Hickling House

Updated 13 April 2026

Date of inspection: 06 May 2026 to 06 July 2026.

Hickling House is a residential care home providing personal care for up to 29 people. It provides support for older people and people living with a dementia. At the time of our inspection, there were 25 people living in the service. We completed a comprehensive inspection due to the length of time since the last inspection. This included 2 unannounced site visits. We observed the environment, spoke with people living in the service and interacted with staff. Offsite we gained feedback from people’s relatives, healthcare professionals and spoke with staff. We found the provider was in breach of the regulation relating to governance and have asked the provider for an action plan in response to the concerns found at this inspection. We found that care documents were not always recorded in detail and quality assurance tools and informative guidance was not always monitored, accurately recorded or updated and acted upon.

However, people were generally well cared for, safe and treated with kindness and dignity. Feedback from people and relatives was overwhelmingly positive. People felt protected from abuse and avoidable harm and risks were generally identified. There was appropriate involvement with healthcare professionals when people’s needs changed. Care was effective and responsive, and people were supported to access health care services where professionals spoke positively about how staff communicated and worked in partnership with them. Medicines were managed safely, infection risks were mostly controlled, and the environment was generally clean and well maintained.

People were assisted to meet their nutritional and wellbeing needs, including participating in activities and social interaction. Staff understood people’s needs well and ensured people could express views and make choices. People and families were included in decisions about their care, and families and professionals told us they felt listened to and praised staff that have acted quickly when concerns arose.

Updated 13 April 2026

People were positive about living at Hickling House and 1 person said “The staff go the extra mile. You can’t say more. They know me, I know them well and they often pop in for a chat.” They told us they felt safe and well supported and treated with dignity and respect by the staff who knew them well and understood their individual needs. Praise from a person identified “The staff do a difficult job well.” Many relatives agreed and 1 relative said “We looked at other homes, but when we visited here, it felt right.

The rooms were lovely, and the manager and staff were welcoming. We have not been disappointed. We made the right choice for [relative].” Some people were unable to express their views verbally and during the inspection we used short observation framework (SOFI) to understand their experience. We witnessed relaxed, warm interactions between staff and people living in the home. They were given time in a way that met the persons needs and people appeared comfortable in the presence of staff.

When people appeared disorientated or distressed, staff used their knowledge to reassure and support people. People and relatives said that the staff were visible, approachable and that face to face and verbal communication was good. A person living at the service explained that “The staff always ask, they never tell you what to do. The GP comes in regularly as does the chiropodist and so does the district nurse.” Relatives described receiving regular updates when they visited. Relatives told us they had confidence in the staff and described the care as kind, person centred and felt that people were supported by staff who knew them well.