• Care Home
  • Care home

SeeAbility - The Willows

Overall: Good read more about inspection ratings

1 Wesley Road, Leatherhead, Surrey, KT22 8ET (01372) 383286

Provided and run by:
The Royal School for the Blind

Latest inspection summary

On this page

Our current view of the service

Good

Updated 25 July 2026

We carried out this assessment on 18 August and 19 August 2026

SeeAbility - The Willows (The Willows) is a ‘care home.’ People in care homes receive accommodation and nursing or personal care as a single package under one contractual agreement. CQC regulates both the premises and the care provided, and both were looked at during this inspection. At the time of our assessment there were six people living at The Willows. The service supports people with learning disabilities and visual impairments.

We assessed the service against the Right Support, Right Care, Right Culture guidance to determine whether people with a learning disability and autistic people were supported to live with dignity, equality, choice, independence and access to everyday community life. We found the provider was meeting these principles although there were occasional instances where improved communication was needed.

There was a welcoming atmosphere at the service and in the majority of instances staff treated people with warmth and compassion. However, we noted some occasions where staff did not communicate with people appropriately prior to supporting them. The registered manager took action to ensure this was promptly addressed.

Risks to people’s safety were known to staff and were in place to ensure people’s health, nutrition and hydration were monitored and any concerns addressed. People received their medicines in line with their prescriptions and regular audits of medicines processes were completed.

Staff, relatives and professionals told us the service had improved since the registered manager had been in post. They described a positive, open and transparent culture which focussed on people having increased opportunities. Systems to review the quality of the service focussed on people’s quality of life in addition to records and processes.

The management team were present in the home and knew people, relatives and staff well. Staff felt supported in their roles and received appropriate training to enable them to provide effective support to people. Improvements had been made in the way staff were recruited, and relevant checks were completed to ensure staff employed were safe to support people. Systems were in place to monitor the safety of the building and equipment.

People's experience of the service

Updated 25 July 2026

People were supported by a consistent staff team who knew them well. Staff spoke of people with affection and demonstrated a good understanding of what was important to them. Whilst we identified some instances where people may benefit from more regular access to attend church and explore cultural needs, we found people had good opportunities to go out and do things they enjoyed.

People and their relatives were involved in developing their support plans. These were regularly reviewed to support people in setting new goals. Relatives told us they felt their family members were supported well and staff understood their preferences.

People’s health and well-being were monitored closely by staff, and support was provided to enable people to access healthcare when required. Referrals were made to appropriate healthcare professionals and any advice provided was followed by staff.