We’re pleased to have Place Farm House Residential Home sponsoring our Patcham Fairy Tale Fair on Saturday 18th November for the first time. We caught up with Andrew Bown, co-owner and Registered Manager to find out little more about the great work they’re doing..
Tell us a bit about Place Farm House
Place Farm House is a 19 bed residential care home situated on Ladies Mile Road close to Old Patcham Village. We have been a care home for more than 30 years and have built an excellent reputation in the area for quality, homely care. The home is owned by the Bown family who took over in September 2016 and is run day-to-day by myself. Place Farm House has a sister home, Abbey Lodge in Hythe, Kent, which has been run by mother, Elizabeth Bown, for more than 20 years.
Care Homes are often getting bad press, what makes Place Farm House different from the rest?
It is frustrating when you hear bad press stories about care homes because these are in the minority and there is a lot of good work the industry is doing to provide quality care to the elderly.
For us as a family, residential care is a personal connection and responsibility which has developed since 1996. We lived in the small flat above Abbey Lodge in the 2000’s (prior to renovation) and we have lived and breathed the caring environment and respect for the elderly. For myself, I have been lucky enough to take on Place Farm House and provide that high level care and respect which I grew up with at Abbey Lodge. I have a responsibility to the residents and their families to provide a home which gives the best care and that drives me when I think about the home on a daily basis. I have built a great team of people which is vital because they deliver the care which I aspire to provide. We also strive to use technology to deliver the best care, which includes electronic system for care notes and medication administration. This is quite novel in the area and I use the technology to improve the quality of care our staff give to our residents.
What are your aspirations for Place Farm House?
We were recently inspected by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) in September 2017 and have been awarded with a ‘Good’ rating in all aspects of care provision which is no mean feat. I have always taken the personal view in all aspects of my life that if you are not improving you are going backwards and therefore my aspirations are to continue to improve all aspects of the home for the benefit of the residents. I do have an aim to obtain ‘Outstanding’ rating from CQC and this is the pinnacle of achievement for any home. Only 1% of care home’s have an ‘outstanding’ rating currently and there none in Brighton & Hove. Our aspiration is to be the first.
Why did you sponsor the Fairy Tale Fair?
Place Farm House has been very involved in the Patcham community for more than 30 years and we felt that sponsoring the Fair was an opportunity to continue that involvement and support to the social work which volunteers provide for the benefit of the community.
Tell me the funniest thing a resident has said to you..
I once had a resident ask me her age and when I told her she didn’t believe me. I then asked her how old she thought I was and she said ‘mid fifties’…I’m in my early thirties and didn’t think I looked too bad for it up to that point!
