This inspection was carried out on 18 and 19 July 2017 and was unannounced.

Kent House Residential Home provides accommodation and personal care for up to 25 older people and people living with dementia. The service is a large converted property. Accommodation is arranged over three floors and a lift is available to assist people to get to the upper floor. There were 21 people living at the service at the time of our inspection.

The registered manager was leading the service and was supported by a deputy manager. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission (CQC) to manage the care and has the legal responsibility for meeting the requirements of the law. Like registered providers, they are ‘registered persons’. Registered persons have legal responsibility for meeting the requirements of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 and associated Regulations about how the service is run.

People and their relatives told us they were very pleased with the service they received at Kent House Residential Home. One person’s relative told us, “It’s more home, than it is ‘a home’”. Staff were kind and caring and treated people with dignity and respect. One person’s relative told us, “[My relative] is well looked after, respected and loved. The staff have so much patience and empathy”. People had privacy and staff provided the supported their needed discreetly.

The service had been purchased by a new provider in February 2017. Many of the people had been living at the service since before this time. They told us they liked the improvements the new provider had made. Staff told us the changes the provider had made, such as introducing electronic care records, had improved people’s lives and given them more time to spend with people.

People were involved in planning what happened at the service. Staff and people planned the activities on offer at the service together. People told us they had enough to do every day and were planning outings. Some people continued to do domestic tasks they had done at home, such as dusting their bedrooms and laying the tables.

Assessments of people’s needs and any risks to them had been completed. Staff acted on health care professionals advice to manage risks. People's care was planned and reviewed with them to keep them safe and help them be as independent as possible. People were supported to have regular health checks such as eye tests.

People received the medicines they needed to keep them safe and well. They planned menus with staff and were offered a balanced diet. People told us they enjoyed the food and there was a wide variety of food on offer. Meals were prepared to meet people preferences and spiritual and cultural needs.

The Care Quality Commission is required by law to monitor the operation of the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS) which applies to care homes. The registered manager had applied to the supervisory body for a DoLS authorisation when people who lacked capacity to consent were restricted. People were supported to go out and could move around the service and grounds freely. Staff followed the principles of the Mental Capacity Act 2005 (MCA) and supported people to make choices in all areas of their life.

Plans were in place to keep people safe in an emergency, including plans to evacuate people from the building. Staff practiced these regularly. Staff knew the signs of possible abuse and were confident to raise concerns they had with the registered manager or the local authority safeguarding team.

Systems were in place to manage complaints received. People and their representatives were confident to raise concerns and complaints they had about the service.

People, their relatives and visiting professionals were asked for their views of the service regularly. Everyone was satisfied with the service provided. Staff had regular opportunities to share their experiences of the service and told us the management team supported the