A BASINGSTOKE care home has been told it needs to improve because it is not always safe.

Marnel Lodge Care Home, in Carter Drive, had an unannounced inspection from the Care Quality Commission (CQC) in September, and a report published in November said it requires improvement in two areas.

The report said the home, run by Barchester Heathcare Homes Limited, is not always safe because: "Medicines were administered by nurses whose competency was regularly assessed by senior staff.

"However, practices regarding the storage and administration of medicines were not consistently safe. Documents relating to people's topical medicine administration were not always fully completed therefore presenting a risk that people were not receiving their medicines as prescribed."

The home provides nursing and residential care for 57 people at the time of the inspection who have a range of needs, including those living with epilepsy and diabetes.

The CQC report said the home should also be better led.

It said: "The provider did not always maintain an accurate and complete record in respect of people's care and treatment which meant people were at risk of not receiving all the care they required.

"The registered manager promoted a culture which placed the emphasis on care delivery that was individualised and of high quality and sought feedback from people and their relatives in order to continually improve."

Marnel was judged as good in three areas.

The report said the service is effective, adding: "People were supported to eat and drink enough to maintain their nutritional and hydration needs. Staff knew people's preferences regarding food and drink."

Inspectors also found the service to be caring and responsive.

The report said: "People told us that staff were caring. Staff were motivated to develop positive relationships with people."

It added: "There were processes in place to enable people to raise any issues or concerns they had about the service. Any issues, when raised, had been responded to in an appropriate and timely manner."

A statement from Barchester Healthcare said: "Following the inspection of Marnel Lodge care home in September we have addressed the matters raised in the report. We would like to reassure everyone of our commitment to provide the highest quality of care to those residing at Marnel Lodge Care Home and to emphasise that their health and wellbeing is at the forefront of everything we do and are doing."