Working at Acorn Lodge - Croydon
14 Abbots Lane, Purley, CR8 5JH
Operated by Medicrest Limited
39 bedsResidential homes
Workplace Score
5.5/10
AI analysis of latest data
Our AI workplace review
PlainSight AI Review
Last updated: 9 February 2026
Score: 5.5/10
Key Finding
"Enough staff and strong safety practices with a supportive culture for workers, but no registered manager and irregular supervisions hold it back."
Safety & Risk
7/10
✓
Per 2019 comprehensive inspection: Staff knew how to safeguard people from abuse and how to manage identified risks; medicines stored safely, incidents properly recorded and learning shared; 2022 targeted: assured provider preventing infections, using PPE effectively, managing outbreaks.
Staff Culture
6/10
✓
Per 2019 comprehensive inspection: Staff felt well supported by senior staff and had monthly opportunities to meet with them at team meetings to discuss their working practices. A staff member told us, 'The managers are good… the managers will talk to me, teach me and do training.'
Staffing Levels
6/10
✓
Per 2019 comprehensive inspection: There were enough staff to support people. During our inspection staff were visible and attending to people's needs in a timely way. Call bells were answered promptly; 2022: measures in place to mitigate COVID-19 related staff pressures.
Training & Dev
5/10
!
Per 2019 comprehensive inspection: Staff received relevant training to help them meet the range of people's needs, but staff had not been having supervision at regular intervals. All staff were scheduled to have a supervision meeting following this inspection.
Management
3/10
✕
Per 2019 comprehensive inspection: The service did not have a registered manager in post. The current manager had been in post since December 2018 and intended to apply to CQC to become the registered manager for the service.
Programmes
6/10
✓
Per 2019 comprehensive inspection: There was now a dedicated activities co-ordinator for this service. We observed a number of group based and one to one activities taking place during our inspection. People enjoyed the activities.
Points to consider
No permanent manager registered with the regulator, so leadership might not be fully stable or accountable.
The service did not have a registered manager in post. The current manager had been in post since December 2018 and intended to apply to CQC to become the registered manager for the service.
Staff not getting regular one-on-one check-ins with managers, even though basic training happens.
We found staff had not been having supervision at regular intervals. All staff were scheduled to have a supervision meeting following this inspection.
Some past decisions after accidents or issues did not always keep people as safe as they should.
Some decisions made by the provider in response to events and incidents did not always sufficiently protect the safety and wellbeing of people at the service.
AI Generated
CQC Inspection Overview
CQC Inspection
Last inspected: September 2019
Good
Safe
✓
Good
Effective
✓
Good
Caring
✓
Good
Responsive
✓
Good
Management Quality
Well-led: Requires improvement
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- Care Quality Commission (CQC) Inspection Data
- PlainSight staff reviews