About the service: The Shrubbery is a care home providing nursing and residential care to up to 36 people. At the time of the inspection there were 27 people living in the home.

People’s experience of using this service: People told us their needs were met by staff, however we found that people’s individual preferences were not always met. For instance, how often people liked to bathe or ensuring sufficient activities were available to people. We made a recommendation regarding this in the main body of the report.

The registered manager completed a variety of checks and audits, but these could be further developed to ensure checks on the quality and safety of all areas of the service were monitored and recorded.

People felt safe living in the home. Risks to people had been assessed and care plans described how these risks would be minimised. Medicines were managed safely and people received their medicines when they needed them. The home was clean and the equipment and utilities were safely maintained.

People told us staff were kind and respectful and staff knew the people they were supporting well. Care plans were detailed, up to date and reflected care that people needed and how they wanted to receive it. People’s nutritional needs were known and met by staff to reduce risks relating to malnutrition.

People’s capacity to make decisions was assessed and people were supported with decision making. These assessments did not always clearly reflect the decision to be made, but best interest decisions were specific and involved relevant people.

Staff were recruited safely. We received mixed feedback regarding staffing levels, but saw that people received support in a timely way and call bell response times confirmed this.

Staff were knowledgeable about safeguarding procedures and how to raise any concerns they had. Referrals to the local authority safeguarding team had been made appropriately. Staff received regular training to ensure they had the skills to meet people’s needs.

Staff felt well supported by the registered manager and told us they could raise any concerns with them.

Rating at last inspection: This is the first inspection for this service since the provider changed their name.

Why we inspected: This was a planned inspection based on our inspection schedule for new services.

Follow up: We will continue to monitor intelligence we receive about the service until we return to visit as per our re-inspection programme. If any concerning information is received we may inspect sooner.