Beechcroft

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 newly registered service. This key question has been rated requires improvement. This meant the management and leadership was inconsistent. Leaders and the culture they created did not always support the delivery of high-quality, person-centred care.

The service was in breach of legal regulation in relation to good governance.

This service scored 62 (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 culture of the service was open and inclusive. Staff, without exception, gave positive feedback about the leadership and management of the service. Comments included, “The registered manager is the 'jewel in the crown' as far as I am concerned. They work tirelessly to ensure residents have a good quality of life”, “The management team is approachable and there is a strong sense of teamwork and respect among colleagues” and “I feel that Beechcroft currently is the best it has been, staff do not want to leave, everyone is happy to be here, training is regular, staff meetings are often and I feel supported to speak out”.

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 leadership team responded quickly and positively to the concerns we identified during this assessment. They acknowledged where improvements were required and quickly created an action plan, which they shared with us. Staff told us they had a high level of confidence in the registered manager. One staff member said, “I feel [registered manager] has been the best addition to the Beechcroft team and I feel the many changes and improvements they have implemented have positively benefitted both staff and residents”. Another staff member said, “I feel I can speak to [registered manager] and [deputy manager] about anything. They have both be a great support to me both personally and professionally. [Registered manager] has shown me empathy, understanding and always encouraged me to further my learning and role.

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

The provider used regular surveys to seek feedback from people, relatives and staff. All of the staff we spoke with told us they felt comfortable raising concerns. One staff member said, “The manager is great, and very approachable, I would have no hesitation is going to her if I had a problem with either the staff or the care side of things”.

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.

Beechcroft had a diverse workforce and all the staff we spoke with told us they felt valued, respected and well supported. One staff member said, “I can talk to the manager, area manager and providers and I feel listened to. They are responsive and approachable, and I feel respected”. Another staff member said, “We have a very good team, I enjoy working with all the staff everyone is happy and hard working”.

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

The registered manager had limited oversight of governance systems. Audits were completed on a monthly basis; however, they had not identified that people’s fluid records indicated poor fluid intakes, people’s bowels were not being safely monitored or people’s prescribed creams were not well managed.

Incidents and records of emotional distress were not being reviewed, and there was limited learning from falls analysis or complaints records.

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.

Staff worked openly with healthcare professionals and welcomed input from local teams to support improvement.

The provider did not always focus on continuous learning, innovation and improvement across the organisation and local system. They did not always encourage creative ways of delivering equality of experience, outcome and quality of life for people. They did not always actively contribute to safe, effective practice and research.

The provider told us they shared learning and development between the four homes in the group, including learning from incidents and complaints, however, there was limited evidence that this work had supported improvement at this service. The provider told us they were working to improve organisational learning and embed best practice across the group, including implementing learning from partnership working. Work was ongoing to develop staff knowledge of best practice models and improve outcomes for people.