Helping Hands Gateshead

On this page

• Overview
• Kindness, compassion and dignity
• Treating people as individuals
• Independence, choice and control
• Responding to people’s immediate needs
• Workforce wellbeing and enablement

This is the first inspection for this newly registered service. This key question has been rated good. This meant people were supported and treated with dignity and respect; and involved as partners in their care. People and relatives found staff treated them with dignity and kindness. Staff sought people’s views about how to support them and, when appropriate, relative were included them in discussions about the support being offered. The registered manager enabled staff to deliver person-centred care and this was the fundamental basis of the design of the service. Processes were in place to take account of people’s strengths, abilities, aspirations, culture and unique backgrounds and protected characteristics. The registered manager also monitored care packages in ways to ensure staff well-being was maintained and they had adequate support to deliver the service. People reported staff promoted their independence. They knew their rights and had choice and control over their own care, treatment. and wellbeing. Staff provided care in a timely and responsive manner. The provider ensured staff treated colleagues from other organisations with kindness and respect. They also cared about and promoted the wellbeing of their staff and supported them to deliver person centred care.

This service scored 75 (out of 100) for this area. Find out what we look at when we assess this area and How we calculate these scores.

People told us they received kind, respectful and compassionate care from staff, who used positive, respectful language. One person said, “The staff are really wonderful and go out of their way to help me.”

The registered manager monitored staff practices to ensure they worked with people in a kind, caring, compassionate and dignified manner. They routinely worked with staff to see first-hand how staff were behaving during calls and regularly asked people about their experience of the care being provided. Staff reported they felt supported by the registered manager to deliver person-centred care and how they had the time and were able to deliver support tailored to each individual. Staff talked with passion about ensuring they worked with people in a kind, caring, compassionate and dignified manner.

External health and social care professionals had not received any concerns about the way staff worked with and treated people.

People told us they received kind, respectful and compassionate care from staff who used positive, respectful language. One person said, “Ooh they are so kind and have patience of saints.” Relatives felt staff showed genuine interest in people’s well-being and were helping them to achieve a good quality of life.

Staff treated people as individuals. They discussed how they worked with people in a person-centred manner and tailored their approach to match to individuals wishes. A staff member said, “I always ask and make sure they want to do these things or give them some options. I always feedback to the office staff if there are any changes in the persons routine or if they want to do something differently.”

The provider had systems in place to ensure staff delivered person-centred care with people having choice and control regarding how staff met their needs. The registered manager completed audits and checks to make sure these aims were met. The service delivered person-centred care with people having choice and control regarding how staff met their needs.

People told us they were supported to make choices; their independence was promoted, and they were supported to make decisions about how their care needs were met.

Staff understood people had the right to have choice and control over how their care needs were met. They encouraged individuals to make choices for themselves. People confirmed they were involved in decisions about their care.

Systems and processes were in place to ensure the service delivered person-centred care where people had choice and control over how staff met their needs. In the care plans we reviewed, we saw that staff had ensured care plans contained pertinent information about people’s needs and preferences to enable staff to provide appropriate care. Staff used person-centred planning tools and approaches to discuss and plan with people how to reach their goals and aspirations.

People told us they were happy with the care packages they received. They had been involved in deciding how much support they needed and how often staff visited. They confirmed the registered manager regularly checked the care package still met their needs. A relative said, “We are involved where needed.”

The registered manager had developed systems to ensure right staff skill mixes were available to meet service users’ needs. Staff were aware of people’s needs, views and wishes and these were responded to appropriately and in a timely manner. They told us there were enough care workers to meet people's needs. Should individual’s needs change they were confident the care package could be altered to accommodate the new requirements. The rotas were developed to include adequate travel time. The office staff closely monitored the calls to make sure staff arrived on time and stayed for the full duration of the call. Should a staff member have difficulty getting a call they alerted the staff who would either redeploy another staff member or go to the call themselves. Throughout the person was kept abreast of what was happening. No concerns had been raised about missed calls or late calls.

Staff told us the registered manager valued each staff member equally and respected the expertise and experience they brought to the team. They confirmed the working environment fostered effective teamwork and supported their well-being. A staff member said, “From the very first day I started working for Helping Hands I can honestly say I have never looked back. I love my role and I do feel very supported from all office staff. We are a great team all working together. Customers are happy. They express to me how happy and glad they are to have Helping Hands. Customers are always giving me compliments and are happy with my care.”

The registered manager ensured staff had the skills and knowledge to carry out their role effectively. Staff completed training in relevant areas to ensure they could carry out their role safely and competently. Staff supervisions were being completed in line with the company policies and expectations. They were investing in staff development to provide a progressive and expert workforce. The registered manager actively encouraged and supported staff to complete personal and group development. They were a constant advocate of self-reflection and improvement.