Updated 5 November 2024
We carried out an on-site assessment of The Sussex Beacon on 17 December 2024.
The Sussex Beacon is a hospice which provides inpatient care for patients living with Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV). The service primarily serves the communities of Sussex but also accepts referrals from outside the area. The service provides both day services and inpatient services. This assessment looked at inpatient services only, as these form the regulated activity. The inpatient unit has 10 en-suite bedrooms.
We completed this assessment because of the length of time since the previous assessment, and because of concerns around safeguarding processes.
We assessed this service using our single assessment framework and looked at all key questions and all quality statements.
At our last assessment on 9 November 2021, we rated this service as outstanding. At this assessment we rated this service as good. Following our assessment, this service was made dormant on 20 February 2025 which meant it did not accept any new patients to the inpatient unit. The service came out of dormancy on 16 January 2026, however a new statement of purpose was in place and the service was not accepting inpatient admissions.
We visited the inpatient unit and spoke with 3 people using the service, reviewed patient records and policies. We spoke with 7 members of staff, including leaders, nurses and other healthcare professionals. We used data provided by the service following the on-site visit.
Staff, managers, and leaders across the service shared a commitment to delivering care that is safe, sensitive, and compassionate, for patients and their families.