Helping Hands Northwich

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 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 registered service. This key question has been rated good. This meant 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 75 (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.
Leaders and staff consistently described a clear focus on supporting people to remain independent, achieve meaningful outcomes and live safely at home.
People and relatives also spoke positively about the ethos of care, describing a service that promoted dignity, independence and person-centred support.
 

There were 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.
Staff feedback reflected a positive and inclusive culture. One staff member told us, “We are like a big family”, and others described a supportive environment where colleagues worked well together and supported each other. Leaders were described as approachable, open and responsive, which contributed to a culture where staff felt valued and able to raise concerns.
 

The provider fostered a positive culture where people felt they could speak up and their voice would be heard.
Staff felt supported by managers and described them as approachable and responsive when concerns were raised. Processes were in place to support reporting, including clear escalation routes and systems for recording and investigating concerns.
 

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 described a positive team culture where colleagues supported each other and leaders were understanding of personal circumstances.
Staff told us they had access to training and opportunities to develop their skills, which supported confidence in delivering care. The registered manager told us there was additional support in place for staff, for example, when there first language was not English.
 

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.
The provider carried out regular audits of staffing, care planning, incidents, medicines, complaints and service delivery.
Audits identified concerns and themes such as falls, medicines errors, quality of records and staffing issues. Action plans were developed, and there was evidence of follow-up activity and learning such re-training staff after a choking incident.
The provider demonstrated oversight of incidents, accidents and risks, and carried out an analysis of these to identify trends and patterns so improvements could be made. They also made referrals to external professionals where required. Governance systems also included electronic call monitoring and recruitment checks to support service safety and quality.
 

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.
Records demonstrated regular involvement from healthcare professionals such as occupational therapists, district nurses and speech and language therapists when people’s needs changed.
Staff described contacting professionals promptly and arranging reviews to ensure care remained appropriate.
 

The provider focused on continuous learning, innovation and improvement across the organisation. They encouraged creative ways of delivering equality of experience, outcome and quality of life for people.
Audits and incident reviews resulted in actions such as updated training, care plan updates and referrals to external professionals.
The provider learned from the inspections of their other services and shared data across the services to ensure learning and consistency from inspections and local authority visits.