Enter and view: Fairhaven Care Home

Healthwatch Lancashire carried out an announced Enter and View visit to Fairhaven Care Home on 15 August 2017 to assess residents' experiences and the quality of care provided. The home, operated by North Fylde Care Ltd, accommodates up to 22 older adults with a range of care needs. At the time of the visit, 21 residents were living in the home. 

Overall, inspectors found Fairhaven to be a friendly, caring and homely environment with positive relationships between staff and residents. The home benefits from an attractive seafront location overlooking Fleetwood Marina, giving residents access to local amenities, entertainment and outdoor spaces. Residents spoke positively about outings, including tea dances and shows at the nearby Marine Hall. 

The care home received an overall rating of Green/Amber, indicating that Healthwatch would generally recommend the home but identified some areas where improvements could be made. 

Inspectors found the home to be clean and welcoming, with comfortable communal areas that encouraged social interaction and residents' independence. Staff were observed treating residents with kindness and respect, knowing residents personally and responding appropriately to their needs. Call bells were answered promptly, and residents reported feeling well cared for and listened to. 

Residents were generally very positive about activities and opportunities to go out. They described enjoying bingo, outings, chair-based exercise sessions, knitting, crochet, fundraising activities and visits to local entertainment venues. However, some residents felt that activities did not always meet everyone's interests and suggested more varied opportunities such as gardening. 

Feedback on food was largely positive. Residents said there was usually a choice of meals, alternatives were available if requested, and drinks could be obtained whenever needed. A few residents felt the food was rather plain. 

Healthwatch identified several environmental issues. While the building was clean and generally well maintained, inspectors felt that parts of the home, including bathrooms, toilets and communal areas, would benefit from refurbishment and redecoration. They also noted that the rear outdoor area required maintenance and that the home's only shower facility was temporarily unavailable because the room was being used for storage, leaving no shower readily accessible to residents at the time of the visit. 

Some concerns were raised by residents and relatives. These included requests for more one-to-one activities, concerns about staffing levels at weekends and during the night, difficulties obtaining staff assistance from communal lounges, one resident's dissatisfaction with early morning wake-up times, and a complaint about a hoist that was unreliable and uncomfortable to use. 

Staff members reported that they felt supported, received sufficient training and enjoyed working at the home. Most said they would be happy to recommend Fairhaven to a family member, while some suggested additional staffing would be helpful at weekends. 

In response to the report, the provider welcomed the positive feedback and confirmed plans to refurbish communal areas over the following six to eight months. The provider also clarified that some areas identified as needing improvement were not accessible to residents and stated that staffing levels met required standards.