Worthing care home rated ‘outstanding’ after contesting decision

Heaton House Residential Care Home, in Reigate Road, was initially rated as ‘good’ following a Care Quality Commission inspection in March, but had the result boosted after an impassioned plea from the home’s owner.

Sally Neil-Smith said she felt an ‘outstanding’ rating reflected the hard work and dedication of her staff.

“Sometimes you just have to fight for what you believe,” she said.

“Heaton House more than meets the CQC standard for an outstanding home and I wanted to show Sue, our manager, and all the staff who work so hard that their efforts were not in vain. Achieving the outstanding standard puts us in the top 3.5 per cent of care homes in the UK.

“We won’t sit on our laurels, however; we continually strive to make our home better every single day. We use new technology and forge strong links with local groups such as Little Elms nursery with whom we have established a fantastic relationship based on mutually beneficial intergenerational activities.”

Residents visit Little Elms, in Elm Grove, to see the children’s school plays and listen to the choir. The report, published in November, found children and their parents said the visits had an ‘extremely positive effect on everyone’.

Heaton House was found to be ‘outstanding’ in its responsiveness and leadership, and ‘good’ in its safety, effectiveness and care.

The report praised the focus on well-being and combating feelings of isolation, including working with Little Elms children to learn Makaton signing, which is shown to benefit people with dementia.

March’s findings are an improvement from 2016’s ‘good’ rating.