Willowbrook provides personal care within an assisted living scheme for people aged 55 and over. The complex comprises of 79 apartments. They are for single person or double occupancy. At the time of the inspection there were 57 people in receipt of a service.

This was the first inspection of Willowbrook since it was registered with the Care Quality Commission on 25 August 2016.

A registered manager was in place. 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 said they were safe and staff were kind and approachable. There were sufficient staff to provide safe and individual care to people. People were protected as staff had received training about safeguarding and knew how to respond to any allegation of abuse. When new staff were appointed, vetting checks were carried out to make sure they were suitable to work with people who needed care and support.

Risk assessments were in place and they accurately identified current risks to the person as well as ways for staff to minimise or appropriately manage those risks. Staff knew the needs of the people they supported to provide individual care.

People had positive relationships with their care workers and were confident in the service. There was a very strong emphasis on key principles of care such as compassion, respect and dignity. People were overwhelmingly positive about the care and support provided by staff. They all said they were treated with kindness and their privacy and dignity were always respected.

Appropriate training was provided and staff were supervised and supported. Staff had a good understanding of the Mental Capacity Act 2005 and best interest decision making, when people were unable to make decisions themselves. People received a varied and balanced diet to meet their nutritional needs.

People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible, the policies and systems in the service supported this practice.

People had access to health care professionals to make sure they received appropriate care and treatment. Staff followed advice given by professionals to make sure people received the care they needed. Systems were in place for people to receive their medicines in a safe way.

People and staff spoke well of the registered manager and they said the service had good leadership. There were effective systems to enable people to raise complaints, and to assess and monitor the quality of the service. People told us they would feel confident to speak to staff about any concerns if they needed to.

The provider undertook a range of audits to check on the quality of care provided. People had the opportunity to give their views about the service. There was regular consultation with people or family members and their views were used to improve the service.