Specialist Neurological Rehabilitation Service in Oxfordshire rated Outstanding by the CQC

A neurological rehabilitation centre in Oxfordshire has been rated ‘Outstanding’ by the Care Quality Commission (CQC).

Orchard House, which opened in 2014 and is run by Christchurch Group, provides specialist community-based transitional rehabilitation in the village of Harwell in Oxfordshire. It supports adults with neurological conditions resulting from injury, illness or disease. The service offers accommodation for 9 residents and is a Headway Approved Provider.

Inspectors praised the service for its exceptional care, its strong, values-led leadership and their  person-centered approach displayed by the registered manager and staff, which provided clear therapeutic benefits for patients. The CQC also highlighted how the registered manager had ‘continually thought of initiatives to make improvements to enhance people's lives and those of the staff.’

Alexandra Costa, Christchurch Group’s Registered Home Manager, commented: “We strive to ensure those we support are at the heart of life here at Orchard House and to create a friendly, welcoming environment, so I’m enormously proud to see that recognised.

“Great credit must go to our fantastic team, including care, therapy, governance and support staff, who enable our patients to achieve positive outcomes.  Without their diligence and genuinely caring approach this would not have been achieved.”

As part of the inspection, a number of patients, staff and relatives were spoken to and encouraged to provide feedback on the support they received at the Harwell centre.

One individual commented: "I feel I am safe and in a good place. I have been moved from home to home for a number of years. The people and staff are like a second family. I love it here.”

A relative added: “I am absolutely amazed at the care my daughter receives. The staff are really good, they’re always there, anything you want you get.”

Richard McKenzie, Christchurch Group’s Chief Executive Officer, added: “I am delighted that Orchard House has been awarded ‘Outstanding’ status. We are proud to deliver life-changing, evidence-based outcomes for adults with neurological conditions.

“An ‘Outstanding’ CQC is testament to the hard work and dedication that the staff at Orchard House have put in over the past 12 months. We are passionate about providing high quality, person-centred care, so to find out this has been recognised through a formal inspection is very rewarding.”

Christchurch Group was established in 1998 to provide high quality brain injury rehabilitation within a community setting. The organisation has since grown into a leading provider of specialist neurological rehabilitation that offers a range of specialist services across eight centres in York, Lincoln, Birmingham, Northampton, Bedford and Harwell in Oxfordshire.