A BASINGSTOKE care home has been praised for running an effective and well-led service. 

St Thomas Care Home, on St Thomas Close, was inspected by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) in December 2022 and a report published on February 23 gave the care home an overall 'good' rating. 

The last rating for this service, published in May 2020, was 'requires improvement', which prompted the most recent review. 

The home, which cares for up to 72 people, some of whom have dementia, is run by Barchester Healthcare and was commended by the CQC for its good understanding of dementia and skills in communicating with residents, relatives and staff. 

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Since the last inspection, there has been a change in the management team, which the report stated as creating a more 'positive, open and inclusive atmosphere'. 

Maggie Zbroch, general manager at St Thomas, said: “We are delighted that St Thomas was rated ‘Good’ overall following the CQC’s most recent inspection.

"The team at St Thomas always strive to provide the highest quality person-centred care for everyone who lives at the home. We will continue to work hard every day to make sure our residents are safe, happy and fulfilled.”

The care home was still rated as 'requiring improvement' for safety, with some areas of improvement. However, the report commended St Thomas for managing medicines safely and responding with immediate action to their concerns. 

The purpose of this review was to review whether the service had made the required improvements since the last inspection. As a result, this was a focused inspection to review the questions of safe, well-led and effective only.