“People were consistently happy, smiling and wanting to engage and share their experiences with us. The culture at the home was one of improving people’s lives, supporting the person and placing any disabilities as secondary to the person themselves. It was clear how this attitude had impacted on people with all their lives improving each year with the support of the registered manager and whole staffing team.”
From supporting someone to go on their first holiday abroad, to supporting someone who is non-verbal to learn new words, the team at Frinton House really do go above and beyond to make every moment matter for the people they support. Located in Bexhill-on-Sea, East Sussex, Frinton House has achieved a rating of ‘Good’ following their recent CQC Inspection, and we’re especially proud to share they were rated ‘Outstanding’ in the ‘Caring’ domain.
Praised positively by family members and loved ones, alongside care professionals, well done to the Service Manager, Emily, and team for embodying our care values of Kindness, Creativity, and Commitment. Sharing her delight at the report, Emily said;
“We are incredibly proud of achieving a Good CQC rating. This reflects the dedication, compassion, and teamwork of our staff in providing safe, person-centred, and a high level of care every day. As a team, we always focus on seeing the ability, not the disability, and empowering the people we support to live meaningful and fulfilling lives.“
Comments from those living there included:
- “It’s lovely here, I feel safe.”
- “It’s lovely here, best place I’ve ever been.”
Comments from the relatives included:
- “They are safe and well cared for”
- “I’m happy because I know (person) is happy,”
- “(The registered manager) is very clever. Every person is looked after differently, treated according to their needs. That’s why it’s such a happy place to live.”
- “They keep her independent. She is doing things she was not doing before. She has a busier life than me.”
- “It was their goal in life to have a passport, a sense of freedom and independence they never had before. They got one 2 years again and now has been to Paris.”
Highlighting some of our stand-out comments, have a read of the report below;
Safe
- Decisions had been made with people, their relatives or advocates and professionals, in their best interests and this had been recorded. People were still encouraged and supported to make day to day decisions for example, food choices, what to wear and what activities they wanted to do each day.
- Staff provided care that fully met people’s needs and was safe, supportive and enabled people to do the things that mattered to them.
- The home had successfully reduced some people’s medication and introduced programs of stretching, massage and gentle exercise which had helped to improve their quality of life.
- A ‘now and next’ board for each person described what people were currently achieving and what their next goals and ambitions were, keeping personal progress and risk management in focus.
- Opportunities to reduce the over medication of people had been considered with one person having their medicines reduced and responding in a positive way, becoming more interactive and socially involved.
Effective
- The dynamic between people living at the home was important to the registered manager and people being able to live comfortably with their peers in a friendly and supportive environment was also key.
- Staff quickly learned through individual support about people’s likes, preferences and preferred routines and how they felt comfortable and able to communicate.
- The over-riding ethos at the home, driven by the registered manager, was one of improving people’s quality of life and everyone had benefitted from this.
- One person, who had been nonverbal for nearly their whole life, through encouragement and support was now able to repeat a few simple words.
- Relatives, without exception, told us how their loved ones lives had been transformed since living at the home.
Caring – Outstanding
- The registered manager was exceptional at treating people with kindness, empathy and compassion and in how they respected people’s privacy and dignity.
- People and their loved ones all told us of the exceptionally high level of care and support provided from all staff. Without exception, all staff were praised for the way they worked and created an atmosphere at the home which made it feel like everybody’s home.
- A place where people were seen to be happy, laugh, engage with their peers and live their best lives.
- Everyone was treated as an individual with their wishes and ambitions being championed and realised on a daily basis.
- Everyone’s confidence levels had increased since living at the home and some had progressed to a level where they were actively seeking additional responsibilities.
- Staff never said ‘no’, they explained, gave options and facilitated people’s choices and helped them to fulfil these in nearly every instance.
- The happiness of the staff was clear to see and this was further reflected in the way they supported and engaged with people, always patient, kind and understanding.
Responsive
- People told us about how living at the home made them feel empowered to live their best lives. A person told us of a less happy experience in a former home and how moving here had transformed their life.
- Care plans were person-centred breaking down all aspects of support needed but emphasising people’s abilities.
- A professional said, “I believe my client is supported by a strong and committed care team who will continue to ensure their safety, happiness, and consistent support.”
- Relatives and loved ones told us that the communication between the home and themselves was consistent and timely and they were always kept in the loop with any changes or developments.
- The support provided to people to help facilitate their goals was unique to them and exceptional in the outcomes produced.
Well-led
- The registered manager set targets every year with the over-riding ambition to be the best service in the area at supporting people with complex needs.
- The registered manager said, “I want people to feel empowered. They are not disabled, they are capable. If they have communication challenges our target is to hear what they want to tell us. If they have mobility challenges, I want them to be active.”
- The culture at the home was one of providing the best and safest support but giving people the freedom to progress and develop.
- The home had created it’s own set of values which underpinned how staff worked and behaved. These were displayed around the home and all staff were aware of their meaning and value.
- The registered manager was actively involved with a range of forums, meetings and conferences with a view to continuously learn and bring new ideas and practices back to the home.
Well done to the team and Service Manager, Emily, for creating a warm and positive environment where an ethos of improving quality of life completely shines through.
