Oaklands 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

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.

At our last assessment we rated this key question requires improvement. At this assessment the rating has changed to 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 71 (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 care home ‘principles’ were on display in the entrance for people and staff to see.

Staff told us the culture was “good.” One staff member said “Everyone gets on well together here. We always make extra an effort when someone new comes in. Where a lot of us have been here a long time we really try to involve new staff.”

Regular staff meetings took place, and we saw minutes of these. Staff said they felt valued working at the service.

The provider had inclusive leaders at all levels 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 registered manager was visible. People and their relatives knew who the registered manager was and spoke highly of her. Comments included, “She is very approachable, always says hello and knows my name” and “This is the manager (pointing at the registered manager); she is very nice.”

Staff spoke highly of the registered manager and the management team as a whole. Comments included, “At weekends there is always a senior or manager/deputy on call so we can

contact them out of hours” and “The management team are good and they’re direct. If there are any changes that need acting on, they do it. I don’t see them ever being biased.”

The registered manager told us “I think knowing the staff so well means the dynamics work well. The staff trust me and are open about mistakes or when they're not happy. I just love it here. I've got a really good team.”

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

There was a whistleblowing policy in place, and minutes of meetings showed staff were given the opportunity to raise concerns. The registered manager told us they actively encouraged staff to speak up. Staff told us they felt confident to speak up about any concerns and were confident they would be listened to. One staff member said, “I don’t have any specific examples but if I felt something was wrong, I would raise it.”

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.

Some of the staff team were overseas staff. All staff we spoke with said they felt included in the team and felt supported and valued.

The provider did not always have clear responsibilities, roles, systems of accountability or good governance. They did not always act on the best information about risk, performance and outcomes, or share this securely with others when appropriate.

Although there was a wide range of audits carried out across the service, weekly, monthly and 3 monthly, the audits had not highlighted the issues we saw in relation to medicines management or the items that needed replacing due to the risk of cross contamination. Full home audits were carried out quarterly by the quality assurance manager and there was an improvement plan in place, which showed actions completed and ongoing. Regular formal spot checks took place and the registered manager told us there was good oversight of the care delivery because both the deputy and registered manager were a visible presence throughout the building.

The registered manager said, “The deputy manager works 7-4 and I do 9-5. The deputy is at every staff handover and works the floor until I get in at 9am. She might continue to work on the floor and I will too if I’m not too busy. I spend time in the lounge, so that I can check everything, and I will support with moving and handling if needed.”

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.

The service had a good relationship with the local GP service and teams of other health professionals. The registered manager said, “Before Covid-19, we had a lot to do with the community. We do a pen pal thing with the local primary school, we take our residents to any local fetes, the church comes here monthly, and we go there for carols at Christmas, but they also do come here for those that can’t get to, or don’t want to go to the church.”

A staff member said, “[Registered manager] is very transparent with visitors; it’s like one big family here. The visitors know all the staff well and they know our names. They do parties, summer parties and Halloween parties.” There were no visiting restrictions.

The provider focused on continuous learning, innovation and improvement across the organisation and local system. They encouraged creative ways of delivering equality of experience, outcome and quality of life for people. They actively contributed to safe, effective practice and research.

Incidents and accidents were reported, investigated, and analysed for trends. Lessons learned were shared with staff during staff meetings and during daily handovers. Staff received regular training and updates and all the staff we spoke with said they felt trained to carry out their roles.

The management team were open and transparent during the inspection and when issues were identified they were immediately addressed. Staff told us they were routinely asked for their feedback and suggestions.