South Downs care home told it must improve - for the third time

Sussexdown care home in Washington Road, Storrington, has been rated as ‘Requires Improvement’ – for the third time in a row – following an inspection by the Care Quality Commission.

The home provides personal and nursing care for up to 77 people, some with dementia.

In a report just out the commission says: “We found the breaches of regulation identified at the previous inspections had been met, however, it was not yet clear how sustainable or embedded these improvements were.

"Shortfalls in relation to staff deployment remained an issue, however staffing numbers had improved since the last inspection and staffing numbers no longer impacted on the safety of people’s care.”

But the inspectors said that the care home “relied heavily on agency staff, however there were times when agency staff were not available or cancelled at short notice. This had impacted on people’s quality of life as staff were able to spend less time with them.”

They added: “At this inspection improvement had been made and the provider was meeting regulations, however further improvements are required.”

James Marchant, regional operations manager at Care South, which runs Sussexdown care home, said: “We were pleased that CQC recognised improvements at Sussexdown when they visited the home in September 2022.

"The report was very positive about those improvements, but the report also told us that CQC needed to know that those improvements were sustainable. The key to that sustainability was the appointment of a new permanent home manager, and since CQC’s inspection, we have a new experienced home manager in post, and we will continue to support her to ensure that those recognised improvements continue to be sustained.

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"Sussexdown is a popular home at the heart of the Storrington community as evidenced by its strong carehome.co.uk score of 9.6/10 which is generated from feedback by residents and relatives.

"The many positive testimonials from residents and relatives at Sussexdown can be viewed on the carehome.co.uk website.

"With our new manager in post, we are confident that CQC will see the continued progress made at the home when they return, which will hopefully be soon.”