Absolute Care Agency (EM) Limited - Quorn

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• 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 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 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. 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. Feedback we received from staff showed that the provider strove to maintain a fair, open and inclusive culture. Staff described a supportive culture where positive teamwork was promoted, and they were enabled to provide person centred care for people. Staff received information on the requirements of their role and the systems in place to meet people’s needs through training, policies and procedures, spot checks and supervision. Systems were in place to share learning and good practice through staff meetings and engagement.

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. We received consistently positive feedback about the registered manager. Relatives told us, “I can ring the office and speak to any of them; they are all brilliant” and “I think [Name] is part of the management team and they are very approachable. We have access to an app (for digital care plan) and we think that’s brilliant and its very user friendly.” Staff told us, “Managers communicate people’s needs if they’re a new client, so I know what I’m going into. Managers are good with communicating if I need any advice or support about a person or myself” and “Absolute care leadership is very much a team effort. They are always there for you with advice and help.”

The provider fostered a positive culture where people felt they could speak up and their voice would be heard. People’s relatives, professionals, and staff, told us they would feel comfortable speaking up including in relation to raising concerns. They told us they felt they would be listened to and taken seriously. We saw there were associated policies in place and that people were given the opportunity to raise any issues or suggestions at regular care plan reviews, within meetings or informally.

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. Staff raised no concerns in how they were treated and told us all staff, and the provider, worked as a supportive team. For example, 1 staff member said, “I think it (the culture) is very good, and everyone works as a team. I have good teamwork with all the colleagues I work with, and I get on with them. The management team are good at getting staff who work well together.”

The provider had clear responsibilities, roles, and systems of accountability. They used these to manage and deliver good quality, sustainable care, treatment, and support. They acted on the best information about risk, performance, and outcomes, and shared this securely with others when appropriate. Legal and regulatory requirements at the service were met and the registered manager had developed a range of audits, checks and analysis which enabled them to have good oversight of the service. However, we found improvements were required in service delivery to improve consistency and continuity for people. This was raised with the registered manager who acknowledged this shortfall and provided us with assurances of what action they would take in response.

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. We saw examples of this in people’s care records where staff worked with people’s external professionals, such as district nurses and GPs, physiotherapists and mental health teams. This showed that partnership working already formed part of routine practice.

The provider focused on continuous learning, innovation and improvement across the organisation and local system. They actively contributed to safe, and effective practice. There were a range of monitoring and audit tools to assess and monitor the delivery of care and support to people. The service had systems in place for learning and improvements with feedback being sought from people, relatives and staff to ensure there was a culture of continuous improvement. Relative comments included, “I would recommend the service, it’s nice and local. I can’t think of anything to improve” and “I would definitely recommend the service. The only thing I would like is consistency in the time staff arrive.” The registered manager, and staff, demonstrated they were passionate about delivering a good quality service that met, or exceeded, people’s needs and expectations. Prior to our inspection, the provider had identified areas in the service delivery that required improvement and had begun to address issues through short and longer-term actions.