Dudwell St Mary

The service did not have a registered manager in post on the day of our inspection. 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. However, we saw documentation that a manager had been appointed and was due to start at the service. We were told that the manager would register with the CQC. Day to day charge of the home was carried out by an acting manager.

At our last inspection we rated the service Good. At this inspection we found the evidence continued to support the rating of good and there was no evidence or information from our inspection and ongoing monitoring that demonstrated serious risks or concerns. This inspection report is written in a shorter format because our overall rating of the service has not changed since our last inspection. At this inspection we found the service remained Good.

People remained safe. Staff had a good understanding of safeguarding and there were systems and process in place to keep people safe. There were robust systems in place to manage, administer, store and dispose of medicines. The provider ensured staff were suitable to work at the service before they started. We observed people's needs being responded to in a timely manner. The service was clean and infection control procedures followed.

People's needs and choices were assessed prior to people moving into the service, and they were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives. Staff continued to support people in the least restrictive way possible. People continued to enjoy a balanced diet and remained supported to access healthcare services as and when needed.

Care continued to be personalised to meet the needs of individuals including their care, social and wellbeing needs. The provider ensured there were systems in place to deal with concerns and complaints. End of life care was considered at the service and people's wishes were documented in their care plans.

We observed positive interactions between people and staff, staff knew people well and had built trusting relationships. People's independence continued to be promoted, staff supported people in a dignified

manner and people's privacy continued to be respected.

The home remained well-led and robust and effective quality assurance systems and processes were in place to assess, monitor and drive improvements in the quality of care people received. People, staff and relatives remained engaged and involved in the service provided. The culture of the home continued to be positive and respected people's equality, diversity and human rights.

Further information is in the detailed findings below.

The five questions we ask about services and what we found