Dennyshill Care Home

Updated 8 July 2026

We carried out this assessment between 15 July - 22 July 2026. This service was previously rated as good. We carried out this assessment to confirm whether the rating of good remains accurate. This report does not provide detailed information on areas where we found practice continues to meet a good standard. Instead, our findings focus on any areas where the service needs to improve or where we found exceptional practice. We assessed the service against ‘right support, right care, right culture’ guidance to make judgements about whether the provider guaranteed people with a learning disability and autistic people respect, equality, dignity, choices, independence and good access to local communities that most people take for granted.The provider met the principles of ‘right support, right care, right culture’.

People told us they felt safe. There was a stable staff team who had the skills and knowledge to support them safely. Staff had access to relevant training which was both on-line and face to face. For example, moving and handling training which was specific to individual people living at the service. Training was also arranged to reflect people’s changing needs, for example dementia awareness. Staff said the registered manager was ‘hands on’ and kept their own practice up to date so they could be a good role model.

Medicines were well managed including up to date records and appropriate storage arrangements for current medicines. The manager said a fridge for medicines would be purchased if people’s prescriptions required specialist storage in the future.

Risks were assessed, for example one person’s care needs had grown over time requiring more specialist equipment and increased involvement with health care professionals which had been facilitated by the service. Feedback from health and social professionals was positive and showed they had an effective working relationship with the registered manager and staff. The environment was clean, well maintained and free from hazards, with appropriate safety checks completed and equipment in good order.

The registered manager was clear about their responsibility to report safeguarding concerns. They provided us with examples of good practice, including advocating for people when admitted to hospital to ensure they had equal access to treatment. They wanted to do the best they could for the people they supported and worked alongside health professionals to meet people’s needs. They were attentive and knew the people they supported well. Care plans were personalised and well written with clear information.

People can only be deprived of their liberty to receive care and treatment with appropriate legal authority. In care homes, this can be done through a procedure called the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS), which is part of the Mental Capacity Act 2005 (MCA). We checked whether the service was working within the principles of the MCA and how they managed DoLS within the service. We found that staff and management worked within the MCA. DoLS authorisations were appropriately applied for and overseen. People were not subject to unlawful or excessive restrictions they had choice, control and freedom over their lives.

Updated 8 July 2026

We spoke with people living at the care home and a person on a respite stay. We also spoke with their friends and relatives. We also spent time in a communal area, including during lunch. We used an observational tool to help us make a judgment on people’s well-being for those people who were unable to comment directly on their care.

The manager and the staff group were committed to the people living at the service, showing a genuine fondness for them and their families. A relative told us, “The staff group has been very consistent over the years, so people are looked after by staff who know them well and are committed to the values of the home. It’s a totally safe environment.” People said they felt safe; one person said, “I can’t fault it” and a relative said, “I feel he’s safe here.” Equipment was serviced regularly to help keep people safe.

Care records were person centred providing clear guidance to staff and reflecting people’s preferences. A relative told us, “I value it being a small home as they are able to give patient, individual care. They know her as a person, so they notice and respond to any change, and always notify me.” A visitor said the improvement in their relative’s care was “all due to the caring and professional help from the carers at Dennyshill.”

The registered manager met with people and assessed their care and social needs before they moved to the service. Families found this reassuring, and a person and their relative told us how they were involved in creating a care plan to reflect their assessment and wishes. The person said Dennyshill “feels like home.”

People were offered meaningful choices, including what they ate. One person told us the quality of the home cooked food made it hard to resist asking for seconds. Another person was malnourished when they moved to the service. Staff took pride in the person’s planned weight gain, and families told us how food choices had widened their relatives’ tastes. People expressed their appreciation of the food served to them. Staff were attentive and respectfully offered assistance to one person whose health had declined.

The manager and staff group created a relaxed and friendly atmosphere. People looked at ease in their surroundings. Relatives said, “There is always a friendly, natural welcome at the home. He has very good relationships with the staff, which makes up for his lack of any family. He definitely sees it as his home in every sense” and “I’ve always found all staff happy and smiling.”

Relatives said they were kept up to date and informed of planned changes to the home. For example, one said, “(Registered manager) shares information about everything we need to know. I genuinely wish all care homes were like Dennyshill.”