CQC report explained · a residential care home
What the CQC found at Sunnyborough
Rated Good: inspectors found the home performing well and meeting their expectations.
- Safe?
- Good
- Inspectors found effective safeguarding, safe recruitment, enough staff on shift and safe medicines management. However, agency staffing sometimes meant people could not go out as planned, and fire evacuation practice and some behaviour-support records needed improvement.
- Effective?
- Requires improvement
- Staff needed formal mental health training, more supervision and annual appraisals. Support for healthy eating and records showing consent and best-interest decisions were not always sufficiently individual or complete.
- Caring?
- Good
- People were treated with kindness, dignity and respect. Staff promoted choice, independence and involvement in care planning.
- Responsive?
- Good
- Care was person-centred and based on people's preferences, interests and aspirations. The home supported community activities, relationships, work experience and education, although care plans could be difficult to navigate and communication needs were not fully assessed and recorded.
- Well-led?
- Good
- People, relatives and staff felt the home was well-led and staff worked as a team. Inspectors found that quality checks and actions were not always recorded clearly, so a more robust governance process was recommended.
What inspectors found, October 2019
Sunnyborough was rated Good overall, but inspectors found the service was not always effective and rated this area Requires Improvement.
Inspectors visited on 9 and 16 September 2019. The first visit was unannounced and the second was announced. They spoke with people, relatives and staff, and checked care plans, medicines, staff records and management documents.
The home was rated Good for being safe, caring, responsive and well-led. People were treated kindly, supported to make choices and encouraged to live active, independent lives in their community.
The home was rated Requires Improvement for being effective. Staff needed better training about mental health, more regular supervision and appraisals, and more individual support for healthy eating. Records about consent, best-interest decisions and people's communication needs also needed improvement.
Choice and independence
People were supported to make choices, take positive risks and develop skills for more independent living.
“People using the service received planned and co-ordinated person-centred support that was appropriate and inclusive for them.” from the report
Kind and respectful care
Inspectors saw kind interactions and found that people's dignity, equality and rights were respected.
“People were treated with kindness and compassion by staff.” from the report
Community life
People were supported to maintain relationships, join community activities and pursue interests such as work experience, education and animal care.
“People enjoyed a good lifestyle, and this impacted positively on their wellbeing.” from the report
Safeguarding and medicines
Safeguarding systems, staff knowledge and medicines management were found to be effective.
“The provider had effective safeguarding systems in place.” from the report
Mental health training
needs fixingStaff supporting people with mental health diagnoses did not have formal training for this part of their role. Supervision was not frequent enough and staff did not receive annual appraisals.
“Where people had a diagnosis around their mental health staff had not received formal training to support them to fulfil their role as effectively as possible.” from the report
Healthy eating support
needs fixingSome people gained weight because support to access healthy food was not always tailored to their individual needs.
“At times people were not always supported to access healthy foods and this had led to weight gain for some people.” from the report
Care records
needs fixingRecords did not always show people's involvement in care planning, consent and best-interest decisions. Communication needs had also not been fully assessed and recorded.
“The care records did not always reflect this process to evidence best practice.” from the report
Quality checks
needs fixingThe home did not have a clear audit and governance process. Checks and actions were not always recorded, making it harder to show that improvements were being followed through.
“There was no clear audit and governance process in place.” from the report
Planned activities
minorWhen agency staff were working, people could not always go out or do planned activities. Managers rearranged activities where possible.
“People could not always go out when agency staff worked at the service and do the things they had planned.” from the report
- 01What mental health training have staff completed since this inspection, and how do you check that it improves their confidence and practice?
- 02How often do staff now receive supervision and appraisals?
- 03What individual plans are now in place to support healthy eating and prevent further weight gain?
- 04How do you now record consent, best-interest decisions and people's communication needs?
- 05How do you monitor agency staffing, fire evacuation practice and the completion of quality checks?
This was a planned inspection covering all five key questions, with checks of the care provided, premises, records, medicines, staffing and management systems. This explanation was written from the published report of 31 October 2019 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.
What inspectors found, May 2017
Sunnyborough was rated Good; inspectors found safe, caring and well-organised support that met people's individual needs.
This was an unannounced comprehensive inspection on 14 March 2017. Inspectors looked around the home, reviewed care records, medicines, staff records and quality checks, and observed people taking part in an event.
They spoke with 11 people, eight staff members, visiting professionals and one relative. They also contacted local authority commissioners, an advocate, a community nurse and a social worker after the inspection.
The home was rated Good in all five areas: safe, effective, caring, responsive and well-led. Inspectors said it remained Good since the previous inspection in November 2014 and met the fundamental standards they checked.
People felt safe
People told inspectors they felt safe. Staff responded quickly during an incident between two people and prevented it from escalating.
“There were safeguarding procedures in place and staff were knowledgeable about what action they should take if abuse was suspected.” from the report
Skilled staff
Staff training covered both general care and the specific needs of people living at the home. Staff also received supervision and appraisals.
“Records showed they had completed training in subjects such as health, safety and fire procedures, safeguarding, moving and handling and medication.” from the report
Respectful care
Inspectors saw friendly, warm interactions. Staff respected people's privacy and dignity, including knocking before entering bedrooms.
“Staff treated people with dignity and respect. They spoke with people in a friendly manner and showed respect by knocking on people's doors before entering.” from the report
Good oversight
Managers used audits, meetings and action plans to check how the home was operating. Staff said morale was good and they felt supported.
“Our observations and findings on the day of our inspection confirmed that there was an effective quality monitoring system in place.” from the report
Inspectors raised no specific concerns in this report.
- 01How are people's risk assessments and behaviour support plans reviewed when their needs change?
- 02How do you make sure staff training remains up to date for learning disability, autism and challenging behaviour?
- 03How are people involved in reviewing their care plans and choosing their daily activities?
- 04How do you monitor medicines, including controlled drugs, and respond to any errors or concerns?
- 05How can residents and relatives raise complaints, and how are they told what action was taken?
This was an unannounced comprehensive inspection covering all five key questions: Safe, Effective, Caring, Responsive and Well-led. This explanation was written from the published report of 3 May 2017 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 Sunnyborough
3 rated inspections over 5 years: the service has held its Good rating throughout.
- October 2019Goodcurrent ratingstayed GoodSafe: GoodEffective: Requires improvementCaring: GoodResponsive: GoodWell-led: Good
- May 2017Goodstayed GoodSafe: GoodEffective: GoodCaring: GoodResponsive: GoodWell-led: Good
- April 2015GoodSafe: GoodEffective: GoodCaring: GoodResponsive: GoodWell-led: Good
- August 2014
Report published without a new overall rating.
- April 2013
Registered with the Care Quality Commission on 23 April 2013.
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.
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28 live-in carers within about an hour of North Yorkshire
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 £1,010 to £1,290 a week. 27 can care for a couple. 12 years' experience on average.
“Carla has been a god send with the implementation of bringing mum back home from respite care.”
“She was always 'just present enough': attentive, available, kind and engaging, but without ever over-stepping any boundary”
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.