Freedom Home Care Ltd

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 service. This key question has been rated 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 71 (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. The management team had implemented appropriate policies and procedures to ensure staff were well trained and supported to provided good care to people.

The management team were clear on what good quality care looked like. They knew about people's needs and preferences, and how to support staff to deliver care to people that was centred around their needs and preferences.

The vision and values statement was displayed on the wall in the office, in the training room and in the staff handbook. Staff knew the vision and values of the service. They told us how the management team demonstrated their commitment to supporting staff in making sure people received the care they needed. One staff member told us, “We have a slogan – it’s on the uniform, all staff know it – ‘making lives meaningful.”

The registered manager and the nominated individual for the service worked together and had the skills, knowledge, experience and credibility to lead effectively. They did so with integrity, openness and honesty.

There were processes in place to ensure staff met together to discuss relevant aspects of their roles through meetings and training.

All the feedback we received from people who used the service, their relatives and staff in relation to the management team, was very positive. One relative told us, “We rely on them as they are very helpful, they actually come and visit, themselves.”

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

Staff felt confident to speak up and raise any concerning information with the registered manager. There was a whistleblowing policy in place which was included in the employee handbook.

Electronic feedback surveys were sent out to staff 6 monthly, and we saw all the responses were positive. Where staff had made suggestions, these had been actioned.

All the people we spoke with said they had confidence in the management team to sort out any issues they might be experiencing. People said they could ring at any time and would always get an answer.

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.

Feedback from staff indicated they felt supported, one told us, “There is no judgement here, the managers value all staff equally.”

The provider had clear responsibilities, roles, systems of accountability and governance. Some improvements were needed to make sure the systems supported the delivery of good quality, sustainable care, treatment and support.

We reviewed the provider’s quality assurance systems, and whilst these mostly provided a good oversight of the service with regular audits on relevant aspects of service delivery, not all audits were up to date. Care file audits had not been recorded for 3 months, and we discussed with the management team how it might be beneficial for more than 1 or 2 care files to be audited monthly. Staff file audits had not picked up an issue with some references.

Spot checks were regularly carried out to oversee staff performance and to check the quality of care and people's experiences.

The provider understood their duty to collaborate and work in partnership.

The management team worked in partnership with their staff team, people using the service and health and social care professionals in planning and delivering care. This partnership working was evident from the feedback we received, and the registered manager told us how they had built a relationship of trust with GP’s who, as a result, were very responsive to the service.

The provider focused on continuous learning, innovation and improvement across the organisation.

Systems were in place to promote and support learning and improvement and the provider demonstrated a willingness to work collaboratively with others to meet the needs of people.

The service had received Home Care Specialists of the Year award 3 years running from a local prestige awards company.

A member of staff told us, “I genuinely think there is nothing at all to improve here, no improvement could even be made, everything is exactly as it should be.”