The Inspection took place on 21 November 2016 and 5 December 2016 and was unannounced.

Cedar Care Home is registered to provide accommodation and personal care for up to 46 persons some of whom may be living with dementia. There were 45 people living in the service at the time of our inspection.

There was a manager in post who was in the process of applying to be registered. 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 received good quality care and support in a way that ensured their safety and welfare. Staff had a good understanding of how to protect people from the risk of harm. They had been trained and had access to guidance and information to support them with the process. Risks to people’s health and safety had been assessed and the service had care plans and risk assessments in place to ensure people were cared for safely. The service employed sufficient numbers of staff who had been safety recruited. People received their medication as prescribed, however some gaps in recording had been identified and these were addressed by the manager immediately. Staff had been trained and, where needed had received further training to refresh their knowledge. There were safe systems in place for receiving, administering and disposing of medicines.

Staff felt valued and supported and were trained to the necessary standard to meet people’s assessed needs. The registered manager and staff had a good understanding of the Mental Capacity Act (MCA) 2005 and Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS) and had made appropriate applications when needed. People had sufficient amounts to eat and drink to meet their individual needs. People’s healthcare needs were monitored and staff sought advice and guidance from healthcare professionals when needed.

People told us that staff were kind, caring and understanding and they clearly knew the people they cared for well. Staff ensured that people’s privacy and dignity was maintained at all times. People were able to express their views and opinions and had participated in the activities and past times of their choosing. People were able to receive their visitors at any time and their families and friends were always made to feel welcome. People had access to advocacy services when needed. An advocate supports a person to have an independent voice and enables them to express their views when they are unable to do so for themselves.

People had their care needs fully assessed and their care plans provided staff with the appropriate information to ensure that their expectations were fully met. People were confident that their concerns or complaints would be listened to and acted upon swiftly.

People and their relatives were very happy with the quality of the service under the new manager. The manager had recently made improvements to the quality monitoring system to ensure that it was effective in monitoring the quality of the service and to drive improvements.

People living in Cedars Care Centre and their families were happy with the level of care and support offered. People told us; "I am quite happy with everything," "The carers are kind, caring and compassionate," and, "I can't fault it here, I wouldn't go anywhere else." We saw that people's care needs were assessed and planned for with any risks associated with their care being minimised as far as possible.

People told us that they could do what they wished, were encouraged to be independent and were given choices in their daily lives.

Although some need for improvement was noted, peoples' medicines were being managed safely and staff were competent in managing this aspect of peoples' care.

Staff said that they were well supported and had opportunities for training. We saw that staff were kept up to date with training in essential areas such as moving and handling. Staff had also received training in dementia care to help ensure good and consistent practice for people living with this condition.

People spoken with thought that the staff knew what they were doing and were available to them when they needed assistance.

People were happy with the quality of the service and there were good systems in place to ensure that the quality and safety of the service was monitored and maintained.

We found that people had access to good information about the service so that they knew what facilities they could expect and if the service would be suitable to meet their needs. People told us that they felt involved in their care and were consulted about their needs and how these would be met. We found that the whole staff team were good in ensuring that people were offered choices in their daily lives. One person told us, "It's very relaxed here, you can get up when you want, go to bed when you want and eat when you want."

We found that staff had been well trained and saw that they had a good understanding of people's individual needs. People were treated respectfully and their individuality understood. People enjoyed good levels of activity and occupation and were able to get out and about in the local community. People using the service and their families told us that they were very happy with the level of care and activity provided. One person told us, "I feel pampered," and another that, "Everyone here is delightful, and the staff have been very attentive."

People told us that they felt safe and secure living in Cedars Care Centre. People's relatives told us that they had no concerns about how people were treated.

People told us that they were happy with the quality of the service provided. We found that the provider consulted with people and monitored the service to ensure that standards would be maintained.