North of Tyne Supported Living

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 appeared at ease with staff and relatives found staff treated people with kindness. Staff were aware of people’s needs, views and wishes and these were responded to appropriately and in a timely manner. They sought people’s views about how to support them and, when appropriate, relatives were included in discussions about the support being offered. Processes were in place to take account of people’s strengths, abilities, aspirations, culture and unique backgrounds and protected characteristics. Relatives reported staff promoted people’s rights, choices and independence. 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. 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 received kind, respectful and compassionate care from staff who used positive, respectful language. Relatives said, “It feels like a home to me,” “[Person’s name] loves them, and they love them” and “They love [person’s name] like their own. They are angels.”

Staff talked with passion about ensuring they worked with people in a kind, caring, compassionate and dignified manner. Staff reported they felt supported by the provider to deliver person-centred care and had the time to do this.

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

People appeared happy with the service when we observed their care. We went to the houses at different times of the day and early evening and at each visit people appeared at ease with staff and enjoying the activities they were engaged in.

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.”

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

People appeared happy with the service when we observed their care. The care plans we reviewed evidenced that people were treated respectfully and spoken about with care and compassion.

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. They completed audits and checks to make sure these aims were met. We found that at times these audits were not always effective and did not always result in timely action and improvements.

People were supported to make choices; their independence was promoted and they were supported to make decisions about how their care needs were met. A relative said, “They try to maintain his independence by asking what he wants to wear, let him choose his clothes for the day.”

Staff understood people had the right to have choice and control over how their care needs were met. encouraged individuals to make choices for themselves. Support plans detailed how people communicated and we discussed the use of video for assisting new staff understand what different changes in tone meant. Staff were very adept at understanding what people wanted to say and always sought their views. A staff member said, “The people we support have always been involved in developing their care plans and risk management strategies, as our care is person centred.”

People appeared happy with the service and were routinely engaged in activities they were enjoying when we visited.

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. Staff had ensured care plans contained pertinent information about people’s needs and preferences to enable staff to provide appropriate care.

Staff were responsive to people and consistently engaged with them. Relatives confirmed staff regularly checked the care package still met people’s needs. A relative said, “We are fully involved in planning [person’s name] care as they struggle to do this so we make sure it is right.”

Staff were aware of people’s needs, views and wishes and these were responded to appropriately and in a timely manner. The provider had developed systems to ensure the correct staff skill mixes were available to meet people’s needs. Staff 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. One staff member said, “I try to involve everyone in the running of the service and everyone's ideas are valued. I certainty do not have all the answers however as a collective we can certainly get all the answers. I try to create an atmosphere where mistakes are learnt from and we will grow from them together.”

People appeared happy with the service. We observed staff consistently responsive to people’s needs and positively responded as individuals interacted with them.

Staff told us the provider valued each staff member equally because of the expertise and experience they brought to the team. They confirmed the working environment fostered effective teamwork and supported each person’s well-being. A staff member said, “The manager, advance support workers and other staff members have always been supportive. we are a great team together.” A staff member said, “I feel I have a very structured and clear support network above me and one that is also extremely accessible. Whilst being a service lead I have not felt alone or isolated when I have an issue or need support. I feel the regional management team is very visible.”

The provider 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.