Garson House is a residential care home for 13 people with conditions associated with old age including dementia. There are some bedrooms on the ground floor, but most bedrooms are on the first floor with access via a passenger lift. Communal lounges and dining area are all located on the ground floor. The home is in the middle of a small town and so access to local shops and cafes is available.

Rating at last inspection

At the last inspection completed in April 2015, the service was rated Good.

At this inspection completed on 19 July 2017, we found the service remained Good.

Why the service is rated Good.

People said they felt safe and well cared for and safe. Comments included “It’s very good here, staff are all very kind to me” One relative said “I feel my relative is safe and well cared for. The staff are all very good.”

People benefitted from an environment which was clean, homely and had the right equipment to keep them safe and well.

Staff knew people’s needs and wishes and were available in sufficient numbers to enable them to provide personalised care and support. People benefitted from a staff team who were well trained and supported to do their job safely and effectively.

Risks had been considered to ensure people were supported to maintain good physical and emotional well-being. Menus were planned around people’s likes and dislikes. People were supported to maintain a balanced and nutritious diet. People were highly complementary about the food being service. One person said “The food is very good, I have no complaints. I eat everything.”

People befitted from a responsive service which ensured there were regular activities and outings for them to enjoy. One person said “We had some lovely singers in yesterday, they were excellent.”

People are supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives. Staff support them in the least restrictive way possible; the policies and systems in the service support this practice.

People knew how to make any concerns known and were confident their views would be listened to and actioned. Visitors and family were made welcome and believed their views and suggestions were valued.

The service was well run and the caring ethos promoted by the registered manager and provider was shared by staff who had developed close bonds and relationships with people who lived at the service. Care and support was delivered in a way which promoted people’s dignity, privacy and respect.

Further information is in the detailed findings below

Garson House is a residential care home for 13 people with conditions associated with old age including dementia. There are some bedrooms on the ground floor, but most bedrooms are on the first floor with access via a passenger lift. Communal lounges and dining area are all located on the ground floor. The home is in the middle of a small town and so access to local shops and cafes is available.

Rating at last inspection

At the last inspection completed in April 2015, the service was rated Good.

At this inspection completed on 19 July 2017, we found the service remained Good.

Why the service is rated Good.

People said they felt safe and well cared for and safe. Comments included “It’s very good here, staff are all very kind to me” One relative said “I feel my relative is safe and well cared for. The staff are all very good.”

People benefitted from an environment which was clean, homely and had the right equipment to keep them safe and well.

Staff knew people’s needs and wishes and were available in sufficient numbers to enable them to provide personalised care and support. People benefitted from a staff team who were well trained and supported to do their job safely and effectively.

Risks had been considered to ensure people were supported to maintain good physical and emotional well-being. Menus were planned around people’s likes and dislikes. People were supported to maintain a balanced and nutritious diet. People were highly complementary about the food being service. One person said “The food is very good, I have no complaints. I eat everything.”

People befitted from a responsive service which ensured there were regular activities and outings for them to enjoy. One person said “We had some lovely singers in yesterday, they were excellent.”

People are supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives. Staff support them in the least restrictive way possible; the policies and systems in the service support this practice.

People knew how to make any concerns known and were confident their views would be listened to and actioned. Visitors and family were made welcome and believed their views and suggestions were valued.

The service was well run and the caring ethos promoted by the registered manager and provider was shared by staff who had developed close bonds and relationships with people who lived at the service. Care and support was delivered in a way which promoted people’s dignity, privacy and respect.

Further information is in the detailed findings below

We brought forward this planned inspection as we had received some information of concern which indicated people's finances may not have been fully protected. We did not find any evidence to support this, but have asked the provider to note a more robust recording of how people have been assisted would help to further protect both individuals and staff members from any further allegations.

During this inspection we spoke with eight people living at the home. They were all very positive about their experiences of being cared for. Comments included ''I couldn't have picked a better place to be, the staff are all marvellous.'' Another person said ''They have been so very kind to me, I have nothing but praise for the girls here. They are so kind.''

We found care and support was well planned and staff were experienced and knowledgeable about the needs and wishes of the people they cared for. Care and support was provided in a person centred way.

We saw there were robust processes in place to ensure only people who were suitable to work with vulnerable adults were employed. The service had systems in place to ensure the quality of care and support was reviewed and monitored, taking into consideration the views of people living there and those of staff.

We carried out this unannounced inspection on 21 June 2012 as part of our planned inspection programme.

We spent time at the home talking to six people who currently live there, as well as three members of staff and the management team including the registered provider. At the time of this inspection there were 12 people living at the home with two care staff per shift, plus the manager, a cleaner and a cook available. The home also had a part time activities coordinator.

We observed how care and support was delivered through different times of the day. Some people that live at this service have dementia and therefore not everyone was able to tell us about their experiences. To help us understand the experiences of people we used our SOFI (Short Observational Framework for Inspection). This tool allows us to spent time watching what is going on in a service and helps us record how people spend their time, the type of support they get and whether they have positive experiences. Some people using the service were able to tell us their views.

We looked at some of the key records kept by the home. These included care plans, risk assessments, staff recruitment records and medication records. This helps us to better understand how well the home is run.

People we spoke with who were able to share their experiences of living at the service were very positive. Comments included ‘‘sometimes I wake up in the night and think I might like a hot drink, I ring my call bell and staff come up and already have a drink ready for me. That’s good service.’’ ‘‘I am very fond of all the staff, we share our stories and have a laugh together, that’s very important to me.’’ ‘‘If you have any little issue, you tell the staff and it gets sorted straight away.’’

We looked at how well care and support was planned and reviewed. The plans contained good basic information about what personal, health and emotional care needs people had and how staff should meet these needs. Risk assessments were in place to show how the home identify manage and minimised any risks for people. Plans also included details about people’s social history and their likes and dislikes.

We observed staff providing care and support in a kind and sensitive manner and we were told by staff that they felt well trained and supported to do their job.

People were safe because the provider had used robust recruitment processes to only employ those people who were suitable to work with frail and vulnerable people.