Residential Care
Finding out more
There are a number of ways you can find out more about residential care homes in the Royal Borough and what standards the homes have to comply with.
Go to the Central Library or the branches at Surbiton and New Malden.
Ask for Inspection Reports on Residential Care Homes - you will be able to read a report on a specific home or on a number of homes. The Registration and Inspection Unit carries out two at least two inspections on each home every year, and the resulting reports are publicly available documents. The Government does not require homes for 3 or fewer people to be inspected except if there is cause for concern or a complaint.
Copies of reports on homes for older people are also available at:
- Age Concern Offices
- Rayleigh House
- Nelson Road
- New Malden
You can ring the Registration and Inspection Unit 020 8547 6037 or email on r&iunit@rbk.kingston.gov.uk and ask for a copy of any report/s you want to see. A cost-covering charge will only be made if several reports are requested.
If you are trying to find a suitable home for someone you know, having obtained a list of homes in the Borough from the Inspection Unit or the Social Services Placement Team, you can arrange to visit a home/s and ask the owner or manager to see their latest report.
The Central Library also holds a copy of the Registration and Inspection Residential Care Homes Standards Manual. This details the criteria for homes to meet the standards.
The Registration and Inspection Unit Manager produces an Annual Report, this describes the work of the Unit, and it is a public document, available in the libraries and from the Unit.
The Registration and Inspection Unit is there to ensure that:
Applicants have to meet criteria which includes the fitness of the person in control, the day to day care manager, and the suitability of the building in which residential care is to be provided. The process of becoming registered is complex and lengthy and includes references, police checks, medical and financial references, searches at Companies House, County Court Judgements etc. Policies and Procedures have to be in place and staffing levels, experience and suitability has to be demonstrated before a registration is approved by the Director of Community Services.
homes continue to meet the required Standards
Once registered a home will be inspected at least twice each year by inspectors from the Registration and Inspection Unit and will be required to meet the Royal Borough's 33 Standards for Registration and Inspection. One of these inspections will be unannounced. All homes are inspected to the same standards for care and accommodation. Additional inspections are undertaken for a variety of reasons e.g. at the request of the home owner to discuss issues, proposed changes, extensions, to follow up a requirement previously made, investigate a concern or complaint.
Contribute to the work of the Registration and Inspection Unit?
There are two ways that users of residential care homes and people interested in care homes can be involved in the work of the Unit:
1. Lay Assessors
Since 1994 the Unit has included Lay Assessors at each of the two statutory inspections of each residential care home with high dependency residents, all childrens homes and all local authority homes. Lay Assessors are people with an interest in residential care who are recruited by the Registration and Inspection Unit from time to time to assist inspectors. Lay Assessors are there to:
- Observe "routines" within the home
- View life in the home from the point of view of a prospective resident
- Comment on aspects of the quality of life for residents within the home after observation and discussion with residents, relatives, visitors and staff as appropriate
- Contribute to the public inspection report
Lay Assessors are given an induction for their task. A small fee and out of pocket expenses are payable.
Should you wish to be considered as a Lay Assessor when we are next recruiting, please contact:
The Registration & Inspection Unit
Guildhall 1
Kingston upon Thames
Surrey
KT1 1EU
Email: r&iunit@rbk.kingston.gov.uk.
2. Registration and Inspection Advisory Panels
There are two Panels, one for Adult and one for Childrens Services. The membership consists of elected members, providers of residential care services and lay people, including users and/or their representatives. The Panels meet four times each year, and include in their considerations; the even-handedness of the Unit; Inspection Reports; the Inspection Unit's Standards; and proposals for improving the effectiveness of the Unit. The Panels provide a forum for the promotion of good working relationships between the Inspection Unit and Service Providers.
If you have an interest in adult or childrens residential care and you wish to be considered for membership of an Advisory Panel , Social Services Committee consider nominations every year in March. You should contact The Head of the Secretariat, Guildhall, Kingston upon Thames
Complaints about a residential care home
All homes have their own procedure for complaints, and complaints should, wherever possible be taken up with the owner/manager of the home in the first place.
However, if you do not wish to approach the owner/manager or you are not satisfied with the outcome, you may contact the Registration and Inspection Unit who will discuss the matter with you. A complaint can usually be treated in confidence, but this may sometimes limit the extent to which it can be properly investigated. In some circumstances confidentiality cannot be maintained, particularly if the nature of the complaint is serious.
Comments
The Unit will welcome comments on residential care homes and boarding schools or any concerns you may wish to discuss.
Also see: