SOME aspects of service management need to be improved at The Cedars residential care home in Holmes Chapel, says the care watchdog.

The call comes in a report by the Care Quality Commission following an inspection at the home in Brookfield Drive on January 2.

The home was rated overall as ‘good', with a rating of ‘requires improvement’ in terms of the home being well led.

The inspection report said: “People felt safe living at The Cedars and their experience of using the service was overall positive.

“There was some slightly mixed feedback from people and relatives about ongoing improvements and the reliability of communication within the service. We considered the frequency of meetings for people, relatives and staff could be increased to support this.

“We found that improvements were required to some aspects of service management. This included ensuring at times more robust improvement actions, to rectify issues identified by managers, people or relatives.

“We also highlighted a few areas of record-keeping to be improved. People and relatives told us the service had much improved in different areas, and staffing in particular had become more reliable.

“Medication administration had been a focus for managers and this had led to improvements.

"However, we highlighted the need for at times more robust approached to ensuring staff's medication competency.

The registered manager was addressing this, and we made a recommendation.

The positive culture of the service was led by a dedicated registered manager who knew the service very well.

“People, relative and staff were involved in the service through newsletters and satisfaction questionnaires. Relatives had also left positive comments for the service on a national review website.

“People were treated with kindness and respect by staff that knew them well.

“This was supported by person-centred care plans the registered manager had particularly focused on developing.

“People were engaged in activities but felt there was room for further development.

“The registered manager was continuously exploring positive ways for the service to connect with the local community."