CQC report explained · a residential care home
What the CQC found at Simones House Swindon
Rated Good: inspectors found the home performing well and meeting their expectations.
- Safe?
- Good
- Inspectors found suitable risk assessments, safe medicines arrangements, enough staff and appropriate recruitment checks. They also found effective infection prevention measures and a clean environment.
- Effective?
- Good
- Care plans reflected the person’s health, communication, sensory and personal needs. Staff had relevant training and supported healthy eating, healthcare access and decision-making.
- Caring?
- Good
- Staff provided kind and compassionate care and respected privacy, dignity and independence. They adapted communication to help the person make choices and take part in decisions.
- Responsive?
- Good
- Support was personalised and matched the person’s communication and sensory needs. The person was supported with regular social and leisure activities, everyday skills and opportunities for independence.
- Well-led?
- Good
- Inspectors found effective checks on incidents, medicines and health and safety. Staff felt supported, could raise concerns and worked with relatives and other professionals.
What inspectors found, June 2022
Simones House Swindon is Rated Good; inspectors found safe, kind and personalised care at this first inspection.
This was the home’s first inspection since it registered in October 2020. It was unannounced and took place on 08 April 2022. One inspector and an Expert by Experience visited, spoke with the person living there and a staff member, and reviewed care plans, risk assessments and medicine records.
Inspectors also spoke with a relative after the visit and reviewed staff recruitment and supervision records, training information, policies and quality checks. They found that all five areas were rated Good: Safe, Effective, Caring, Responsive and Well-led.
The home was supporting one person at the time, although it is registered for up to two people. Inspectors found care that promoted independence, respected privacy and dignity, met communication needs and supported regular activities. They also found suitable staffing, training, medicines systems, infection controls and management checks.
Independence and choice
Staff focused on what the person could do and helped them keep control over everyday life. The person was supported to try new experiences and develop skills.
“Staff supported the person to maintain independence and control over their own life.” from the report
Kind and respectful care
Staff used respectful communication and protected the person’s privacy and dignity. They recognised when the person needed space.
“The person received kind and compassionate care from staff who used positive, respectful language” from the report
Personalised communication
Staff understood the person’s individual communication style and used gestures, facial expressions, objects and visual information to support understanding.
“Staff had good awareness, skills and understanding of the person's individual communication needs” from the report
Activities and community life
The person regularly took part in activities suited to their interests, including walks, meals out and trips to the countryside.
“The person was supported to participate in their chosen social and leisure interests on a regular basis.” from the report
Staffing and management
There were enough staff to provide one-to-one support, and staff had relevant training and supervision. Management used checks to monitor safety and quality.
“The service had enough staff to meet the person's needs.” from the report
Inspectors raised no specific concerns in this report.
- 01How will staffing remain sufficient if the home supports two people with different needs?
- 02How will you use the person’s communication plan and sensory assessment in everyday support?
- 03How are medicines reviewed, recorded and checked, including the effects on the person’s health?
- 04How will you support regular activities, community visits and the person’s usual routines?
- 05What infection outbreak plans would be followed, and how would relatives be kept informed?
This was the first comprehensive inspection and covered all five key questions; infection prevention and control was specifically checked under Safe. This explanation was written from the published report of 1 June 2022 by an AI system and checked against the report text: every quoted line appears in the report. It is a guide to the report, not a substitute for it. Read the full report on cqc.org.uk.
Every inspection of Simones House Swindon
Each visit the CQC has published, newest first, back to the day the home was registered.
- June 2022Goodcurrent ratingSafe: GoodEffective: GoodCaring: GoodResponsive: GoodWell-led: Good
- October 2020
Registered with the Care Quality Commission on 16 October 2020.
Ratings and report dates from the Care Quality Commission, Open Government Licence v3.0. A home can also be visited without a new rating being published, so the timeline shows published inspections.
Weigh the report against the rest
Fees, photos and reviews from families
How to read CQC ratings and reports
What to check when you visit
44 live-in carers within about an hour of Swindon
These are self-employed carers on PrimeCarers, the introductory agency that runs this directory. Each has a profile with their own rates and reviews from families, and you choose who to talk to.
Most charge £990 to £1,280 a week. 34 can care for a couple. 12 years' experience on average.
“Linet became her carer and all changed, my daughter started eating, taking her medications and more important her happiness came back.”
“She was very caring, kind and patient to all his needs, she built up a wondetful rapport with him, she was dedicated and was there for him through good times as well as through the tough times”
Every carer has had an enhanced DBS check in the last 18 months, ID and right-to-work checks and an online interview. Their skills and training are for you to check with them. Carers set their own rates, and who is free changes week to week.