Allingham House Care Centre

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

Staff were kind and caring and people were happy with the support they received. We observed good relationships between people and senior staff were consistently patient and caring when supporting people. There were a range of activities available for people to engage in. There were no restrictions on visitors; and people received visits from friend and family throughout the day. Skype calls were facilitated for people with relatives living far away.

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.

We did not look at Kindness, compassion and dignity during this assessment. The score for this quality statement is based on the previous rating for Caring.

We did not look at Treating people as individuals during this assessment. The score for this quality statement is based on the previous rating for Caring.

People’s wishes were respected; they were supported to have choice and control over their own care. One person told us their request for a female carer to assist with showering and personal care was respected. We saw visitors to the home on both days of our assessment. One person told us, “There are no restrictions on visits from friends and family. They can visit when they like.” Relatives and friends were able to visit their loved ones in person and the home facilitated regular contact for people who needed support with this due to family member living long distances away. People told us how they had requested more live singers for entertainment. The home had taken this on board and 2 singers were booked during the month we visited. People were complimentary about the activities team. One person had a season ticket for a local football team and went with family members to watch the home games.

Lifestyle co-ordinators outlined how people had benefited from taking part in the activities on offer. Staff told us about one person who had previously transferred in a wheelchair. This person had built up strength through participating in the cycling activity, and they were now able to walk short distances with supervision.

We observed friendly and caring activities and discussions between staff and residents. People were fully supported to maintain relationships and networks that were important to them. We saw visitors coming and going throughout both days of the assessment. Friends and family members visited people in the home, took them out into the community and on appointments, or attended review meetings with other professionals. Events had been planned to celebrate Dementia Awareness week. A walk in a local park was arranged for the day after the assessment. Relatives had been contacted and invited to take part in the event with their loved ones.

A team of 3 lifestyle co-ordinators were in post and ensured a wide range of activities and events were on offer for people in the home. There were processes in place to review and evaluate these, and people’s feedback in resident meetings was valued and acted upon. ‘You said, we did’ boards were situated on each floor of the home and outlined what the home had done in response to people’s requests and suggestions. The provider was passionate about improving life for people with dementia. It employed dementia ambassadors in each home, experienced in providing care and support to people with dementia. The role involved working with external professionals, attending dementia workshops and sessions held centrally. Dementia ambassadors cascaded knowledge via the delivery of bespoke training programmes to other staff in the home; staff were coached in how best to deliver individualised support for people with dementia.

People told us they were encouraged by staff to retain skills and independence was promoted. One person told us, “The staff try to encourage me to do things, for example, dress independently.” Staff also encouraged people to eat independently but would intervene and provided support if this was the person’s wish. There were mixed responses to how long people had to wait for a response when using the call bell. One person who was supported with lifting equipment had experienced delays when requiring support which had made them feel upset. However, another person told us, “They [staff] come within a few minutes; they come quickly in the night.”

Staff knew people well and were able to provide effective support in a timely way. Lifestyle co-ordinators told us how they were able to respond to people’s needs after getting to know more about the person. They knew and understood people’s likes and interests and how these were best supported with events and activities. Some people had experienced a Halle orchestra concert and had enjoyed this so much had requested another trip, which was planned for summer. People were exposed to new experiences in the home, for example live music and singing, and obviously enjoyed it.

We observed that call bells were answered in a timely manner; there were no long delays with support. People were appropriately supported during mealtimes if this was needed or requested. There was a calm atmosphere in the home on both days of our assessment.

We did not look at Workforce wellbeing and enablement during this assessment. The score for this quality statement is based on the previous rating for Caring.