Sahara Gardens

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 good. At this assessment 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 the organisations values and ethos which staff understood. Staff told us there was a positive culture and they enjoyed working in the service. A staff member told us, “The provider are a good organisation to work for, they appreciate what we do, the board [of trustees] share good news stories with us from across other parts of the organisation which is good to hear about. There is togetherness and we are one happy group.”

The provider had inclusive leaders who understood the context in which they delivered care and support which embodied the culture and values of the organisation. The provider made sure people had the best possible resources to provide a comfortable life and had a vision of what good care should look like.

The managers told us about the importance of people feeling like they were in control of their lives and how this was a message they regularly conveyed to their staff which was evident through discussions in team meetings and supervisions.

A staff member we spoke to told us they were confident in the management of the service and added, “They are brilliant, flexible, supportive and very professional and have a willingness to work alongside the rest of the staff.”

The provider fostered a positive culture where people felt they could speak up and their voice would be heard. The provider held regular meetings with people to get their opinion about how they wanted their care delivered. This included people meeting with their keyworkers to talk about things that might concern them as well as the things they wanted to do. The provider sought people’s views about the service through surveys and by holding regular conversations with people and their families to discuss the quality of care they received. Staff told us they felt comfortable in being able to talk to the registered manager and deputy manager about any concerns. A staff member told us their organisation had a whistleblowing policy but there were staff at different levels of management in the organisation, and they felt they were able to approach them without needing to use the whistleblowing policy.

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 had fair recruitment processes and focussed on employing people who would be best suited to meet people’s needs. The provider sought to recruit people with experience and skills that would enhance the quality of care people received which was reflected in the application and interview process of staff. The providers recruitment processes included the organisations values, setting out what it expected of people they recruited. All staff had equal access to the provider’s comprehensive training and staff were supported and encouraged to pursue other training away from the workplace to further their knowledge and career prospects.

The provider had clear responsibilities, roles, systems of accountability and good governance. They used these to manage and deliver good quality care and support. There were systems and audits in place to make sure practices were safe. The provider identified areas for improvement through their auditing processes which were actioned. Audits around such things as medicines, fire and general health and safety were routinely carried out and actioned to ensure the people were kept safe.

The provider understood their duty to collaborate and work in partnership, so services worked seamlessly for people. People had long established working relationships within their local community. People were involved in the upkeep of a community garden along with other people from the area where they lived. People from the service involved in the community garden project had created a mosaic which was displayed outside the local train station.

The provider focused on continuous learning, innovation and improvement across the organisation. For example, the provider understood limitations with their electronic care planning system and were working alongside other colleagues and computer specialists to get the best from the technology they were using.

They actively contributed to good practice by engaging in local forums with other similar providers to share ideas about good practice. The registered manager told us how they access training provided by the local authority as well as being part of other training initiatives and forums which enhanced staff knowledge and kept the service at the forefront in delivering good, quality care to people.