Sunnyhill Residential Care Home

On this page

• Overview
• Kindness, compassion and dignity
• Treating people as individuals
• Independence, choice and control
• Responding to people’s immediate needs
• Workforce wellbeing and enablement

There was a friendly and cheerful atmosphere at Sunnyhill. Staff treated people in a kind and familiar way, and we saw that people and staff knew each other. We saw hands being held, and a comforting arm around the shoulders where people were upset, and relatives told us that staff treated people like ‘old friends’. One relative said, ‘He lights up when they [staff] come into the room.” Care plans recorded some information, but lacked personal details and this had been identified by the management team and care plans were being reviewed to incorporate more personalised information.

This service scored 75 (out of 100) for this area. Find out what we look at when we assess this area and How we calculate these scores.

People and their relatives told us that staff were kind and caring. One person said, “I am happy here.” Some relatives comments included, “I know they have [relative’s] interest at heart – the staff are brilliant,” “They laugh and joke with her like old friends,” and, “He lights up when they [staff] come into the room. The level of care and compassion was not seen in [relative’s] previous care home.”

Staff protected people's privacy, this included ensuring toilet and bedroom doors were closed appropriately and knocking before entering rooms. One staff member told us, ‘I am very hot on staff ensuring people are covered and their doors are always knocked on before entering as these are people's private rooms.’

We made some requests for feedback from health professionals, but at the time of reporting, we had not received any response.

All staff were seen to be pleasant and engaging with people. Taking the time to chat and exchange pleasantries. People responded positively to the staff with both showing genuine affection.

Relatives told us that staff knew people well and used their knowledge of their likes and dislikes, to offer activities and support based on their personal preferences. One relative said, “She was playing tennis in the garden – she was smiling. She used to play tennis.”

Staff recognised people as individuals with different personalities and strengths. One staff member explained how some quiet people can be overlooked at times and said, ‘I ensure staff look at everyone not just the ones that are more verbal and always asking and saying what they want. I work on this principle this makes sure everyone is seen.’ People who had specific cultural needs were respected and supported. One person was supported through Ramadan and fasting with special foods and extra care was taken to keep her room cool and ventilated.

Staff recognised the importance of people's appearance and we saw people were dressed according to their own preference, and this reflected their individuality. People had their own bedding and this was laundered separately. People’s rooms were personalised and each person had their specific toiletries that were very personalised to their individual needs and preferences.

The registered manager had identified that care plans were not detailed or personalised enough and a review was underway. Communication care plans were in place, however some contained conflicting information about people’s ability and most effective method of communication. One plan said that the person ‘can communicate effectively verbally’ in one paragraph and in the next it said ‘communication is a huge barrier for the person. There was an equality policy in place, however it was not up to date and contained outdated links and references. Resident discussion forms used to document people's interests and hobbies, which then contributed to the planning of events and activities.

Relatives told us that they were able to visit when they wanted and did not need to make an appointment. One person told us that they enjoy the musical entertainment and choose to join in with those activities. Another relative said that they are shown photos and videos of their family member taking part in activities that would suit their interests.

Staff supported people to have control over their lives whenever possible encouraging individual choice. One staff member told us, ‘I give people choices with clothes and drinks - you can show choices.' One staff member said, “We always ask people even if we know their likes and dislikes, we still ask and do not presume.”

People were encouraged by staff to eat independently, and were provided with adapted cutlery and dinnerware to help them to do so. We saw people being asked if they would like their soup in a cup or a bowl, and suggesting that a two handled cup may be easier for them to keep steady. Some people had technology to support their independence, such as a voice activated device to listen to music of their choice or to answer questions about the weather for example. Another person was using a smartphone to call their relative using a visual call app.

People were encouraged to maintain relationships. They had access to communication devices and staff supported them to use them effectively. Families were able to visit at any time and care plans included information about communication aids needed such as hearing aids and glasses. Care plans contained information about how staff should promote people’s independence with personal care. Activities had been planned around the person’s interests. The activity coordinator had recorded individual discussions with people about their favourite things to do, and had arranged their activities around this.

Relatives told us that staff responded well to people’s needs. One relative said, “[relative] was wanting to call us several times a day, and they [staff] never once said it was a problem."

Staff were responsive to people’s changing and evolving needs. One person was becoming increasingly anxious and unsettled. Staff all knew he was not ‘himself’ and had contacted the Mental health team for a review. To prevent delays in this referral they had contacted the persons GP for advice and guidance and a further referral through the medical team.

People were responded to without delay. Staff were mindful and alert to peoples needs for support and encouragement.

Staff told us they felt valued and part of a caring supportive team. Staff told us Sunnyhill was a nice place to work, ‘It’s a nice place I like everyone here we are one big family with the staff and residents.’ They also told us they had their individual needs and diversity attended to. For example, one staff member who was pregnant had been changed to lighter duties to protect her health and safety. The manager explained how staff from different ethnic backgrounds and cultures were respected and supported. She explained how she had responded to Muslim staff needs by providing prayer mats and a space for prayer.

Staff received regular supervision and these were used to explore staff’s expectations and aspirations. Staff meetings were held where staff were encouraged to share thoughts and ideas with others and the management team. Staff surveys were sent out annually to gather their views. The registered manager was in the process of reviewing the questions to make them easier to understand.