Sandrock House Residential Care Home

On this page

• Overview
• Assessing needs
• Delivering evidence-based care and treatment
• How staff, teams and services work together
• Supporting people to live healthier lives
• Monitoring and improving outcomes
• Consent to care and treatment

Effective – this means we looked for evidence that people’s care, treatment and support achieved good outcomes and promoted a good quality of life, based on best available evidence.

At our last assessment we rated this key question outstanding. At this assessment the rating has remained outstanding. This meant people’s outcomes were consistently better than expected compared to similar services. People’s feedback described it as exceptional and distinctive.
 

This service scored 96 (out of 100) for this area. Find out what we look at when we assess this area and How we calculate these scores.

People were at the heart of care from the moment they were referred to the service. The provider's approach to assessment was exceptionally thorough, person-centred and focused on understanding the whole person, not just their care needs. Initial assessments were comprehensive and gave people the opportunity to share their life history, preferences, routines, interests, aspirations and what mattered most to them. Wherever possible, assessments were completed with the person in their own home, with family members involved where appropriate, ensuring a smooth transition into the service and helping staff build meaningful relationships before admission.
Care planning was a particular strength of the service. Care plans were exceptionally detailed, highly personalised and reflective of people's individual needs, wishes and goals. They provided staff with a rich understanding of each person's background, preferences, communication needs, health conditions and daily routines, enabling care to be delivered in a way that was meaningful and important to them. Records demonstrated that staff knew people extremely well and consistently used this knowledge to deliver care that promoted wellbeing, independence and positive outcomes.
The provider took a proactive approach to monitoring and reviewing people's needs. Regular reviews considered all aspects of a person's health, wellbeing, communication, emotional needs and personal aspirations. Reviews involved people and those important to them, ensuring care remained relevant, responsive and reflective of changing needs. Staff were highly skilled at recognising subtle changes in people's physical or emotional wellbeing and acted promptly to seek professional advice or adapt support where required.
Assessment and review processes were not viewed as administrative tasks but as opportunities to ensure people continued to receive the best possible care. This approach enabled emerging needs to be identified early, risks to be effectively managed and support to evolve alongside the person. As a result, people consistently experienced care that was tailored, responsive and centred around their individual preferences, helping them achieve exceptionally positive outcomes and maintain the highest possible quality of life.

The provider always planned and delivered people’s care and treatment with them, including what was important and mattered to them. They did this in line with legislation. They worked to develop evidence-based good practice and standards. Staff supported people to achieve the best possible health outcomes through a proactive approach to rehabilitation, wellbeing and maintaining independence. The service aspired to provide the highest standards of care and had achieved gold standards framework accreditation, demonstrating its commitment to recognised best practice, continuous improvement and delivering outstanding outcomes for people.
Staff delivered care in line with recognised best practice for people living with dementia and demonstrated an excellent understanding of how care should be adapted to meet individual needs. They recognised that no two people experienced dementia in the same way and tailored their approach to achieve the best outcomes for each person. Staff took time to understand the reasons behind behaviours, identify unmet needs and adapt communication techniques to reduce anxiety and distress.
For example, staff described how they identified that a person became overwhelmed during personal care. Rather than viewing this as behaviour that challenged, they explored underlying causes and developed personalised approaches based on the person's preferences and life experiences. This included using reassurance, familiar conversation and singing to create a calm and positive experience. As a result, the person's distress reduced significantly, they were more engaged in their care and experienced improved wellbeing.
This commitment to excellence, combined with a culture of continuous learning and a desire to be the very best service possible, ensured people received highly responsive, evidence-based care that consistently promoted independence, dignity and exceptional outcomes.

Staff, teams and services worked in a highly coordinated and proactive way to deliver responsive, joined-up care which consistently met people’s needs. There were embedded systems to support joint working with external professionals. The service worked proactively with health professionals, holding regular meetings to review people’s needs, anticipate changes and plan care. Professionals described the service as exceptionally organised and responsive in identifying people requiring review and making timely referrals. This helped ensure people received timely and appropriate care. One professional said, “The staff ensure people are supported to remain in their home rather than being unnecessarily escalated to hospital, they have excellent communication with health professionals and any concerns are identified and escalated promptly.”
Internal communication was well established and supported consistency. Staff used care plans, handovers and day-to-day communication to ensure people’s changing needs were understood and acted on. The provider had introduced an anonymised staff messaging app, which was regularly reviewed to maintain privacy and was used to alert staff to changes in people’s care plans. Staff returning after time away from the service were directed to the relevant room number and asked to review the current care plan before starting their shift. This included changes following healthcare professional visits or changes in people’s circumstances. The approach ensured important information was communicated promptly to staff regardless of whether they had been working when the change occurred. This reduced the risk of information being missed between shifts and promoted continuity, with staff having a shared and current understanding of people’s needs.
Relatives confirmed they were kept informed, supporting a coordinated and transparent approach. The provider’s approach to communication demonstrated a strong understanding of the importance of timely information sharing in maintaining continuity and ensuring people received consistent care and support.

The provider always supported people to manage their health and wellbeing to maximise their independence, choice and control. Staff supported people to live healthier lives and took proactive steps to reduce avoidable deterioration and future needs for care and support.
The provider demonstrated an outstanding commitment to improving people’s health and wellbeing by recognising the additional time some people needed to maintain adequate nutrition and hydration. Managers considered not only the physical risks associated with dehydration and malnutrition, but also how staff could provide meaningful, individualised support to people who were reluctant to eat or drink.
In response, the provider created a dedicated role for 3 hours a day, 5 days a week, focused on supporting people with their nutrition and hydration. This provided dedicated time for the staff member to get to know people’s preferences, offer a variety of drinks and snacks, and spend additional time with people who needed encouragement or assistance. People were not simply monitored for their intake; staff used the opportunity to make eating and drinking an enjoyable part of their day, with people looking forward to the staff member arriving with the drinks and treat trolley.
This approach had a measurable positive impact. The provider reported a reduction in the number of people at risk of malnutrition and improvements in people’s health. The role also had a positive impact on people’s wellbeing, as people looked forward to the interaction and choice offered each day. The provider identified an area where people could be at risk of poorer health, invested additional resources and developed a tailored approach which improved outcomes while making the experience of eating and drinking more enjoyable for people.
This demonstrated a proactive and creative approach to health promotion, with the provider looking beyond meeting people’s immediate needs to identify practical ways of improving their health, wellbeing and quality of life.

The provider monitored people’s care and treatment to continuously improve outcomes. Staff understood people as individuals and considered their health, wellbeing, relationships and aspirations when planning and delivering support. Care plans and records were holistic and outcome-focused, enabling staff to identify meaningful goals and take action to improve and maintain people’s health and wellbeing. People experienced care which was safe and effective and supported them to maintain a quality of life which was important to them.
Staff looked beyond people’s immediate care needs and recognised the importance of maintaining relationships and social connections. For example, the provider purchased iPads to enable people to maintain contact with relatives and loved ones who lived away from the area. One person was supported by staff to use video calls to speak regularly with his son in France and daughter in Australia. Staff helped him use the equipment and made sure distance did not prevent him from maintaining important family relationships. This supported the person’s emotional wellbeing and helped him remain connected with his family.
Positive relationships with healthcare partners further supported good outcomes. Professionals described the service as working extremely effectively with them and said staff consistently advocated for residents and sought the best possible care and lifestyle for them. One professional said, “Sandrock House work extremely effectively with our service, they always strive for the best and really work to be an advocate for their residents and provide the best care and lifestyle.”
The provider demonstrated a strong understanding that positive outcomes extended beyond clinical care. Staff identified what mattered to people, including maintaining family relationships, social connection and meaningful involvement in the lives of those important to them. They responded creatively and sensitively to changing needs, resulting in improved wellbeing and quality of life for both people receiving care and those close to them.

The provider told people about their rights around consent and respected these when delivering person-centred care and treatment. The provider sought people’s written consent for their care. People’s care plans noted their capacity to make decisions and where they had variable capacity the types of decisions they could make for themselves and any support, they required from staff to make decisions.
Staff demonstrated a strong understanding of consent and choice in everyday activities. Staff had completed Mental Capacity Act 2005 (MCA) training and understood the principles of the MCA and its application in their work. People’s MCA assessments were person-centred and decision specific. People’s MCA assessments noted the measures staff had taken, to try and enable them to make decisions. Where people lacked the capacity to make decisions about their care, any decisions were made in their best interests and involved both their legal representatives and any relevant parties.