Springbank is a ‘care home’. People in care homes receive accommodation and 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. The home accommodates 41 people in one adapted building across three units, each of which have their own communal areas. One of the units specialises in providing care to people living with dementia.

The inspection was unannounced and took place on 20 and 27 October 2017. At the time of the inspection 19 people were living in the home.

A registered manager was in place. 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.

Overall medicines were managed safely, although some improvements were needed to working practices concerning the management of topical medicines such as creams.

Risks to people’s health and safety were assessed and preventative measures put in place. Some risk assessments needed to be more detailed and subject to better review and evaluation.

There were enough staff deployed to ensure people received prompt care and support. Safe recruitment procedures were in place to ensure staff were of suitable character to work with vulnerable people.

The premises was suitable for its intended purpose and kept in a safe condition. The building had been appropriately adapted for the needs of people living in the service.

Staff were knowledgeable about the people they were supporting and received a range of training and support. We made a recommendation about implementing the Care Certificate to provide more structure to staff training.

People’s nutritional needs were met by the service. A varied and balanced diet was provided to people based on their individual needs and requirements.

People’s needs were assessed and the service provided good quality care to people. Care was based on people’s likes and preferences and health professionals were appropriately consulted to ensure people’s healthcare needs were met.

People and relatives consistently said staff were kind and caring and treated them well. We observed staff were friendly, kind and compassionate with people. Staff knew people well and it was clear positive relationships had developed between people and staff.

People were encouraged to make complaints and any complaints were taken seriously and fully investigated with an emphasis on continuous improvement of the service.

People, relatives and staff all praised the overall standard of the home and the way it was run. They said the management team was friendly and approachable. We found a nice atmosphere in the home and staff worked well with each other.

The registered manager had good oversight of the home and undertook a range of audits and checks to monitor how the service was operating. It was evident these were used to continuously improve the service.

People’s feedback was valued and sought to help monitor performance. Where improvements were suggested, we saw these were acted on.