Stoneleigh House

This report details a recent inspection of Stoneleigh House, a residential care home. The inspection focused on assessing the safety and leadership of the service, identifying areas where improvements were needed to ensure residents receive the best possible care and support. Overall, the findings highlight that while some positive aspects are present, there are specific concerns that require attention from the management.

On safety, residents generally feel secure, and staff are trained to recognise and report safeguarding issues. However, the management of medicines requires significant improvement, with instances of incorrect stock counts and documentation errors found. Additionally, while recruitment processes are now robust, the system for determining adequate staffing levels did not always ensure enough staff were deployed, particularly during afternoons and nights, without a proper risk assessment for these reductions.

In terms of how effective the care is, residents' dietary needs are now well-documented, and risk assessments are in place to guide staff in supporting individuals safely. However, fire safety documentation was found to be out of date, and specific risk assessments for residents who might struggle with isolation, such as those with dementia, were not in place.

Regarding how caring the service is, residents and staff reported positive experiences, with staff described as helpful and the home being a supportive environment. Residents expressed feeling safe and well-looked after, with many noticing improvements since the current manager was appointed.

The responsiveness of the service showed that residents' views are captured through meetings and surveys, and staff are aware of how to respond to requests for assistance. However, the home needs to reconnect with community groups after COVID-19 restrictions impacted involvement.

Finally, looking at how well-led the service is, the provider has introduced an audit system, but this system did not identify the issues found during the inspection. There is also a lack of an overarching improvement plan to track and address identified actions, which has led to delays in resolving some matters, such as broken televisions that have been noted for some time.