Merlin Court provides accommodation which includes personal care for up to 62 older people, some of who are living with dementia. At the time of our visit 34 people were living at the service. Since our last inspection the home had ceased providing nursing care and had deregistered from this regulated activity.

People’s bedrooms were arranged over two floors with communal lounges and dining areas with satellite kitchens on each floor. There was a central kitchen and laundry located in the basement of the building. The home had undergone an extensive programme of refurbishment since our last inspection in July 2015. People, relatives and staff spoke positively regarding the physical changes to the home. Comments included “The décor is lovely, it’s so light in here now”, “The changes are lovely and residents have still kept all their personal belongings in their rooms so the rooms are individual” and “We were kept up to date with all the renovations. The changes were done without disturbing the residents. It’s lovely here now”.

We carried out this inspection over two days on the 05 and 06 October 2016. At a previous inspection which took place in July 2015 we found the provider did not meet the legal requirements for some of the areas we looked at. They wrote to us with an action plan of improvements that would be made. We found on this inspection the provider had taken all the steps to make the necessary improvements in these areas.

The previous registered manager had left the employment of the service in November 2015. A new manager had been recruited and was in the process of submitting their application to become the registered manager. 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 relatives spoke positively about the care and support they or their family member received. During our inspection we observed people appeared happy and relaxed in the company of staff and did not hesitate to seek assistance and support. Staff responded promptly to requests for assistance, seeking permission before undertaking any care tasks.

Staff told us that people were encouraged to be independent as possible and explained how they ensured they maintained people’s privacy and dignity when undertaking personal care tasks. People received support from staff who had got to know them well.

People were receiving care which was responsive and tailored to their needs. Care plans were in place which clearly described how each person would like to receive their care and support. Records showed people and their relatives were involved in the planning of their care plans which were regularly reviewed and updated as required.

People were supported to have sufficient to eat and drink. Where people required assistance this was done at a pace appropriate to them.

Systems were in place for the safe storage, administration and disposal of medicines. Records showed people received their medicines as prescribed and in their preferred manner. People had access to healthcare services to maintain good health.

People were protected from the risk of harm and abuse. Staff had received safeguarding vulnerable adults training and were aware of their responsibility to report any concerns. Policies and procedures were in place to advise staff on what they should do if they had concerns. Risks to people’s personal safety had been assessed and plans were in place to minimise these risks.

Safe recruitment practices were followed before new staff were employed to work with people. People received individualised care and support from staff who had the skills, knowledge and understanding needed to carry out their roles. Staff told us they had access to training ap

Merlin Court provides accommodation which includes nursing and personal care for up to 62 older people. At the time of our visit, 50 people were using the service. The bedrooms are arranged over two floors. The ground floor provides care and support to those people who are living with dementia and/or require personal care. The first floor provides support for those people who require nursing care. There are communal lounges and a dining area on each floor with a central kitchen and laundry. The home is part of Avery healthcare who took on the running of the service in November 2014.

The inspection took place on 22 and 23 July 2015. This was an unannounced inspection. We carried out this inspection as we had received a number of concerns relating to the care being provided to people living in the home and about how records were being kept. During our last inspection in May 2014 we found the provider satisfied the legal requirements in the areas that we looked at.

A registered manager was employed by the service. 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.

Some people's care plans did not always identify how care and support should be provided. This meant that people were at risk of not receiving the care and support they needed.

Whilst most people and their relatives spoke positively about the care and support they received it was evident throughout the inspection there was a significant divide between the safety and quality of services provided on the first floor and the ground floor. We found that whilst care on the ground floor was centred on the person we did not always experience this on the first floor. Staff on the first floor did not always inform people of what they were doing when providing care and support. Staff did not always respond to people’s requests. There was a lack of consistency with how staff supported and cared for people.

There were not enough staff available on the first floor to fully respond to people’s care and support needs. People on the first floor went for long periods of time without any social interaction. In contrast there were enough staff on the ground floor to meet people’s care and support needs.

Whilst there were systems in place to reduce the risk and spread of infection. Staff working in the service did not consistently apply infection control practices. Most staff we spoke with were clear about their responsibility in regard to infection control.

Staff knew how to identify if people were at risk of abuse and what actions they needed to take should they suspect abuse was taking place. The registered manager dealt with and responded to all safeguarding concerns.

People were supported to eat a balanced diet. There were arrangements for people to access specialist diets where required. There were snacks and drinks available throughout the day during our inspection.

Staff managed medicines safely and ensured people received their medicines as prescribed.

The registered manager had systems in place to monitor the quality of services people received. People using the service and their relatives were regularly asked their views about the services people received.

We found six breaches of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014. You can see what action we told the provider to take at the back of the full version of the report.