Mellor Nook Residential Care Home

Updated 15 June 2022

The inspection

We carried out this inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (the Act) as part of our regulatory functions. We checked whether the provider was meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Act. We looked at the overall quality of the service and provided a rating for the service under the Health and Social Care Act 2008.

As part of this inspection we looked at the infection control and prevention measures in place. This was conducted so we can understand the preparedness of the service in preventing or managing an infection outbreak, and to identify good practice we can share with other services.

Inspection team

This inspection was undertaken by one inspector.

Service and service type

Mellor Nook Residential Care Home is a ‘care home’. People in care homes receive accommodation and nursing and/or personal care as a single package under one contractual agreement dependent on their registration with us. Mellor Nook is a care home without nursing care. CQC regulates both the premises and the care provided, and both were looked at during this inspection.

Registered Manager

This service is required to have a registered manager. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. This means that they and the provider are legally responsible for how the service is run and for the quality and safety of the care provided. At the time of our inspection there were two registered managers in post who shared responsibility for the running of the service.

Notice of inspection

This inspection was unannounced on the first day of inspection.

What we did before the inspection

We used the information the provider sent us in the provider information return. This is information providers are required to send us with key information about their service, what they do well, and improvements they plan to make. We reviewed the information we held about the service including notifications the provider had sent to us. We contacted local stakeholders to obtain their views about the service. We used all of this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

We spoke with four people who used the service about their experience of the care provided. We spoke with two relatives to gain their views on how their family members were supported at Mellor Nook. We spoke with six members of staff including the registered managers, care workers and auxiliary workers. We observed how people were being supported during the day and walked around the service to ensure it was clean and a safe place for people to live.

We reviewed a range of records. This included two people’s care records and a variety of records relating to the management of the service, including policies and procedures.

We watched people being given their lunch time medicines. We looked at medicine records, including medicine charts and reviewed the systems for oversight and safety checks completed by the registered managers.

Updated 15 June 2022

About the service

Mellor Nook Residential Care Home is a residential care home providing personal care to up to 15 people. The service provides support to older people and at the time of our inspection there were 13 people using the service.

The home is located in the small town of Mellor in Stockport and provides care and accommodation for people. There are a variety of communal areas including lounge and dining areas, garden and shared bathrooms. Bedrooms are situated on the ground floor and first floor of the home with access between floors via a stair lift and staircase. Most bedrooms are single occupancy and some have an en-suite toilet.

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

People were well cared for and felt safe at the home. There were systems in place to ensure appropriate checks of the environment were completed. There were a variety of individual and generic risk assessments which guided staff on how to reduce risk as much as possible. The home was clean and tidy and people told us they were comfortable and happy at the home. There were enough staff to meet people’s needs and staff had been recruited following safer recruitment practices. The registered managers were committed to learning lessons and driving improvement in the home and analysed any incidents and accidents for themes and took steps to reduce future risk.

People’s needs and risks were assessed and staff knew people well. Staff would seek health care input for people as needed. People were supported to have a healthy diet and staff knew what people liked to eat and drink. Staff had the training and support they needed to care for people living at the home.

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.

People were supported by kind and caring staff who knew them well. People’s privacy and dignity was respected and staff supported people to be involved and make decisions about their daily lives. People were encouraged and supported to be as independent as possible.

People’s care was person-centred and staff had a very good understanding of people’s needs, likes and dislikes. People were encouraged to stay involved with things that were important to them, contact with families was actively encouraged and a range of activities available to promote people’s wellbeing. The home had completed an accredited training programme regarding the end of life and staff had a good understanding of how to support people and their families in this area.

The registered managers were responsive to feedback and actively sought the views of people, families and visiting professionals to help drive improvement in the home. Staff felt well supported and encouraged to develop in their roles and there were good community links and relationships. The two registered managers’ skill and knowledge worked to complement each other and drive good quality care for people.

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

Rating at last inspection

The last rating for the service under the previous provider was good (published 10 September 2018).

Why we inspected

This was a planned inspection of this newly registered service under the current provider registration.

Follow up

We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service, which will help inform when we next inspect.