National Care Group Kent Head Office

On this page

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

Caring – this means we looked for evidence that the provider involved people and treated them with compassion, kindness, dignity and respect.

At our last assessment we rated this key question Good. At this assessment the rating has remained Good. This meant people were supported and treated with dignity and respect; and involved as partners in their support.
 

This service scored 80 (out of 100) for this area. Find out what we look at when we assess this area and How we calculate these scores.

The staff team always treated people with kindness, empathy and compassion and respected their privacy and dignity. Staff treated colleagues from other organisations with kindness and respect.

Relatives told us, “(Staff member) and (Staff member) are a special kind of people. They have a good nature with my loved one”, “Staff are kind. I see them together. See how they interact with him. He has a favourite staff member” and “The staff always seem kind with other clients. It’s a nice atmosphere”. People told us staff were kind and caring and gave us 2 thumbs up and big smiles when asked if the staff were good.

We observed people were relaxed in staff’s company and chatted in with in a calm manner. Staff spoke with people in a respectful way and provided any information or reassurance they needed. Everyone laughed together when people gently teased staff. Staff described ways in which they supported people’s privacy, such as respecting people’s decisions not to invite staff into their bedrooms and monitoring from a discreet distance when people were using the bathroom but may need care or treatment.

The provider treated people as individuals and made sure people’s support met people’s needs and preferences. They took account of people’s strengths, abilities, aspirations, culture and unique backgrounds and protected characteristics.

People were supported by staff to be as involved as they wanted with our assessment. The assessment had been discussed with people before we visited and some people chose to visit the office and speak with us. Others chose not to. People who met with us were supported to chat as much as they wanted. Some people were very confident and others were supported to take time to feel comfortable before they shared their views.

People told us people got up and went to bed when they wanted. Some people choose to take part in hobbies in the evening, such as the drama club and going to nightclubs whilst others preferred other pastimes.

Relatives told us staff knew people well and tailored their support to meet their needs. Their comments included, “We won’t find any better than the care they are getting now. Staff know what they like and don’t like”. Information available to staff and professionals such as hospital passports included clear and detailed information about what people were able to do and how to communicate with them to enable them to be as independent as possible.
 

The provider promoted people’s independence, so people knew their rights and had choice and control over their own support and wellbeing.

Staff described how they supported and encouraged people to do things themselves, rather than doing things for them. This included encouraging people to “tap it for themselves” when using their bus pass. People were supported to manage their finances as much as possible. A staff member told us, “Some people can manage their own money and they get a receipt and change but some are not so confident and leave without a receipt and change. We are there to help and support with that. We sit down with people and go through what they have bought so they know what they have spent and what’s left”. People confirmed they went shopping with staff support when they wanted and purchased things they liked and were important to them.

People told us and their relatives confirmed that staff supported people to maintain relationships with people who were important to them, including regular telephone and video calls and visits.
Where people expressed a preference they were supported by staff of the gender they preferred.
 

The staff team listened to and understood people’s needs, views and wishes. Staff responded to people’s needs in the moment and acted to minimise any discomfort, concern or distress.

Relatives told us staff recognised quickly if their loved one was upset or unwell and provided the support they needed. They told us, “Staff know the signs of when they are getting agitated” and “Staff have noticed a difference in my relative, they are looking out for them. Keeping them safe”. Staff described how they worked with healthcare professionals to understand what caused people distress or anxiety and how to avoid triggers. They described how they distracted people to help them remain calm. A relative commented, “The staff are very calm and never stressed. Even when I know a lot is going on they take their time to talk to me”.

The provider cared about and promoted the wellbeing of their staff, and supported and enabled staff to always deliver person-centred support.

Staff told us they felt valued by leaders, were treated well, were motivated and rewarded. They told us their workloads were manageable, and they were not rushed. Staff told us they felt safe when they worked alone with people and had access to support when they needed it.

The provider had a reward system in operation, which included support worker of the month in each geographical area they provided services. Nominations were made by people, colleagues and leaders. Other systems were in place to reward team leaders and managers. The registered manager had been nominated for an outstanding achievement award. The provider also nominated staff for local and national awards outside of the company. There were local reward processes in operation, for example, a raffle was held at a Team Leader development day to say thank you for staff had work. The top prize was for the Registered Manager or Regional Operations Manager to work the team leaders shift and the team leader still got paid for it.

The provider had considered how they could support staff to remain with the organisation and provide consistent support to people. At Christmas and New Year staff had been given increased pay rates which had resulted in more staff volunteering to support people than were needed. Many staff had worked at the service for several years and had received long standing achievement awards.