Responsive Care

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

Statutory notifications to the CQC were not always received in timely manner, however the registered manager immediately acted on our feedback and developed new procedures and upskilled staff to ensure the recurrence of this was reduced. Staff told us they had clear roles and responsibilities and felt supported by the management team who staff described as ‘open’ and ‘approachable’. The registered manager implemented relevant or mandatory quality frameworks, recognised standards, best practices or equivalents to improve equity in experience and outcomes for people using services and tackle known inequalities.

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.

Staff told us that although managers were supportive, there had been issues recently that affected their hours of employment in line with their contract however they were confident in the provider to rectify this situation. One staff member said, “The care manager has been keeping us up to date about improvements happening across the service and things are already getting better.” The care manager told us they continually communicated the vision and direction of the organisation to staff which ensured they were up to date on changes. The care manager said, “Being open and transparent means our staff remain loyal and we can grow the business.”

The provider had processes in place to communicate the direction and reinforce the culture of the organisation such as regular team meetings and regular supervision meetings. The provider had policies in place to support inclusion for staff and people who use the service.

The provider had succession planning in place, and we saw evidence of staff being upskilled and promoted into different roles. Staff were supported to obtain external qualifications, such as ‘train the trainer’ which enabled them to provide in-house training to other staff members. This meant training could be tailored to the organisation and people who are receiving care.

Staff felt supported by the registered manager and care manager. They felt trusted to do their jobs to the best of their ability knowing they had the support of a skilled, compassionate and capable registered manager. A staff member said, “The management team have an open-door policy, whether that’s in person or on the phone, I can’t fault them in the support they given me.”

Staff told us they knew how to raise their concerns to the provider and would feel confident to do so if the need arose. Staff were knowledgeable about safeguarding policies and procedures and were able to describe the types of abuse people were at risk from. Staff stated that the registered manager used team meetings to share lessons learned and promote improvements.

The provider had policies and guidance in place to support staff to speak up such as safeguarding and whistleblowing policies. Staff were given time and space in meetings to voice concerns in a protected manner. Where concerns had been raised records showed that the provider reported the concerns to the local authority, however required notifications to the CQC were not always sent in a timely manner. The registered manager acknowledged this and implemented an immediate action plan to upskill other staff members to be able to send the required notifications.

Staff told us the provider had an effective approach to workforce equality, diversity and inclusion. Staff gave examples of being supported with flexible working hours and reasonable adjustments when they were required. One staff member described an inclusive way the organisation was sharing different people’s culture, they said, “We are starting cooking lessons to help people learn different aspects of food in different cultures, this helps staff when they are in people’s homes preparing meals in line with their wishes.”

The provider had an equality and diversity policy in place. We saw evidence of reasonable adjustments and flexible working arrangements in place to meet staff’s diverse needs. All staff were required to complete training which supported their understanding of equality and diversity and protected characteristics.

Robust governance and auditing procedures were in place. We saw evidence of quality monitoring and competency checks. Some of these audits were delegated to other suitable staff to complete, freeing the registered manager to have overall oversight of the safe management and running of the service. The provider had emergency contingency plans in place should there be a sudden event that could affect the smooth running of the service, or the care people received directly in their own homes. This ensured people received consistent and safe care.

Staff were aware of their roles and responsibilities and how they contributed to the running of the home. A staff member told us the registered manager had acted on feedback about team meetings, the staff member said, “We now have additional smaller team meeting for certain areas, this means we can discuss concerns and risk more appropriately.” The management team described the overview they had of the service and the audit they completed which ensured they had the appropriate processes and resources in place to effectively monitor, assess and review risks to people.

We did not look at Partnerships and communities during this assessment. The score for this quality statement is based on the previous rating for Well-led.

We did not look at Learning, improvement and innovation during this assessment. The score for this quality statement is based on the previous rating for Well-led.