Guild Healthcare

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 changed to outstanding. This meant people were truly respected and valued as individuals; and empowered as partners in their care in an exceptional service.

This service scored 90 (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 was exceptional at treating people with kindness, empathy and compassion and in how they respected people’s privacy and dignity. Staff always treated colleagues from other organisations with kindness and respect.

People told us staff were kind, compassionate and felt they were treated with dignity. A person said, “I feel safe when they are around, they are lovely people.” Another person said, “The carers are well trained and so nice. They go over and above to look after me, just by seeing the little things that need doing and keep my home tidy. I cannot sing their praises enough”

Another person told us “I cannot speak more highly of the company and the care that they provide. I find the care meets my needs, and it has a very positive impact on my life when my partner is away, they are great company and treat me like a family member.”

A relative said, “[relative] was not well once, when the carer was there, so the carer phoned an ambulance and let me know. The carer stayed with [relative] until the ambulance arrived. They are doing an excellent job.”

Another relative told us “The support that we receive has been excellent as it has allowed me to be a [relative] as opposed to dealing with my [relative’s] personal care.”

People and staff told us they felt people were treated with kindness and in a caring way. People and their relatives said they would be happy to recommend the service to others. One person said “I highly recommend them. A definite 10 out of 10”.

The provider was passionate about making the lives of the people they supported better and fulfilled. For example, at Christmas the service sent out menus for Christmas dinner plates that also included Christmas pudding. People could choose what they would like to eat for themselves and another person of their choice, such as a relative, for the service to deliver. The registered manager told us they were passionate about reducing loneliness and therefore felt by giving people the option to have a meal free of charge for an additional person, would encourage this. Dietary requirements are collected beforehand to ensure suitable food options are available for everyone. Another example we saw was the service delivering an afternoon tea box to people as well as regular fish and chip days throughout the year. The service also held arts and craft events such as wreath making and garden parties in the warmer months. A team comprising of care workers and management staff attend the parties to provide sufficient support.

The service provides birthday cards for every person’s birthday and for milestone birthdays people also receive a gift. We saw one example where the service had organised a delivery of a special breakfast and cake for a milestone anniversary for a husband and wife who use the service. The service recognised ‘world kindness day’ by sending out flowers, a drinks coaster and a card with an inspirational quote to all people who use the service.

The service also held fundraising events for all people and the wider community. For example, the service held regular raffles, coffee mornings and attended ‘community fun days’ to promote community engagement and inclusion.

People told us that the extra mile the provider and staff went, made a difference to them.

We saw numerous examples of where staff went over and above their roles. For example we saw evidence where 1 person’s favourite jumper had worn, and a staff member patched this up for them so they could continue to wear it .

The provider treated people as individuals and was exceptional in how they made sure people’s care, support and treatment met people’s needs and preferences. The provider took account of people’s strengths, abilities, aspirations, culture and unique backgrounds and protected characteristics.

People felt they were treated as individuals. A person said, “They take time to chat to and are very kind and caring people” Another person said, “The carers treat my [relative] with respect and treat him as an individual, not someone who has a list of tasks to be done and tick them off, they are so kind. “A third person said, “They pay attention to detail, they see what needs to be done.” People shared that the support from the service meant their relatives could spend more valuable person-centred time with them rather than supporting with tasks.

Relatives were also very positive about how the staff supported their family members. A relative said, “They are gentle and never rush [relative] and are very flexible with their approach depending on how [relative] is feeling on the day.” Another relative said, “I can’t speak highly enough of the standard of service that my [relative] gets. There is hardly any turnover of staff, so [relative] knows her carers and they know her.”

There was a strong organisational commitment and effective action to ensure there was equality and inclusion for everybody. For example, there were preferred pronouns recorded within people’s files. People's care was planned with them, and they were fully involved in developing their care and support plans which ensured they were always treated as individuals. People told us these were regularly reviewed and updated where appropriate.

Topics of interests and ‘about me’ were a big part of the initial assessment process. Staff took great interest in people and worked in partnership with them and their families to develop detailed information. For example, favourite places they have travelled, family life, occupations, hobbies and interests. Having such information helped staff to strike up meaningful conversations and was used to develop a person-centred plan of care.

Information was sought about people’s preferred routines and the ways in which their care would fit into their lives rather than their lives having to change because they now required care and support. This meant people’s care was delivered in a holistic and person-centred way. Care records clearly recognised people as unique individuals and reflected their diverse strengths and needs.

The provider was proactive at responding and taking actions from people’s feedback and requests. For example, one individual told us they were sent a male carer who was lovely to chat to but they did not feel comfortable a male supporting with their personal care. The person fed this back to the service and they ensured that only female carers were sent for any visits that would involve personal care from the point of this request. People told us that they received continuity of care and this was further evidenced from how staff spoke about people they support. It was clear they knew people and their preferences very well.

We saw an example were a regular staff member noted that a person felt more comfortable if they counted their medication out in German due to their time past time in the military. The staff member shared the numbers in German and how to pronounce them with their other colleagues so all regular staff who visited this person could also support to do this, as this made them feel less anxious during their medication administration and that this was personalised to their preferences. A staff member told us about this and said “we as staff have taken the time to implement this which makes this person comfortable with their medication.”

Another example we saw was staff supporting an individual was personalised exercises that supported these persons desired outcome of regaining independence with their mobility.

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

People said they were always supported to promote independence, choice and control.

A person said, “The support that I have has encouraged me to become more independent. I am moving around better, my walking has improved, which is a great bonus. I could not wish for a better care company they are excellent.” Another person said, “With the help and encouragement of the carers I have certainly improved as my mobility is much improved. The carers encourage me to do exercises and help me. They also tell me how well I am doing which is encouragement in itself and makes me feel much better.”

Staff told us they encouraged people to do what they could for themselves and supported them with what they needed assistance with.

Care plans included information about how to support people in a way of that reflected their choices and promoted independence where possible.

The provider 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.

Staff were able to quickly recognise when people needed urgent help or support and acted accordingly. For example, we found evidence of staff and management escalating immediate concerns around people’s health and wellbeing to the appropriate place.

The provider had enough staff working for the service and was able to provide the necessary time and attention when a person needed immediate support due to changes in their needs.

The provider always cared about and promoted the wellbeing of their staff and was exceptional at supporting and enabling staff to always deliver person-centred care.

Staff told us they felt extremely well supported in their role and that the management team made themselves available and supported their well-being. Staff told us “Our managers are very supportive, if there’s a problem, I can usually get it resolved quickly. We are like a little family, we get on we all have the same agenda and same goal at the end of the day the clients are what matters.” Another member of staff told us “Management are very approachable; I love my manager she is one of the most approachable I’ve had.” A third member of staff said “I have always felt valued; we are all very caring for the clients at this service. They are very good at recognising any issues with staff and support staff in solving any problems, they are very person centred and look after staff.” Multiple other members of staff echoed that they all felt supported and part of a ‘family’ amongst their colleagues and managers.

Staff told us their managers had a flexible approach and supported them to create a work pattern that met their individual needs as well as the needs of the company.

Staff’s wellbeing was prioritised. It begun during recruitment to ensure new staff felt welcomed and comfortable at the service and continued throughout their time with the company. For example, on starting with the service, staff were asked to fill out a questionnaire around what their likes and preferences for gift ideas for an annual ‘birthday bag’. The registered manager told us that they use this information to personalise a birthday bag for staff so that staff actually receive something special that they have chosen rather than a generic gift. Staff told us, “It is the best place I have worked; everyone is lovely, careful kind. On Birthdays we get presents and at Christmas they have party’s”. We saw that the service rewarded staff who passed their probation with a ‘well done’ gift. There were also incentives for staff who worked extra hours or supported with cover such as the chance to win a hamper and gift voucher. A staff member told us “They are always thanking you if you are covering shifts, they try and do team building such as Christmas nights, regular quiz night s. There’s more of a family feeling community there’s sometimes pottery events for people, but they also invite staff and our families, building on the community.”

We saw multiple examples where the service had sent flowers to staff members that were going through a personal challenge in their lives. Management staff went out of their way to ensure care staff had face to face contact and support, out in the community or in the office. The service held multiple events, such as a summer BBQ and a cake baking competition for staff and people building on the clear sense of ‘family spirit’ that ran through the service.

The service also provides staff with access to a pool car. This is a vehicle where any staff member who needs transport for whatever reason, can use this to continue with their care visits. A staff member confirmed this by telling us “Recently my car was out of use due to an electrical issue. They let me use the company car so I didn’t have any downtime, they are very supportive.”

The registered manager demonstrated clear passion for supporting and developing staff in any way they could. Staff had access to regular training and could completed a NVQ qualification if they wanted to. One staff member told us “Out of all the places to work this is the best, we are like a little family, we are not just a number the manager does not look down on you, it’s a lovely company. With me they are very good at encouraging and supporting me, I don’t think I would have gotten as far if it was not for them. I know I can approach any of the management.” The management team were also very good at passing on feedback to staff from people who use the service. Staff told us this made them feel valued and appreciated.