the staff responsible for this. One person stated, “The manager is okay, easy to talk to. I’ve not really seen the overall manager of the place.” Another person said, “The manager of the unit listens and is helpful, I’ve no complaints.”