We inspected Parris Lawn on 25 and 26 July 2018. The first day of the inspection was unannounced. Parris Lawn is a care home. People in care homes receive accommodation and nursing or personal care as single package under one contractual agreement. CQC regulates both the premises and the care provided, and both were looked at during this inspection. Parris Lawn accommodates up to 62 people in one purpose built building. At the time of the inspection 36 people lived at the home. People living at the home had a range of needs. Some were associated with old age and their health, other people had more complex health needs which included diabetes and Parkinson’s disease. Some people were living with a dementia type illness. Accommodation is provided over two floors with two passengers lifts that provide level access to all parts of the home.

There was a registered manager at the service. 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.

This is the first inspection for the service as it is recently registered with CQC. People were looked after by staff who knew them well and understood their individual needs. Staff were kind and treated people with respect. They promoted their individuality and independence and spoke to them in an appropriate way. Staff promoted people’s communication, they took a genuine interest in what they had to say and had time to spend time talking with them.

Assessments were completed before people moved into the home. This helped ensure their needs and choices could be met. Information from these assessments were then used to develop care plans and risk assessments. These were regularly reviewed. Staff had a good understanding of people’s needs and the risks associated with supporting people. Care was person centred and met people’s individual needs.

There were enough staff to meet people's needs, recruitment was ongoing to ensure that staffing levels increased as more people moved into the home. Safe recruitment practices were followed.

Staff received training and support to help them look after people. The registered manager was supportive to staff and had a high profile in the service.

People were protected from the risks of harm. Staff had a good understanding of safeguarding procedures and knew what actions to take if they believed people were at risk of abuse or discrimination. There were systems in place to ensure medicines were ordered, stored administered and disposed of safely.

Staff had a good understanding of the Mental Capacity Act 2005 (MCA) and Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS). People’s health and well-being needs were met. They were supported to access healthcare services when they needed them.

People were supported to eat and drink a choice of food that met their individual needs and preferences. They were provided with a wide choice of freshly cooked meals and drinks each day.

There was a range of activities taking place and people told us they had enough to do throughout the day. The activity staff were working with people to develop individual activity plans to reflect their choices and interests.

There was a complaints policy in place and people and visitors told us they would raise any concerns with staff. The home was purpose built and designed to a high standard. It was clean and tidy throughout and maintained to a high standard.

Quality assurance systems identified where improvements were needed across the service. Systems were in place to gather information from people and staff and this was used to improve the service.