Bridle Lodge

The following is CQC's published account of its assessment, published 1 May 2026. References to “we” mean CQC. It describes findings at that time.

Date of Assessment: 1 March to 1 April 2026. We undertook multiple sites visits to assess this service including a visit out of hours. Bridle Lodge is a residential care home providing support to younger adults living with learning disabilities and autism, mental health conditions and physical disabilities. At the time of the assessment 5 people were living at the home. Bridle Lodge was last rated outstanding (published 6 September 2019). This assessment was prompted by the age of the services previous rating.

We assessed the service against ‘right support, right care, right culture’ guidance to make judgements about whether the provider guaranteed people with a learning disability and autistic people respect, equality, dignity, choices, independence and good access to local communities that most people take for granted.

Care plans were safe and contained the necessary risk information to keep people safe but some care plans lacked person centred guidance on how people wished to be supported. The provider had already developed an action plan to review and improve all care plans so staff had clearer guidance on how people wished to be supported and how this linked to their individual aims and goals. People received their medicines safely, and recruitment practices were carried out robustly. Staff were supported with appropriate training and development, which included training specific to people’s health conditions and long-term needs. While staffing levels and limited access to transport had reduced opportunities for people to go out into the community as often as they would have liked, the provider ensured that meaningful and engaging activities were available within the home.

Bridle Lodge was in the process of recruiting a registered manager. During this process, the service was being led by an interim manager who provided effective oversight and stability. The manager and regional manager had implemented a range of audits and quality monitoring systems which were used consistently to identify areas requiring improvement. These systems were thorough and enabled the manager to monitor safety, documentation, staff practice, and overall service quality. An action plan was in place which clearly set out the improvements needed and the steps staff were expected to take to achieve these. Staff stated the manager provided clear guidance and support, evidence showed that actions were being followed up in a timely manner to drive positive change.