This inspection took place on 17 April 2018 and was unannounced.

Beechwood Specialist Services provides nursing and residential care to up to 60 people with a variety of mental and physical health needs.

Beechwood Specialist Services 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. At the time of the inspection there were 45 people living in the home.

A new manager was in post. They had not started the process to become registered with the Commission at the time of the inspection, but since the inspection has confirmed they have submitted an application. 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.

Not all safe staff recruitment practices were followed to ensure staff were suitable to work with vulnerable people.

Plans were in in place to support people who presented with behaviours that could challenge, however some lacked detail as to how risks should be managed.

Chemicals and objects that could pose risks to vulnerable people were not always stored securely. We discussed this with a staff member who arranged for all of the toiletries to be stored securely straight away.

We saw that the electrical certificate had expired. The electrics had been checked recently and following the inspection, we received a copy of the electrical certificate which showed they had been assessed in March 2018 and were un-satisfactory.

Staff were aware of people’s individual dietary needs, however we found that records had not always been updated to reflect current needs. Feedback we received regarding the food varied. Most people told us they enjoyed the meals, but not everybody.

Although staff told us they received regular training, records available did not reflect this as training records had been lost when the provider took over the company in 2017.

There were no records to show that staff had completed a formal induction to ensure they had the required knowledge to fulfil their roles. A new contract had been secured to provide training and induction. Records showed that most staff had received regular supervisions, though not all staff had received a supervision within the past three months.

Care files showed that plans were in place to support people’s needs, however not all plans were detailed. Planned care was not always recorded as provided, such as when people were supported to reposition.

Systems in place to monitor the quality and safety of the service were not always effective as they did not highlight all of the issues we identified during the inspection and did not show what actions had been taken when issues had been highlighted. There was no evidence of provider oversight.

Most people we spoke with told us they felt safe living in Beechwood and their relatives agreed. Staff were knowledgeable about safeguarding and were able to clearly explain how they would report any concerns they had. There were enough staff on duty to meet people’s needs.

Care files showed that risk to people was assessed. This included personal emergency evacuation plans (PEEPs). These were detailed and provided information to staff on what support people would need in the event of an emergency evacuation and what equipment would be needed.

Medicines were stored securely and we saw that they were administered safely and as prescribed.

Staff were able to explain when medicines prescribed as and when required should be given, however this information was not written down to ensure they were administered consistently.

Applications had been made to deprive peop