Groveland Park Care Home in Bexleyheath, in the London borough of Bexley, has been rated 'outstanding' overall by the Care Quality Commission; previously it was rated 'good'.
It was rated 'outstanding' for being caring and well led and 'good' for being safe, effective and responsive, following the inspection in April 2019.
Groveland Park is registered to provide care for up to 55 older adults and at the time of the inspection there were 55 people living at the home.
Residents and their relatives spoke in highly complimentary ways about the care and support provided. One resident said: “I am 101 and still as fit as a fiddle thanks to the care at the home. This is a place of sanctuary to me.” A relative said: “My family member would not be with us if it were not for the care she receives at the home. It has extended her life.”
Another resident said: "On my 100th birthday, I had a helicopter ride. The home
invited the Mayor and a local MP came to have a drink and wish me a happy birthday. The general secretary of my old union came too."
The home was awarded a Caring at its Best Award by the local authority in 2018. A relative remarked: "We looked at 20 homes and this one was leaps and bounds above anything we had ever seen. This place has the atmosphere of a boutique hotel, the standard of care is excellent."
The catering staff told us they could accommodate any cultural food preferences and celebrated different cultural festivals with the associated foods, for example, they had celebrated the Chinese New Year.
People were able to bring their pets to live with them at the home - where it was safe to do so.
Inspectors observed that staff across the home co-operated to provide a high standard of care. For example, housekeepers assisted people to join in with activities and the maintenance team had made some boards to support a person to enjoy their jigsaws.
Inspectors found that leadership was exceptional and distinctive. Leaders and the service culture they created drove and improved high quality, person centred care.
Staff held the management team in high regard and were all complimentary about the leadership and support they received. One staff member said: "I am absolutely on cloud nine since I started working here. We are all on the same page. There is fantastic team work. The seniors are really encouraging, the care is fantastic and the manager is willing to sit down and talk to you." A visiting health professional said: "Staff are confident and happy and their attitude to work is, 'how can I help?'”
At the time of the inspection the home had been awarded a place in the top 20 care homes for the London area on a comparison website for the sixth year running.
The registered manager and staff team worked proactively to develop strong links in the community. There was a referral scheme via their GP to refer isolated people to attend coffee mornings at the home. They also linked with a local voluntary organisation who could refer people to attend occasions such as Christmas dinner or the evening activities, which CQC observed happening at the inspection.
Debbie Ivanova, CQC’s deputy chief inspector of Adult Social Care, said: “I am pleased to be able to congratulate everybody linked to The Groveland Park Care Home in achieving an outstanding rating, an improvement from the previous rating of good overall.
“Caring at the home is indeed outstanding. At the time of CQC’s inspection it was awarded a ‘Caring at its Best Award’ by the local authority.”
