This unannounced inspection took place on 15 August 2015.

Brookside accommodates and provides personal care for a maximum of 18 older people. There were 16 people living at Brookside on the day of our inspection.

At the last inspection in August 2015 the service was rated Good. At this inspection we found the service remained Good.

The service had a registered manager in place at the time of our inspection. 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.

People felt safe and staff understood their responsibilities to protect people from abuse and avoidable harm. Risk was assessed and preventative action was taken to reduce the risk of harm.. There were sufficient numbers of staff with the right skills to meet people’s needs. Staff were recruited in a safe way. People received their medicines at the right time and in a safe way.

Staff had the skills to meet people’s needs because they received training and support and knew people well. People were asked for their consent before care and support was provided. People’s capacity to make decisions was considered and staff understood the principles of the mental capacity act 2005.

People had enough to eat and drink. Staff knew how to identify risk of malnutrition and dehydration and took action when this was identified. People had access to the healthcare services they required.

People said that staff were caring and staff had developed positive relationships with them. Staff knew how to maintain people’s privacy and dignity. People were able to be as independent as possible.

Staff worked in a flexible way so that they could meet people’s needs in a person centred way. People were involved in developing their plan of care and were given choices. People knew how to make a complaint and felt sure they would be listened to and action taken.

People and staff had confidence in the registered manager and the management team. The managers were approachable and supportive. Systems were in place to monitor the quality of service provision. People were asked for their feedback and this was acted on.

Further information is in the detailed findings below

This unannounced inspection took place on 27 August 2015.

Brookside accommodates and provides personal care for a maximum of 18 people. There were 16 people living at Brookside on the day of our inspection.

A registered manager was 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.

The registered manager had an ethos of making people feel at home whilst living at Brookside. This was evident in the welcoming and homely environment and the caring attitude of the staff. People were offered a variety of activities on a regular basis and were asked for their feedback about activities that they would like to do.

Staff safely met people’s personal care needs and had a good understanding of how to report any concerns of abuse. Risk assessments were in place and these were reviewed on a regular basis. Staffing levels were sufficient and people’s needs were supported in a timely manner. Medicines were administered correctly and staff were appropriately trained to give them to people that required them.

People were supported by staff that had received an induction and training program to support them in their role and they were provided with regular supervision from the management. Staff were skilled in their interactions and the support they provided to people. The registered manager had an understanding of the Mental Capacity Act (MCA) and their requirement to comply with this. People were provided with nutritional meals and further professional assistance was sought if people required it. Health professionals were contacted when people became unwell in a timely manner.

People were cared for by kind and compassionate staff. Staff understood people’s needs and worked with them to resolve any issues. People were involved in their own care planning and care was provided in a way that suited each individual. Visitors were made to feel welcome whenever they wanted to visit the home.

People’s needs, interests and life history were used to understand each person and how they wished to be treated. People were encouraged to identify any changes they would like to their care, and were supported to utilise other services including the doctors, hospitals and opticians.

The culture of the service was upbeat and morale was high. People who used the service, relatives, visitors and staff told us they had confidence in the managers and they were always approachable and ready to assist. The registered manager had a good understanding of their role and had systems in place to monitor the quality of the service it provided. There were strong community links and people were supported to attend events outside of the home.

We spoke with six people who used the service. They were extremely positive about the care and support provided and about the staff. One person said "We are looked after very well". Another person said " they can't do enough for you". It was evident from speaking with people who used the service and from care records that care and support was person focused. This meant that care and support was provided in the way that the person prefered. People were given choice and had autonomy over their day to day lives. The provider regularly sought the views of people who used the service and and took these into account.

People also told us they enjoyed the meals provided. They told us there was always a choice. We saw that where people were at risk of malnutrition, the provider had taken appropriate action and had consulted appropriate healthcare professionals.

There were effective recruitment procedures. This meant the provider carried out pre-employment checks so that only staff who were suitable were employed. Staff told us they felt supported by the management team.

We spoke with four people who used the service. People told us they were happy living at Brookside. They told us they liked the staff. One person said " its like a home form home". People received the care and support they required. Care and support was delivered in ways that met people's individual needs and preferences.

People told us they were satisfied with the care and support they received. They felt staff and the manager were approachable if they had any concerns or needed medical support.

People said they were involved in the development and the review of their care plans. They could invite their family member to attend the review meetings if they wished.

People were supported with their medication. They said they received their medication on a regular and timely basis.

People were complimentary about the choice of meals and the portions. One person said, “I’ve put on a little bit of weight since I moved here”.

People had the opportunity to take part in social events arranged by the home. They were asked regularly what they think about the service they receive in relation to their care needs. They also contributed their views in relation to proposed improvements and changes to the service.

People told us that they were satisfied with the care and support they received. They felt the manager staff and were kind, caring, looked after them well and were approachable. They said, “staff always come to you when you ask” and “the staff cannot be faulted, extremely good to me.”

People have regular support to ensure their health needs are met from regular visits by the district nurse to the annual health checks. People said the staff make sure they have their medicine on time and get the doctor to visit if they are unwell.

People were complimentary about the choice of meals provided. The meals appeared appetising and well-presented.

People have the opportunity to take part of social events arranged at the home such as the church fellowship. One person said, ”we have coffee mornings here and staff always try to get us to join in with activities, keeps the brain working.”

People said they were asked regularly what they think about the service they received and had completed a survey. People told us they felt confident to tell the staff if they had any concerns about the care they received. One person said, “I’ve got absolutely nothing to complain about.”