Benkhill Lodge

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.

At our last assessment we rated this key questiongood. At thisassessmentthe rating hasremainedgood.

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. There was a positive culture within the service and people, staff and relatives all recognised the positive influence leaders had on the culture.

There was a strong team ethos amongst the staff team which centred on professional respect for each other.

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. Leaders were visible in the service and approachable to staff, people and their relatives. They knew the people they supported well and understood the risks within the service and areas that needed further improvement.

The provider fostered a positive culture where people felt they could speak up and their voice would be heard. One staff member told us, “If I raise anything they do act, I like to say it how it is and I will raise anything I’m unsure of and they always respond positively. I’m treated very well and fairly and have confidence in management; I’ve never been put off raising a concern.”

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. This included planning an event in which staff and residents shared a dish from their hometowns to recognise and celebrate diversity and to learn about different cultural traditions and foster awareness and understanding.

The provider had clear responsibilities, roles, systems of accountability and good governance. 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. However, provider audits for health and safety and infection prevention control had not been completed for over a year. Systems implemented by the provider were not effective in ensuring effective oversight by the manager. For example, the training matrix was a large document that the manager had struggled to use. The manager had shared this with the provider, and they were working on developing a better system. The manager ensured that individual’s training was reviewed with staff at each supervision.

Medication audits completed had failed to identify issues found on inspection. The manager took steps immediately to the address the shortfalls with the current auditing processes.

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. The manager regularly attended provider forums, peer support groups and market oversight meetings to share good practice and learn from other services and stakeholders.

The provider focused on continuous learning, innovation and improvement across the organisation and local system. They encouraged creative ways of delivering equality of experience, outcome and quality of life for people. They actively contributed to safe, effective practice and research. The manager used a service improvement plan to continually drive improvement and share concerns with senior leaders. The provider was preparing to move to electronic care records as they recognised the benefits of using technology to assist with documentation.