A care home in Skelmersdale, West Lancashire has been praised by an independent health watchdog for its level of care, its people and its services.

Birch Green Care Home was assessed by representatives from Healthwatch Lancashire to gather the views of residents, staff and relatives on standards of care and services.

The watchdog gave the home its highest possible overall assessment of Green in its ‘traffic light’ system.

The Healthwatch report said: “Representatives considered the environment of the home to be friendly, clean, light, spacious and homely with easy navigation points throughout the home.

“The interior has recently been refurbished to create a ‘hotel comfort’ ambience. Residents were consulted on the décor for their home and were shown mood boards to help make decisions. Representatives observe a calm but energetic environment on their visit.”

The result from Healthwatch follows a ‘good’ rating from industry assessors the Care Quality Commission (CQC).

Vicky Sudworth, general manager of Birch Green, said: “Our staff are committed to providing the very best levels of care and this kind feedback is thanks to their hard work. We are only too pleased to welcome any independent assessment and to understand how we might improve even further.”