Archived: Generals Meadow

Generals Meadow can provide accommodation and personal care for 19 older people. There were 17 people living in the service at the time of our inspection.

The service was run by Mr and Mrs Peacock. They made up a partnership and together they were the registered provider. One of the partners was also 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. In this report when we speak both about the partners and the registered manager we refer to them as being, ‘the registered persons’

Staff knew how to respond to any concerns that might arise so that people were kept safe from abuse. People had been helped to avoid the risk of accidents and medicines were safely managed. There were enough staff on duty and background checks had been completed before new staff were appointed.

Although new staff had not fully received all of the training recommended by a nationally recognised model, established staff had received refresher training. Staff had the knowledge and skills they needed to care for people in the right way. People had been assisted to eat and drink enough and had been supported to receive all of the healthcare assistance they needed.

The registered persons had ensured that people's rights were respected by helping them to make decisions for themselves. The Care Quality Commission is required by law to monitor how registered persons apply the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards under the Mental Capacity Act 2005 and to report on what we find. These safeguards protect people when they are not able to make decisions for themselves and it is necessary to deprive them of their liberty in order to keep them safe. In relation to this, the registered persons had taken the necessary steps to ensure that people only received lawful care that respected their rights.

People were treated with kindness and compassion. Staff recognised people’s right to privacy, promoted their dignity and respected confidential information.

People had been consulted about the care they wanted to receive and they had been given all of the assistance they needed. This included people who lived with dementia and who could become distressed. People had been helped to pursue their hobbies and interests and there was a system for quickly and fairly resolving complaints.

Although some quality checks were not fully recorded other evidence showed that the registered persons had regularly checked to make sure that people were reliably receiving all of the care they needed. The service was run in an open and inclusive way, good team work was promoted and staff were supported to speak out if they had any concerns. People had benefited from staff acting upon good practice guidance.

One person said 'This is a very happy place. I cannot think of anything that could be better. ' Everyone we spoke with said that the staff were patient and kind. One person said 'The staff are very good. The manager is lovely.'

The home was clean, well maintained and felt very homely. People said that they were happy with their bedrooms and with the facilities. One person showed us around and showed us their room. They said their bedroom was cleaned every day and one person said 'I like my room, I can see the church. I have breakfast in my room, which I like.' People told us that the food was very good and that they always had a choice of meals. One person said 'I get plenty to eat. They come round with a list of choices to choose from. There is a sensible variety and always alternatives.'

People's health and personal care needs were supported and the service worked closely with health and social care professionals to maintain and improve people's health and well-being. People were treated with dignity and respect and the service responded to people's changing needs. People told us that they felt safe.

The service was well managed and there was always a senior member of staff on duty with the manager on call for out of hour's advice and support.