Merlin Manor Care Centre

Merlin Manor Care Centre is a residential care home providing personal and nursing care for up to 94 people. The service supports older people, those with physical disabilities or sensory impairments and people living with a dementia. People are accommodated in one specifically built building. At the time of our inspection 65 people were using the service.

People’s experience of using this service and what we found

Fire risk was not safely managed at the service. Systems were not in place to ensure safe staffing levels. People had not always been safeguarded from abuse as unwitnessed incidents were occurring. Governance systems were not always effective at managing risk.

The provider’s recruitment processes minimised the risk of unsuitable staff being employed. Effective infection prevention and control systems were in place.

People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible and in their best interests. The policies and systems in the service supported this practice. Staff were supported with regular training, supervision and appraisal. The building was adapted for people’s comforted and convenience. The service worked effectively with a range of external professionals to promote people’s health and wellbeing.

Staff were caring and kind. People and relatives spoke positively about the support people received. People were treated with dignity and respect.

People received personalised care based on their needs and choices. In some cases records did not reflect this, and action was being taken to address this. People were supported to communicate and access the information they needed. A range of activities that people enjoyed were on offer. Systems were in place to investigate and respond to complaints. The complaints policy was made available in communal areas and people and relatives knew how to use it.

We received positive feedback on the leadership of the manager. Feedback was sought from people and relatives, and was acted on. The service worked in effective partnership with others to ensure people received the care and support they wanted.

For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk

Rating at last inspection

This service was registered with us on 27 July 2022 and this is the first inspection.

Why we inspected

We inspected this service to give it a rating.

Enforcement and Recommendations

We have identified breaches in relation to fire safety, staffing and governance systems at this inspection. Please see the action we have told the provider to take at the end of this report.

Follow up

We will request an action plan from the provider to understand what they will do to improve the standards of quality and safety. We will work alongside the provider and local authority to monitor progress. We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service, which will help inform when we next inspect.