We carried out an unannounced inspection of this home on 12 July 2017. The home is registered to provide accommodation and personal care for up to 52 older people, some of whom live with dementia. Accommodation is arranged over three floors with lift access to all areas. The second floor of the home is designated to support people who live with dementia and is called ‘Memory Lane’. At the time of our inspection 29 people lived at The Fernes and the third floor of the home was not in use.

This was the first inspection of this home since it had been newly registered with the Commission in July 2016.

A registered manager was in post. 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 supported by staff who had a good understanding of how to keep them safe, identify signs of abuse and report these appropriately. Robust processes to check the suitability of staff to work with people were in place. There were sufficient staff deployed to meet the needs of people and they received appropriate training and support to ensure people were cared for in line with their needs and preferences.

Medicines were administered, stored and ordered in a safe and effective way. For people who chose to manage their own medicines, staff encouraged and supported them to manage these safely.

Risk assessments in place informed plans of care for people to ensure their safety and welfare, and staff had a good awareness of these. Incidents and accidents were clearly documented and investigated. Actions and learning were identified from these and shared with all staff.

People were encouraged and supported to make decisions about their care and welfare. Where people could not consent to their care, staff sought appropriate guidance and followed legislation designed to protect people’s rights and freedom.

People received a wide variety of nutritious meals in line with their needs and preferences. Meals were well presented and staff supported people at mealtimes in a calm and supportive way. People had access to fresh fruit, snacks and drinks throughout the day and were encouraged to be independent with these. Those who required specific dietary requirements for a health need were supported to manage these.

Staff showed skill in communicating with people who had memory problems or lived with dementia. They were calm, kind and gentle in their interactions with people and people responded well to the support offered to them. People’s privacy and dignity was maintained and staff were caring and considerate as they supported people. Staff involved people and their relatives in the planning of their care.

Care plans in place for people reflected their identified needs and the associated risks. Staff were caring and compassionate and knew people in the home very well. External health and social care professionals were involved in the care of people and care plans reflected this.

The registered manager promoted an open and honest culture for working which was fair and supportive to all staff. Staff felt supported in their roles and people and their relatives spoke highly of all staff.

Effective systems were in place to monitor and evaluate any concerns or complaints received and to ensure learning outcomes or improvements were identified from these. Staff encouraged people and their relatives to share their concerns and experiences with them.