This unannounced inspection took place on 24 March 2017. The Hawthorns consists of retirement apartments and is registered as a care home providing accommodation and personal care for up to 70 people. Some people living at the home did not require any personal care whilst other people were in receipt of care. At the time of our inspection 22 people were in receipt of personal care.

The home had 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 told us they felt safe at the Hawthorns. Staff were aware of their responsibilities to keep

people safe and report any allegations of abuse. People’s individual risks were assessed. People did not always feel there were adequate numbers of staff however we found additional staff were being recruited and a sufficient number of staff were available to meet people’s care needs. People received their medicines as prescribed.

The provider had processes in place to ensure staff were recruited safely and that they had the training and skills to meet people’s needs. Staff obtained consent before they provided care. Staff understood people’s decisions when supporting people and worked to ensure people’s best interests were met. People enjoyed their food and had choices regarding their meals. People were supported to access health care professionals to meet their health needs.

Staff were caring and treated people with dignity and respect. People felt involved in their day to day choices and were supported by staff to maintain their independence. People were involved in developing their care records and received care that met their needs. Care packages provided to people were flexible and people could choose the level of support they required as needs changed. People told us they had access to an extensive programme of leisure pursuits. People knew how to raise any concerns and were confident any issues would be addressed.

People and staff told us the service was well-led. Staff understood their roles and responsibilities. People and their relatives were encouraged to share their opinions about the quality of the service received. Effective audit systems were in place to assess and monitor the quality of service provided.