Surrey care home covers resident’s moving costs following Ombudsman probe

A Surrey care home agreed to cover a resident’s costs after he was forced to move to another service because of the closure of its nursing unit.

The Burlington Care Home in Shepperton, which is operated by Boutique Care Homes, agreed to the £1,000 payment following an investigation by the Local Government & Social Care Ombudsman.

The family of the resident, who has Parkinson’s Disease, complained they were not informed of the care home’s intention to deregister its nursing unit and would not have chosen the home if they had known this.

A spokesperson for the home said: “Throughout our correspondence with the Ombudsman and the family, we were fully transparent and listened to their concerns. Prior to the conclusion of the Ombudsman’s investigation, we agreed to cover the resident’s moving expenses as requested by the family.

“Following the publishing of this report, we welcome the findings that there is no further action needed. At Boutique Care Homes we pride ourself on our core values which include, openness and trust. We value this experience as a learning opportunity and will continue to ensure we have a robust and clear communications policy with residents and their families.”