We carried out this unannounced inspection on 19 July 2017.

Hartington House is a care home that provides care for up to five adults with a mental health illness. At the time of our inspection four people were living at the home. These people had lived together for a number of years. The home is a large terraced property, which has been adapted so each person has their own bedroom. There was a communal lounge, kitchen/diner and bathrooms and toilets. The home is close to Bolton town centre and other local amenities such as shops, a supermarket and public house.

The provider has three small care homes in Bolton all in close proximity to one another and there is a registered manager that oversees all three homes. 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. On the day of our inspection the registered manager was on annual leave. The home was being managed by the deputy manager who was present for the inspection.

At the last inspection the service was rated overall good. At this inspection we found the service remained good.

People continued to remain safe from the risks of abuse or ill-treatment. This was because staff members knew how to recognise and respond to such concerns.

People were supported by enough staff to meet their needs and people received their medicines safely. The provider followed safe recruitment procedures when employing new staff members. Staff members had the training and skills to meet people's individual needs.

People received support that continued to be caring. Staff members respected people's privacy, dignity and promoted independence through personal skill building. Staff members knew people's support needs and assisted them as they wanted.

People had care and support plans that reflected the areas of their lives, which they needed support with. When changes occurred in people's needs these care and support plans were reviewed to reflect the changes.

People were supported to have choice and control over their lives. They were assisted by staff in the least restrictive way possible. Staff were aware of current guidance, which directed their practice. People's human rights were protected by the staff who supported them.

People were encouraged to raise any concerns or complaints. The provider had systems in place to address any issues raised with them. Staff members felt valued as employees and their opinions and ideas were encouraged by the provider. The provider had systems in place to monitor the quality of service and where necessary made changes to drive improvements.

We carried out this unannounced inspection on 11 December 2014. This service had been classed as a dormant service and was last inspected on 06 September 2011. This was as the service was still registered with the Care Quality Commission; however there were no people living at the home and the home underwent a full refurbishment. The people living at the home moved into another home in Bolton operated by the same provider. People made the choice to move back to Hartington House when it reopened.

Hartington House is a care home that provides care for up to five adults with a mental health illness. At the time of our inspection three people were living at the home. These people had lived together for a number of years.

The home is a large terraced property, which has been adapted so each person has their own bedroom. There was a communal lounge, kitchen/diner and bathrooms and toilets. The home is close to Bolton town centre and other local amenities such as shops, a supermarket and public house.

The provider has three small care homes in Bolton all in close proximity to one another and there is a registered manager that oversees all three homes. A registered manager is a person who is 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.

On the day of our inspection the registered manager was at Hartington House to assist with the inspection.

The home had been recently refurbished and we found the home to be warm, clean and tidy.

The service was meeting the requirements of the Mental Capacity Act (MCA) 2005 and the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS). People were supported by staff to make choices and decisions about their care and welfare.

We saw that the home had appropriate safeguarding policies and procedures in place for staff to refer to if required. This also included guidance for staff to follow if a person failed to return back to the home. Staff had undertaken training in the protection of vulnerable adults and were able to recognise and report abuse or poor practice.

On the day of our inspection two members of staff were on duty. Staffing levels were determined by what commitments people living at the home had planned for example a person may wish a member of staff to support them to a hospital appointment or on a trip out.

We observed that staff treated people with kindness and were patient and respectful when speaking with people living at the home. We observed a friendly rapport between staff and the person living at the home who was with us for most of the day.

Recruitment systems were in place to help ensure that people were employed following suitable employment checks. Staff spoken with confirmed that they completed an induction on commencing work with the company.

Regular staff supervision meetings took place and records of these meetings were documented.

We looked at three care records and saw these contained clear information to guide staff on how people living as the home wished to be supported and their preferences and wishes.

We found the administration of medicines was safe and people received their medicines in a timely manner.

Audits were undertaken by the registered manager to monitor and assess the quality of the service.

One said, “The staff are nice, they help me”.

Another told us their room had recently been painted and how nice the colour was.