Glendale Court is a residential care home in Teignmouth that provides personal care for up to 37 older people and is operated by Glendale Court (Teignmouth) Limited . There were 34 people living there at the time of our inspection.

One of the registered providers also held the position of the home’s registered manager. 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 inspection took place on 17 and 20 October 2016 and was unannounced. This was the home’s first inspection since a change of provider registration to Glendale Court (Teignmouth) Limited, although the owners of the service had remained unchanged.

The home was clean and well maintained with no unpleasant odours in any of the bedrooms or communal areas. It was homely and warm throughout with plenty of space for people to use, including lounges, dining rooms and conservatories. The garden area was well maintained and accessible to people using wheelchairs. It included seating areas and raised beds for people to be able to assist with gardening if this was an activity they enjoyed.

People spoke highly of the care they received. They told us the staff were always caring and friendly. Comments included “the staff are excellent” and, “the girls couldn’t be kinder”. One person referred to night staff as “night staff night angels”. The atmosphere in the home was warm and welcoming and we heard pleasant conversations and laughter between people and staff throughout the inspection. Visitors came and went all day and were made welcome by staff. One relative who was visiting said, “It’s a brilliant place. Managers, staff, everything. I cannot fault anything. I feel part of their family, totally involved. It really is gold standard care”.

People told us they felt safe at Glendale: one person said, “It’s absolutely safe. They’ve been marvellous here. I can’t fault them”. Another said the attention of staff made them feel “Very safe, very good”. Staff had received training in safeguarding adults and there was clear information available on what to do in case of a concern. Staff understood about people’s rights to make decisions and felt confident that if they had any concerns these would be acted upon. Robust recruitment procedures were in place to ensure suitable staff were employed.

People said there were always enough staff on duty to meet their needs. We saw staff had the time they needed to provide care in an unhurried manner and had time to spend talking with people. People told us they had confidence in the staff and spoke positively about the care they received. One person said “I’m being very well looked after. It’s wonderful here” and another said “staff are very good. They know me very well”.

Care plans showed each person had been assessed before they moved into the home and any potential risks were identified. Where risks were identified there were detailed measures in place to reduce these where possible. Where necessary staff had consulted with healthcare professionals for guidance on how to support people safely. Care files included a summary of people’s care needs and more detailed information where specific care needs had been identified. Care plans were regularly reviewed to make sure they accurately reflected people’s changing needs and to ensure staff had up to date guidance about how to provide care.

People told us they liked the food and had a good choice available to them. One person said “Yes, there is a good choice of food…I can’t fault it. If you say you don’t like anything they’ll get you something different. They all listen to what you say”. Another commented, “The food is marvellous”. People confirmed they were able to continue with their interests a