Highlands Care Ltd

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

Well-led – this means we looked for evidence that service leadership, management and governance assured high-quality, person-centred care; supported learning and innovation; and promoted an open, fair culture.

This is the first assessment for this service. This key question has been rated good.

This meant the service was consistently managed and well-led. Leaders and the culture they created promoted high-quality, 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.

The provider had a shared vision, strategy and culture. This was based on transparency, equity, equality and human rights, diversity and inclusion, engagement, and understanding challenges and the needs of people and their communities.

The registered manager told us their aim was to provide people with good standards of care and support within their own homes. The registered manager demonstrated a clear understanding of their responsibility under the duty of candour. The Duty of Candour is a regulation that all providers must adhere to. Throughout our assessment of the service, the registered manager and staff we spoke with acted with openness and transparency.

Staff described the registered manager as approachable and supportive, and staff felt confident any concerns would be listened to and acted upon. The registered manager promoted equity, equality and human rights through an inclusive workplace culture, where diversity was valued and staff were supported to support and observe cultural and religious practices.

The provider had inclusive leaders who understood the context in which they delivered care, treatment and support and embodied the culture and values of their workforce and organisation. Leaders had the skills, knowledge, experience and credibility to lead effectively. They did so with integrity, openness and honesty.

The service had a registered manager in post. The registered manager was also the registered provider. They told us they were a registered nurse. The registered manager was knowledgeable about their responsibilities regarding the Health and Social Care Act 2014 and understood their responsibilities under the duty of candour. They told us they were open and transparent with people, their relatives and professionals when things go wrong, and records we looked at demonstrated this. Their experience in health and social care proved valuable when working with people and they displayed a commitment to working closely with people and their families, staff and health and social care professionals to ensure good standards of care was maintained.

Staff were positive about how the service was run and about the support they received from the registered manager. A staff member told us, “The manager is very good and is always supportive. I think she is amazing.” Another staff commented, “The manager is lovely. She is always on hand and inducts us well introducing us to new people which benefits us all.”

The provider fostered a positive culture where people felt they could speak up, and their voice would be heard.

Regular staff meetings, supervisions and spot checks were held to ensure staff felt involved and listened to. The service had systems and processes in place to help ensure people knew how to speak up, raise concerns and whistle-blow, without fear of retribution. A person told us, “Things happen but it's how it's dealt with, and I feel that they [registered manager] are the first to listen and to be transparent and honest.” The service had a whistleblowing policy, which was reviewed and discussed with staff.

The provider valued diversity in their workforce. They worked towards an inclusive and fair culture by improving equality and equity for people who worked for them.

The registered manager worked to improve equality and equity for staff by fostering a considerate respectful working environment where differences were recognised and valued. Staff completed equality and diversity training and told us the registered manager supported them to feel included and treated them with equity, taking account of their individual needs.

The provider had clear responsibilities, roles, systems of accountability and good governance. They used these to manage and deliver good quality, sustainable care, treatment and support. They acted on the best information about risk, performance and outcomes, and shared this securely with others when appropriate.

Throughout the assessment, the registered manager demonstrated they had the skills and knowledge to provide a well-led service. They had a clear understanding of their responsibilities.

Audits and checks were in place to oversee service delivery and ensure people’s safety and needs were met. Audits covered areas such as, accident and incidents, medicines management, care records, staff supervision and competence and safeguarding amongst others. Unannounced spot checks and observations on staff were carried out by the registered manager. The registered manager told us these checks were conducted to ensure staff arrived on time, followed people’s care plans, staff practices remained good and staff maintained people’s dignity and safety when providing care and support.

People and their relatives told us they felt the service was well-led. Comments included, “Whenever I contact her [registered manager] even if it's in the evening she responds. She is the owner and manager and is very hands on. If all care companies were like this one the country would be in a better place”, and “[Registered manager] really bent over backwards to try and help and support us. She is so experienced and uses her experience to help us. She seems to know all about her clients and what support is out there for them”, and “I think [registered manager] has a long background in care and I've seen her roll her sleeves up and get stuck in with things. It’s a well-managed company. I would highly recommend them.”

The provider understood their duty to collaborate and work in partnership, so services worked seamlessly for people. They shared information and learning with partners and collaborated for improvement.

Care records showed that staff worked well with health and social care professionals when required to ensure people received appropriate care and treatment. The registered manager told us they worked in partnership with other organisations and professionals including GP’s, district nurses and occupational therapists. The registered manager also supported and provided information to people for services of specific need or interest. For example, local authority managed services or independent sector specific services.

The provider shared information and learning with staff and partners and collaborated for improvement.

There were systems and processes in place to help ensure that lessons were learnt when things went wrong. These included specific training sessions for staff, team meetings and staff supervisions. The registered manager discussed learning from accidents, incidents, safeguarding and complaints with staff. This supported learning and helped drive service improvements.