Magnolia House

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 care.

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 provider was good 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.

Staff were passionate about the people they supported and worked tirelessly to advocate for them and ensure they received a positive quality of life. They spoke to people as equals and included people in humour and jokes in way that was respectful but caring. Where people required additional support such as around eating, we observed staff were exceptionally patient and encouraged people lead their own mealtimes. People had close and trusted relationships with their staff team and felt at home and comfortable in their prescience. During our inspection we observed staff supporting people with activities such as arts and crafts and cooking, preparing to go out for activities, to manage personal appointments and to maintain their health and wellbeing. One person took pride in introducing us to each member of staff who supported them. A relative told us, “They are kind to (my relative) and I’m happy with what they do for her”

The provider was exceptional about treating people as individuals and 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 were empowered to take part in the things that were meaningful to them and develop new and positive interests that helped them grow and build social skills. People worked with their staff team to take part in new experiences that were accessible and personalised to them. For example, there had recently been a visit to a multi-sensory film experience, to the Natural History Museum and people spoke with excitement about an upcoming holiday. They were also supporting people to explore longer term wishes around foreign travel. Staff had worked with people to design scrapbooks detailing all their activities, which they used to help people plan and we observed people were happily flicking through during our inspection. The staff team were knowledgeable about each person’s sensory needs, and people had goals to participate in a greater variety of sensory activities. These include regular visits from musical groups and activities such as aromatherapy.

People had control over the space they lived in and were enabled to personalise their own bedrooms, with a process currently underway with people to redesign these, which staff were working collaboratively with people around.

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

People were in control of the care they received and were encouraged to live life on their own terms whilst developing skills that increased their confidence and independence. Staff understood the importance of supporting people to take positive risks. People were in control of choosing and helping prepare their own meals, and staff would proactively ask people if they wished to help with cooking tasks. One person was helping to make a beef stew during our inspection and took great pride in showing us the meal that was being prepared. Staff explained they had a safety peeler to enable them to undertake tasks such as vegetable preparation themself, in a way that was safe and recognised other health conditions that increased the risks around this. Other people were involved in their own cleaning and laundry, and there was clear guidance and goals of how staff would encourage each person’s independence in a way that was achievable to them. This included around managing as many elements of their personal care as possible to have maximum control in this regard and promote their dignity and respect.

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.

We identified staff responded to people’s needs in a timely and sensitive manner to promote their ongoing wellbeing. All people received regular engagement and focused time with their staff team, who were trained and knowledgeable about their needs. Where people needed support this was responded to quickly and there were regular checks on people during the night. However, where people needed time to themselves and privacy this was respected. For example, during our visit, one person expressed they would like time in their room as they were feeling unwell. Staff supported them to do so, ensured they had something to drink and continued to check on their wellbeing. There were sufficient staff at all times to support people’s needs and staff could describe how they would recognise each person was anxious or in pain.

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

Staff took great pride in working at Magnolia House and felt they were supported and empowered to deliver a high standard of care. There was a regular system of supervisions, surveys and team meetings monitor staff wellbeing, and staff felt comfortable in approaching the manager to raise any concerns. One staff member told us, “I have a very supportive team and manager around me. They showed me great kindness and support when I was new in getting to know the people. I love my job, it’s like a family”. Another staff member added, “I just want people to live their best possible lives. I enjoy my job and we work together as a team. The provider support my own development through encouraging me to take courses and training”.