A St Albans care home has been given the top rating of ‘outstanding’ after being visited by inspectors.

The Care Quality Commission carried out an inspection at Fonthill House in Cassius Drive to judge the nursing homes on its effectiveness, care, safety, responsiveness and leadership.

For safety, Fonthill House was rated as 'good', but in the other four categories it was considered 'outstanding'.

The CQC report said: "We spoke with seven people who used the service and six relatives about their experience of the care provided. We spoke with 10 members of staff including the provider, director of nursing, visiting professional, GP and a housekeeper.

"We reviewed a range of records. This included three people's care records and medication records. We looked at a variety of records relating to the management of the service.

"We also looked at staff training and supervision planning records and other records relating to the management of the service. These included records associated with audit and quality assurance, accidents and incidents, compliments and complaints."

The CQC said that people felt safe and knew who to speak to if they had any concerns. One person said: "This place is fantastic and it's all because of great staff. Forget about safety features - I had them all fitted in my house - but when you are alone in the house, you can't get up to use toilet safely, you need a real person to help. Having help around makes me safe."

The report also found that there were clinical supervision groups held monthly to allow specialist speakers time to update staff on

individual topics.

The CQC found the nursing team consisted of experienced and well-trained staff who have access to further study and professional development as they require. Care staff had completed the care certificate and were supported to develop their skills and knowledge.

A spokesperson for the home said: "We are delighted to be once again rated outstanding by CQC. Out of 15,458 Care Homes in England, only 3.7 per cent are rated outstanding and only 1.48 per cent in Hertfordshire, so it's a real testament to the passion and dedication of the staff at Fonthill House."