Style Acre

On this page

• Overview
• Person-centred Care
• Care provision, Integration and continuity
• Providing Information
• Listening to and involving people
• Equity in access
• Equity in experiences and outcomes
• Planning for the future

Responsive – this means we looked for evidence that the provider met people’s needs. At our last assessment we rated this key question outstanding. At this assessment the rating has changed to good. This meant people’s needs were met through good organisation and delivery.

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 generally made sure people were at the centre of their care and treatment choices and they decided, in partnership with people, how to respond to any relevant changes in people’s needs.

People’s care plans reflected their physical, mental, emotional, social needs and protected characteristics. We received overall positive feedback from people and their relatives in relation to people’s involvement in their care planning. However, where one person’s care plan stated how they should be supported, this was not always followed consistently. When we made the provider aware, they took some immediate steps and outlined their strategy to ensure people were consistently receiving care as planned.

People and their relatives were encouraged to be involved and at the centre of their care choices. Where people’s needs had changed, people were involved in the updating of their care plans. One person told us, “Busy here, things going on, activities day and evening. Like being busy, lots of staff, big house. Lots of people to speak to.” A relative commented, “[Person] has a care plan which they follow and consult with me.”

The provider understood the diverse needs of people they supported and how best to integrate people with their local communities. The care was joined-up, flexible and supported choice and continuity.

People’s care was coordinated and people were supported to access health and social care services. Staff worked well with other organisations in the local community, such as people’s community-based activities provisions and day-centres. This meant people were able to access these and staff supported them to do so. One person told us, “Go to day service, have Monday off, choice then where to go. Tuesday day centre, do dancing and singing, pottery, painting, archery."

The provider supplied appropriate, accurate and up-to-date information in formats that were tailored to individual needs. These included easy-read records, pictorial cards and other aids. Where people communicated using language programmes such as Makaton, staff used this comfortably and communicated with people effectively. Makaton is a communication programme that uses symbols (pictures), signs (gestures) and speech to enable people to communicate. One person told us, “If not happy, don’t always tell staff, got emotions cards so show staff, staff will help, tell manager.”

The provider understood the Accessible Information Standard and placed emphasis on ensuring information was available to people in the right format. Staff understood their responsibilities and worked well together to recognise communication barriers and how to overcome these. Staff told us they knew how to store people’s data securely and the system allowed them to access this when required. People were involved in the process and their consent was taken into consideration when sharing information.

The provider made it easy for people to share feedback and ideas, or raise complaints about their care, treatment and support. Staff involved people in decisions about their care and told them what had changed as a result. A relative told us, “If there is an issue I will email or call [service manager] straightaway. I was told immediately by [service manager] about an incident.”

The provider had a feedback and complaints procedure in place and these were available in different formats which made it easier for people to provide feedback. Where people had complained about aspects of their care, we saw the provider took action and responded to people in a format that worked for them.

The provider made sure that people could access the care, support and treatment they needed when they needed it. Where there were delays in accessing external services, staff followed these up within their limitations. People were able to access services in a way that worked for them. Where people required special transport to attend appointments, this was arranged by staff. Staff were flexible in supporting people to attend appointments and recognised the challenges faced by people who used the service.

Staff and leaders actively listened to information about people who are most likely to experience inequality in experience or outcomes and tailored their care, support and treatment in response to this.

People were empowered to share their views and understand their rights in a way that worked for them. Staff understood the challenges faced by people who used the service and supported them to overcome these within their limitations. Where people required support to undertake household related tasks, such as finances and registering to vote, staff supported them with this.

Where staff identified that a person’s wellbeing could be affected by stopping an activity to a future funding shortfall, they worked to overcome these barriers and enabled the person to continue with their hobby. A relative told us, “[Style Acre] covered the shortfall for years which meant person could still go swimming.”

People were supported to plan for important life changes, so they could have enough time to make informed decisions about their future, including about the end of their life. At the time of our site visit, there were no people receiving end of life care.

People living at Style Acre services and the local authority had co-produced a project entitled ‘A Good Death: A project run with people with learning disabilities and autism’ which sought to gather people’s lived experiences and create subsequent workshops to discuss topics including ‘Care when dying’ and ‘Advance Care Planning’.