Enter and View: The Grange Residential Home

Healthwatch North Lincolnshire conducted an Enter and View visit to The Grange Residential Home on 20 August 2024 and 5 September 2024 to assess the quality of care, resident experience, and staff support. The visit was prompted by feedback from a resident and their family member about their experience at the home in May 2024. They spoke to 17 people including residents, staff, family and managers. 

Key findings:

• The Grange was generally clean and well-maintained, with efforts made to create a welcoming environment through wall murals and appropriate signage for dementia-friendly navigation.
• The registered manager and unit manager were found to be open and transparent, discussing recent changes and future improvements. Staff were responsive to resident needs and appeared to provide high standards of personal care.
• Residents were supported with their personal care, and activities and social events were introduced to enhance wellbeing. Despite the home being under capacity at the time of the visit, staff were attentive, and high levels of cleanliness were maintained.
• There were some areas of concern, including the appearance of the building’s exterior, the car park’s condition, and the lack of privacy for bedroom windows and doors.

Recommendations:

• Consider converting the welcome letter into a booklet format with accessible information for residents and families. Ensure all staff wear name badges to improve identification.
• Improve the car park and building frontage to make a better first impression. Enhance the garden and outdoor areas to support residents' wellbeing.
• Install window covers or privacy screens for bedrooms to enhance resident privacy.
• Hold an open day or activity to raise public awareness of the home. Explore the use of local community facilities to enhance resident wellbeing.

Provider Response: The Grange's management thanked Healthwatch for the feedback and clarified some factual inaccuracies in the report. They confirmed that the car park had been resurfaced two years ago and is in good condition. They also mentioned that residents are given the opportunity to complete feedback forms upon discharge.