White Gables Care Home

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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

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. This is the first assessment for this service under this provider. This key question has been rated 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 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.

Staff we spoke with were aware of the provider’s vision and strategy for the service. One staff member told us there had recently been a service mission statement released. They told us the principles of the statement were, ‘look after staff, residents and treat each other as you would want to be treated.’ Another member of staff said, “We have a vision – respect everyone, be a team. (treat people with) Dignity.”

The provider had relevant up to date policies covering areas such as Equity and Human rights, Dignity and Diversity and Inclusion. Throughout our assessment we saw evidence of how the registered manager worked with people, relatives and staff to foster a culture of openness which had resulted in cohesive team working throughout the service.

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.

People, relatives and staff were very complimentary about the leadership team at the service. Everyone we spoke with felt there had been improvements in the way the service was run since the registered manager and deputy manager had come into post, which had positively impacted on the standards of care. We saw evidence of how the registered manager responded openly to concerns or issues raised to them.

Staff we spoke with felt well supported by the management team. One staff member said, “Yes (Registered manager) knows all about what goes on in the service. They always listened to me, we are very close to the residents and want to give good care.” Another staff member said, “(Registered manager) always available to staff, and they always sort things out for staff. I get a lot of support from my managers.” Further staff members said, “Yes they’ve got (good) skills. Very approachable. And they do help when needed. We grow together. Share learnings.” And “Greatest hands on manager we ever had. 1am or 1pm they are there to help.”

The registered manager also told us they were effectively supported by the provider’s senior managers. They felt there was good oversight from the regional manager who visited the service regularly and was always available for advice and support.

Our observations during our visits supported the views above. There was a strong sense of good teamwork and mutual respect for each other among the staff group.

The provider fostered a positive culture where people felt they could speak up and their voice would be heard.

Feedback from people, relatives and staff showed they felt empowered to speak up if they had any concerns, by the registered manager’s openness and willingness to listen to them. We saw evidence to show how the registered manager worked with people, relatives and staff to enable them to speak up. People told us the registered manager and deputy manager were very visible in the service and staff told us they had a number of opportunities to ensure their views on the care they provided were heard. This could be in handover meetings, staff meetings, supervisions or just general chats. One staff member said, “Yes, if anything would arise you'd have a voice to be heard. I would go to deputy manager or registered manager.”

All the staff we spoke with had knowledge of the ‘Freedom to Speak Up’ process. They told us there was information around the service advertising the process and everyone we spoke with felt they would be able to use the process and be heard by their managers.

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.

There was a diverse group of staff working at the service and everyone we spoke with felt valued by both the management team and their colleagues. This had resulted in a high morale among staff. Staff felt they were part of a good team. One member of staff said, “This is a multicultural (staff group). Africa/Indian/English. We are all contributing. The residents love us. The residents feel like family/friends.”

Staff also told us the registered manager supported them to develop in their roles by being flexible when staff wanted to further their professional education.

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.

Overall the quality monitoring processes in place supported the provision of good quality care. The registered manager and their deputy used the auditing tools in place to manage risks to people’s care and safety. There was good oversight of incident and accidents, and how these had been managed to reduce the risks of recurrence. We viewed particular audits which supported the safe administration of medicines and ensuring the environment was clean and well maintained. The audits we viewed showed where areas had been highlighted for improvement, actions had been undertaken to address the issues.

However, there were one or two areas where improvements could be made. This included changes to the way care plans were audited and by who. We discussed these with the registered manager who was receptive to our observations and made changes to improve this aspect of the quality monitoring process.

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.

There was evidence to show the registered manager and their staff worked in partnership with external health professionals to ensure people got the care they needed from the different services they required. One healthcare professional told us they had a lot of respect for the staff working at the service. They said, “They (staff) have some very complex people living at the service.” They felt staff worked with health professionals to provide the best care they could for people.

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.

Throughout our visit we saw evidence and received feedback from staff to show the registered manager focused on improving care. Staff were supported with up to date training and regular supervision. Staff undertook accredited learning to improve their practices and their professional development. One staff member had clearly used their learning to bring new ideas to the service with the introduction of different activities to enhance people’s everyday lives.