About the service: Rider House is a care home registered to provide accommodation with nursing for up to 41 people. The home is set in large grounds and the accommodation is spread across two floors. There is a central dining area with a number of lounges throughout the property.

People’s experience of using this service: In most areas we found the home to be good although we did find some improvements were needed in the responsiveness of the service.

People did not always receive personalised care as staff were task focussed and had limited time to spend engaging in activities with people.

People were protected from harm. Risk assessments were completed and staff were recruited using safe recruitment practices. People received their medicine on time by staff trained to administer it.

People were protected from infection. The provider reviewed accidents and incidents when they happened.

People’s needs were assessed in line with current guidance and staff received training relevant to their role. People were supported to maintain a balanced diet and had access to drinks throughout the day.

Staff worked with other agencies to deliver people’s care and ensure access to healthcare facilities. People’s care was delivered in the line with the Mental Capacity Act. The environment was being refurbished and areas modernised.

People were treated with kindness and involved in decisions about their care. People had their privacy respected.

People had access to a complaints procedure. People were supported by staff as and when they reached the end of their life.

The provider had a clear vision and the manager had developed an action plan to drive improvements

People were engaged in discussions about the service and the manager worked in partnership with others to ensure people had a say in what was needed.

The home sought to continuously learn and improve care.

More information is in the full report

Rating at last inspection: At the last inspection the home was rated as requires improvement (report published 28 September 2017) At this inspection we noted that many of the required improvements had been made.

Why we inspected: This was a planned inspection carried out in line with our methodology.

Follow up: We will continue to monitor intelligence we receive about the service until we return to visit as per our re-inspection programme. If concerning information is received we may inspect sooner.

We inspected Rider House Care Centre on 28 September 2017 and it was unannounced. This was the first inspection of the service under a new provider. They provide accommodation and personal care for up to 41 people, some of whom are living with dementia. There were 34 people living at the service when we visited. The service had a 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.

People were not always supported in the least restrictive way possible because their capacity to make their own decisions was not always assessed. People did not always have their chosen food and their cultural preferences were not always considered.

We have recommended that the provider improves the systems used to monitor the safety and the quality of the home to ensure they are suitable and effective in identifying shortfalls and driving improvement. Some policies were not in place to ensure that the provider was meeting their legal responsibilities.

There were systems in place to assess risk and actions were put in place to reduce it. Medicines were managed to ensure they were safe and people were protected from avoidable harm by staff who understood how to safeguard them. There were enough staff to meet people’s needs and safe recruitment procedures were followed.

Staff developed caring relationships with the people they supported and were respectful and patient. They knew people well and provided care that met their preferences. People were encouraged to pursue interests and hobbies and regular activities were planned. Their privacy and dignity was maintained and family and friends could visit freely.

People knew the manager and felt confident that any concerns they raised would be resolved promptly. Staff received training and support to be able to care for people well; including at the end of their lives. They understood their responsibilities and ensured they worked closely with other healthcare professionals. The manager understood the responsibilities of their registration with us.