Manor House Residential Home provides care for up to 22 people living with dementia some of who experience behaviours that may challenge others. The home consists of two floors, communal areas and gardens in the village of Middleton in Northamptonshire.

At the last inspection, the service was rated Good; at this inspection we found the service remained Good.

The service continued to provide safe care to people living with dementia. Staff understood their responsibilities for safeguarding people from harm and followed the provider’s policies to provide people’s prescribed medicines safely. There were enough suitably skilled staff to meet people’s needs. Staff had been recruited using safe recruitment practices.

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

People received care from staff that had received training to meet people’s specific needs around their dementia. Staff were compassionate and helped to develop positive relationships with people which helped to manage behaviours which may challenge others.

People received a balanced diet from staff that understood their dietary needs. People were helped to maintain their independence and dignity by the use of suitable crockery and support from staff.

People were treated with respect and helped to maintain their dignity.

People were supported to access healthcare professionals and staff were prompt in referring people to health services when required.

People’s risks were assessed and staff had person-centred care plans they followed to mitigate these risks. Care plans were updated regularly and people and their relatives were involved in their care planning where possible.

Staff sought people’s consent before providing care and people’s mental capacity was assessed in line with the Mental Capacity Act 2005. The registered manager understood their responsibilities and referred people appropriately for assessment under the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguarding.

The provider and registered manager continually assessed, monitored and evaluated the quality of the service to identify areas for improvement, and implement change where required.

Manor House Residential Home provides care for up to 22 people living with dementia some of who experience behaviours that may challenge others. The home consists of two floors, communal areas and gardens in the village of Middleton in Northamptonshire.

At the last inspection, the service was rated Good; at this inspection we found the service remained Good.

The service continued to provide safe care to people living with dementia. Staff understood their responsibilities for safeguarding people from harm and followed the provider’s policies to provide people’s prescribed medicines safely. There were enough suitably skilled staff to meet people’s needs. Staff had been recruited using safe recruitment practices.

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

People received care from staff that had received training to meet people’s specific needs around their dementia. Staff were compassionate and helped to develop positive relationships with people which helped to manage behaviours which may challenge others.

People received a balanced diet from staff that understood their dietary needs. People were helped to maintain their independence and dignity by the use of suitable crockery and support from staff.

People were treated with respect and helped to maintain their dignity.

People were supported to access healthcare professionals and staff were prompt in referring people to health services when required.

People’s risks were assessed and staff had person-centred care plans they followed to mitigate these risks. Care plans were updated regularly and people and their relatives were involved in their care planning where possible.

Staff sought people’s consent before providing care and people’s mental capacity was assessed in line with the Mental Capacity Act 2005. The registered manager understood their responsibilities and referred people appropriately for assessment under the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguarding.

The provider and registered manager continually assessed, monitored and evaluated the quality of the service to identify areas for improvement, and implement change where required.

Our inspection of 6 June 2013 found that risk assessments for the building and premises had not been completed for some time. During this inspection we saw that risk assessments were being carried out on at least a weekly basis. The action taken when risk was identified was also recorded.

We were unable to speak with people who used the service about the safety and suitability of the premises. We spoke with a relative of a person who had recently moved in. They told us they were satisfied with the care and support their relative received. They said "the staff are very caring and spend a lot of time with people".

We spoke with two people who used the service. Both said they liked the staff who supported them. We observed staff interacting with people who used the service. Staff were respectful, kind and helpful. We saw that people who used the service were occupied and engaged in activities that were meaningful to them.

We looked at the safety and accessibility of the premises. The provider had carried out some refurbishment since our last visit in January 2013. We saw that risk assessments of the premises had not been carried out for some time.

We spoke with several people using the service who told us they were happy with the quality of care and support provided. They found staff were confident and trained to provide the care that they needed, respectfully and in the manner that suited them.

People said they had opportunities to take part in activities organised by the home and receive visitors at any time. People are supported to continue their interests and hobbies, such as gardening, reading the newspaper and singing.

Staff were observed interacting with people well and providing encouragement, support and the care that they needed. Some of the comments we received from people using the service included:

“I find the staff do respect me”

”I choose what I want to do and when”

“I don’t need much help but I know staff do have to help others”

“Nothing’s too much for the staff”

“Am quite happy and safe here”

“I’ve got nothing to complain about”

“It’s very good here, as you can see, there’s always something happening here”

“We do get on with life, everyday is different and we do different things. I have to say we do enjoy a good sing-song”

“Have nothing to complain about, quite happy and if there was a problem you just tell them”

The local authority who commission services and carry out contract monitoring visits at the home. They gave us positive feedback about the quality of care provided at the home, especially in relation to maintaining the wellbeing of people with dementia, thus preventing them having to move into a nursing home.

The Local Involvement Networks (LINks) members were consulted on this issue. We received one response, commenting positively about the provision of care, health and medication support, choice of meals, respecting people’s privacy and dignity, trained staff supporting people and cleanliness of the home.

We used a number of different methods to help us understand the experiences of people using the service because the people using the service had complex needs which meant they were not able to tell us their experiences. We observed that people who used the service were treated with respect and dignity. People had their privacy respected and were able to maintain as much independence as possible.