Braintree Mews Care Home

On this page

• Overview
• Shared direction and culture
• Capable, compassionate and inclusive leaders
• Freedom to speak up
• Workforce equality, diversity and inclusion
• Governance, management and sustainability
• Partnerships and communities
• Learning, improvement and innovation

The service had only been open for a few months with people being admitted and relationships with managers, staff and people were being developed. On the day of our assessment visits, we found a positive atmosphere at the service. The registered manager and the management team had responded proactively to the concerns raised and had additional processes and checks in place to ensure collaborative working with health professionals. Whilst most feedback from people and relatives was positive the registered manager had additional work to do to ensure all staff felt fully supported to create a positive culture. Some improvements were required to improve care records and monitoring forms which internal auditing processes had not identified.

This service scored 71 (out of 100) for this area. Find out what we look at when we assess this area and How we calculate these scores.

There were mixed views from staff about the culture of the service and some reported current morale for some staff was low. However, staff did add they thought the management team were trying to support staff. A staff member told us, “The best thing working here is my team as we are very close and we are like a family, we try to help each other and I love my colleagues.” Another staff member said, “We had a staff meeting just recently and I do think staff can speak openly. The manager did explain at the meeting we have had a large turnover of staff which has made it difficult but I think they are trying.”

The service had clear values and was aware of the direction they wanted to take. The senior managers were aware of the barriers facing a newly commissioning home and were responding proactively to recent challenges with staffing and partnership working.

Most staff felt day-to-day support was in place from leadership, but communication could be improved. Staff were positive about the support from the new deputy and told us they were visible and available to discuss any concerns or provide guidance.

The senior leaders at the service were aware of the issues staff were bringing up and told us they had appointed the deputy to provide more day-to-day support for senior staff on the floor. The registered manager told us the staffing levels were above the hours identified through dependency tools and had been working with staff to explain this.

Most staff we spoke with did tell us they were able to speak up freely and were provided with various avenues to do this. Whilst staff told us they could speak up feedback was mixed in relation to whether they felt listened to. All staff we spoke with were aware of the providers whistle blowing policy.

Processes were in place to enable people and staff to speak up. The registered manager was aware of the duty of candour process and apologised to people and relatives when something had gone wrong.

Staff had received training in equality and diversity. Whilst staff had concerns about staffing, we received no comments about unfair treatment. A staff member was able to tell us about the support they received following a health concern.

The registered manager told us there were policies and procedures in place to promote equality, diversity and inclusion in the workplace.

Staff processes, systems and relationships were being developed. The registered manager told us they had already faced some staff changes and were working towards full recruitment in all key roles. They acknowledged staff required more support day to day and had appointed a deputy manager as part of responding to this need. Leaders were working together to be proactive and develop a positive culture within the service.

Quality assurance processes were in place, however not all audits and checks had identified all the concerns found during our assessment of Braintree Mews. More work was needed to ensure care plans were fully updated in all areas to reflect the current risks associated with people’s care and support. Monitoring forms which included fluid records and repositioning charts required closer attention to ensure it was clear what actions had been taken by staff if these charts were not completed accurately. The registered manager had taken action to respond to concerns identified by partner agencies and additional communication was now in place. Whilst we did identify some areas that required improvement, we found the leadership team open and honest about the challenges they faced and they demonstrated a commitment to provide a quality service for people using their service.

People told us they were given opportunities to feedback about the service and the organisation had just sent surveys out to staff, people and relatives. We also viewed feedback forms completed by people which were very positive and comments included, “Outstanding food” and “I am happy.” Relatives and resident’s meetings were held and we saw people were asked for their ideas for improvements to the home and their experiences.

The registered manager told us they had engaged with community organisations and were currently hosting ‘dancing with dementia’ which people at the service also attended.

Concerns from partner agencies recorded in other sections of this report had been responded to and additional communication was now in place. Time is required to ascertain if the communication processes remain effective. Positively, the service had links with a friends and neighbours initiative for care homes.

The service was relatively new to the area and the leadership team were committed to working collaboratively with partner agencies and the community.

The leadership team had the understanding needed to make improvements happen. The registered manager told us “I want a high performing team, capable of recognising risk, I want a team that are actively making people’s lives better.” They recognised the challenges staff faced with rota changes and new staff appointments and getting to know new people being admitted to the service. More work was needed to ensure all staff were fully supported to work towards improvement and innovation.

The organisation was clear about their vision and values and aware they had more work to do to ensure all processes were communicated clearly and embedded to support learning and innovation. External relationships were being developed so care provision was joined up, working towards delivering a high quality and consistent service to people.