Highfield

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 inspection we rated this key question good. At this inspection the rating has remained 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.

Staff understood the vision of Polesworth Group Homes and worked to promote people’s human rights and inclusion. Staff were committed to enabling people to reach their full potential with the care and support they needed. One staff member told us, “This is a really nice company to work for. Without sounding corny, there really is a family feel. All the service users get together once a month to socialise and all the staff get together. We work well as a team.”

The provider valued staff teamwork and there was a strong focus on this. Staff felt valued and able to talk with the assistant manager or registered manager if needed.

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.

During our inspection, we spent time with the assistant manager, the registered manager and the provider’s Chief Executive Officer (CEO). The registered manager was also manager for another of the provider’s residential care homes in the local area. Whilst the registered manager’s office for the supported living service was based at the care home service, both people and staff told us they regularly had contact with the management team who also undertook visits to people’s homes.

Staff told us managers were available to give them support day and night if needed and described them as “very supportive.” We observed people and staff were relaxed in the presence of managers during our inspection visit and staff felt they could speak openly with them about any concerns they had.

Staff spoke highly of the CEO who visited people’s homes to ensure everything was running smoothly and people were happy with the service. There was a culture of trust and transparency.

Leaders had the skills, knowledge and experience they needed to lead effectively. The management team engaged and participated with external ‘Provider Forums’ to share good practice and learn from one another.

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

The management team aimed to create and maintain a positive culture where people’s voice was heard and listened to and staff felt able to speak out if needed.

People confirmed they felt able to talk with staff and the management team about anything that was worrying them. Equally, staff told us they were able to raise and share any concerns and felt these would be addressed by managers.

Relatives knew who managers were and felt they could contact them if they needed to discuss anything.

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 provider was committed to promoting equality and diversity in the workplace. Staff felt they were valued and supported by the management team. One staff member told us, “We can talk about anything in supervision, but we also have group chats, so lots is shared or sorted before you have supervision. We share information, seek advice or learn about any changes in the organisation. It’s all password protected and it works well.”

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.

Systems and processes were in place to check the safety and quality of the supported living services. Checks on staff by the assistant manager and the registered manager ensured staff had the skills they needed for their roles and continued to work in a person-centred way in line with the provider’s policies and procedures.

The CEO undertook provider visits to people’s homes and spent time with people gaining their feedback on the services provided. Visits were recorded with actions and any concerns were acted on and resolved. For example, 1 person had expressed an interest in visiting Lapland, and the registered manager was exploring this. Financial audits took place to ensure staff supported people in a safe way with their money. The CEO had also involved themselves in care plan auditing, which gave ‘fresh eyes’ to ensuring managers’ audits identified any areas for improvement. Where actions had been recorded, these had been acted on.

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 management and staff team worked with healthcare professionals to provide joined up care for people. One staff member told us, “We have a good relationship with all health professionals. One person was not sleeping at all so the assistant manager liaised with the multi-disciplinary team, with our staff input, to get advice and help. Things have improved for the person, as we all worked together.”

The provider was pro-active in developing other local partnerships, for example, with a local school. In offering student placement work experience, this gave people an opportunity to give students a real-life experience of supporting them in social care services. In developing this partnership working, people with a learning disability may face less inequality, as members of their community value them as equal.

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.

There was a learning culture driven by the provider’s willingness to improve services. The CEO told us they read published inspection reports for homes providing a similar service and picked up any useful tips from those rated ‘good’ and ‘outstanding’. The management team were involved in sharing good practice at the local provider’s forum. The CEO also promoted learning among the provider’s numerous registered managers so lessons could be learned, where needed, across Polesworth Group Homes.