We undertook an unannounced inspection of Bury Lodge on 27 June 2017.

Bury Lodge is registered to provide care and accommodation for up to 31 people. At the time of our inspection there were 24 people living at the service.

There was a registered manager 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 and their families told us they felt safe at Bury Lodge and had no concerns about their safety at the home. One person said “I have no concerns re safety, I can relax now”.

Staff understood their responsibilities in relation to safeguarding people. Staff received regular training to make sure they stayed up to date with recognising and reporting safety concerns. The service had systems in place to notify the authorities where concerns were identified. People received their medicine as prescribed. The manager had identified medicine administration errors and had taken action to address these.

People benefitted from caring relationships with the staff. People and their relatives were involved in their care and people’s independence was actively promoted. Relatives and staff told us people’s dignity was promoted.

Where risks to people had been identified, risk assessments were in place and action had been taken to manage these risks. Staff sought people’s consent and involved them in their care where possible.

People, relatives and staff told us at times there were not always sufficient staff to meet people’s needs. We looked at staff rotas and the hours needed to look after people. We found the home had exceeded the required care hours as identified by the dependency tool. This indicated planned staffing levels were maintained. However, the manager was in the process of reviewing the skills mix of staff on each shift. The service had safe recruitment procedures and conducted background checks to ensure staff were suitable to undertake their care role.

People and their families told us people had enough to eat and drink. People were given a choice of meals and their preferences were respected. Where people had specific nutritional needs, staff were aware of, and ensured these needs were met.

Relatives and people told us they were confident they would be listened to and action would be taken if they raised a concern. The service had systems to assess the quality of the service provided. Improvements and learning needs were identified and action was taken to make improvements which promoted people’s safety and quality of life. Systems were in place that ensured people were protected against the risks of unsafe or inappropriate care.

Staff spoke positively about the support they received from the registered manager and all of the team at the home. Staff supervision and other meetings were scheduled as were annual appraisals. People, their relatives and staff told us all of the management team were approachable and there was a good level of communication within the service.

Relatives and people told us the team at Bury Lodge was very friendly, responsive and very well managed. The service sought people’s views and opinions and acted on them.

The management teams’ ethos was echoed by staff and embedded within the culture of the service.