The inspection took place on 16 November 2016. The inspection was unannounced and carried out by two inspectors.

We last visited the service on 18 December 2013 where we found the provider was meeting all the regulations we inspected against.

Willow Tree Lodge is a purpose built care home for older people, some of whom have a dementia related condition. There were 27 people living at the home on the day of our inspection.

There was a registered manager 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. The registered manager was supported by the general manager.

We found that staff were exceptionally caring. We observed kind, caring and thoughtful interactions between staff and people. Staff were highly motivated and committed and spoke with pride about the importance of ensuring people’s needs were held in the forefront of everything they did. People, relatives and staff were able to give numerous examples about how staff went “above and beyond” to meet people’s needs.

The service had a strong, visible, person centred culture which was evident through the actions of the provider, manager and staff.

People told us that they felt safe at the service. There were no ongoing safeguarding concerns. Medicines were administered safely.

Checks were carried out to ensure that applicants were suitable to work with vulnerable people. This included obtaining written references and a Disclosure and Barring Service check [DBS]. There were sufficient staff deployed. Staff carried out their duties in a calm unhurried manner.

Staff told us, and records confirmed that training was available. There was an appraisal and supervision system in place.

Staff followed the principles of the Mental Capacity Act 2005. People’s nutritional needs were met and they had access to a range of healthcare services.

An activities programme was in place to help meet people's social needs.

There was a complaints procedure in place. No complaints had been received in the last 12 months. None of the people or relatives with whom we spoke raised any complaints about the service.

Audits and checks were carried out to monitor the service. Our observations and findings on the day of our inspection confirmed that the provider had an effective quality monitoring system in place.

Staff were very positive about working for the provider. They said they felt valued and enjoyed working at the home. We observed that this positivity was reflected in the care and support which staff provided.

The provider had submitted notifications to CQC in a timely manner. Notifications are changes, events or incidents that the provider is legally obliged to tell us about. The submission of notifications is a requirement of the law. They enable us to monitor any trends or concerns within the service.

In this report the name of a registered manager appears who was not in post and not managing the regulatory activities at this location at the time of the inspection. Their name appears because they were still a registered manager on our register at the time.

We saw that people had an individual plan of care that included their needs and personal preferences and detailed people's physical and emotional healthcare requirements. Risks to people's safety were assessed and plans to reduce and monitor risks to both people using the service and others were recorded.

People were protected from the risk of infection by a staff team who followed best practice procedures.

In order to meet individual needs, staff worked with a variety of healthcare professionals including a visiting chiropodist and nurses from the community team. We were able to speak with a member of the community care service who told us; "People here are very well cared for, it's a really lovely place."

We saw there was a caring and experienced staff team who were well supported and trained to carry out their duties safely and effectively. One member of staff told us; "I love working here, everyone works as a team and we help each other".

Service quality audits were carried out at regular intervals to ensure the home was kept under review. Records showed us that families and professionals involved in people's care were consulted. Outcomes from the last audit were positive.

Willow Tree Lodge is registered for up to 30 people. On the day of our visit we spoke with 10 of the 22 people who were living at the home. Each person we spoke with told us that they were satisfied with the service provided. People told us they were happy and that they were supported by staff to receive the care they needed.

People told us they felt safe and that there were enough staff to give them the support they needed.

Comments included: “It’s very nice and the staff are very good,” “I am very happy here,” and “It’s lovely here, not the same as your own home but I can’t grumble”.

One person told us “I get all the help I need.”

We spoke with a relative of one person who lived at Willow Tree Lodge. This person was very happy with the care their relatives received. We were told they were kept informed about any changes to their relative’s health and support needs and told us “I am very happy with the care at Willow Tree Lodge. The providers and staff are kind and caring”.