First Support Care

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.

This is the first assessment for this newly registered service. This key question has been rated 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 100 (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. Staff looked at ways to enrich people’s lives. Without exception, relatives told us staff were compassionate, respectful, patient and kind. Comments included, “The staff are very kind, I can trust them. The best thing about it is that the staff she gets speak the same language. [Name] doesn't speak English, so that has been great.” And “[Name] has a care plan in place. Staff are very good, kind, never had any issues, they tell us things, they let us know [name] was in hospital. Staff rang the ambulance and stayed with them. They go beyond their capacity to help.” Staff practices were monitored by the leadership team, including how staff communicated with people and how they provided care which promoted people's dignity and respect. Staff had undertaken training about how to support people with their mental health needs and a professional told us staff were driven about providing the right support to people. A professional said, “The organisation supported people in a person centre approach and people are at the centre of their care and support plan.”

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. Staff knew people extremely well and understood people's diverse needs and wishes. People were supported to be themselves and staff placed people at the centre of their care. A relative said, “[Name] is extremely complex, they [leaders] have trained the staff to enable them to care for [name]. Staff always stay for time allocated, sometimes if things happen, they stay for extra time, to make sure [name] is settled. [Name] has the same staff, because of this I am confident to go out and I don’t worry.” People's history, religious and cultural needs were explored and people were provided with tailored support. People’s likes and dislikes were included in their care plans, as well as what was important to them. For example, 1 person was supported to read the Quaran, and another person was supported to keep in touch with their family. A professional told us, “They reliably return calls when they say they will, they attend joint home visit review meetings and contribute in a professional and person centred way. During these review meetings, they have consistently demonstrated excellent interpersonal skills with the person, family members and myself. I have observed care staff and senior staff members interact with customers and their families when English wasn’t the person’s first spoken language, the interactions were clearly client lead, friendly, professional, supportive relationships which was reassuring to observe. They [staff] were knowledgeable of the care and support provided and any gaps in support to promote independence and what’s most important to the client.”

The provider was exceptional at promoting people’s independence, so people knew their rights and had choice and control over their own care, treatment and wellbeing. The provider ensured that people led the service and made decisions and choices based on their wishes. For example, 1 person was supported to prepare meals in line with their religious and cultural needs and another person was supported to keep up with news about their native country. Staff supported people to spend their time as they wished, this included watching old movies and religious rituals. A relative said, “The care is very nice, nice staff and friendly. They meet the standard of care [name] needs, very caring, always on time and approachable. There is a care plan in the folder at home, I was involved in drawing up the plan. They worked with the social worker.”

The provider was exceptional in how they 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. People had their needs met, by staff who were extremely passionate about providing people with high quality care. We received excellent feedback about staff responding to people’s individualised needs and wishes. People received support on time and for their allocated call times. Daily logs evidenced staff provided people with care in line with their needs and provided night safety checks, where required. Professionals told us they found the service to be to be a responsive, well-led organisation, that valued staff development, learning, and multi-agency collaboration. A staff member said, “Care changes are shared in team meetings, handovers, and digital updates.”

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. Without exception, staff told us they were extremely well supported in their roles and felt valued. A staff member said, “My manager is very supportive of me, and I feel if I have a concern, they will listen and provide support and follow-ups to further sustain me.” Another staff member said, “Staff morale is positive. The team works well together and supports one another, and there is a good atmosphere in the workplace where staff are motivated to provide the best care and contribute to a positive environment.”Staff received regular supervision’s and appraisals and were supported with their professional development. Supervisions included a staff welfare checks and staff received well-being check ins.