Grays Riverside

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. This is the first assessment for this newly registered service. 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 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. Staff were able to explain the vision and values of the service. One member of staff told us the service aimed for people “to be safe, well, comfortable and have their care needs met.” The registered manager spoke to us about their vision and values for the service and described how they wanted the person being supported to be celebrated and recognised as an individual. They explained the importance of promoting the person's wellbeing, while ensuring care was person-centred and tailored to their needs.

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.
The registered manager demonstrated a clear understanding of their role and responsibilities. Staff described the registered manager as ‘leading by example’ and being visible and engaged within the service. The registered manager maintained a strong presence and explained how they supported the person directly, including working care shifts when needed. Staff spoke positively about this, with one commenting, “The manager is approachable, supportive, and fair. [Registered manager] sometimes comes out to work with us on the shift.”
 

The provider fostered a positive culture where people felt they could speak up and their voice would be heard. Staff feedback consistently indicated they felt confident they could approach the registered manager if they had any concerns and that they felt any concerns raised would be listened to and acted on appropriately. Staff also had access to a whistleblowing policy, supporting transparency and enabling staff to speak up without fear.

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. The provider had policies and procedures in place to promote equality, diversity and inclusion within the workforce and to prevent discrimination. All staff had completed equality, diversity and human rights training.

The provider had clear roles and responsibilities to support the delivery of safe, effective and sustainable care. Decisions were informed by relevant information about risk, performance and outcomes, and this was shared securely where appropriate.
The registered manager demonstrated good oversight of the service and completed audits in areas such as medicines, complaints, compliments, incidents and accidents. However, not all oversight activities were formally documented. For example, the registered manager regularly reviewed daily notes, but this was not consistently recorded to provide an audit trail. A running notes document was also used to track actions, such as items for discussion at staff meetings, although this relied heavily on the registered manager's knowledge and did not fully support continuity in their absence.
Oversight was further strengthened through the registered manager’s direct involvement with the person and their family, giving them a good understanding of the quality of care being delivered. Although no concerns were identified regarding the current oversight of the service, governance arrangements relied in part on informal processes. We discussed the benefits of developing more robust and formal governance systems with the registered manager to support continuity during absences and to ensure effective quality assurance as the service grows.
 

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. As previously mentioned in the report, we did not receive feedback from external professionals. However, the registered manager told us about the service's joint work with other professionals, including dietitians and other healthcare specialists, to help ensure people's needs were met and their wellbeing was promoted.

The provider focused on continuous learning, innovation and improvement across the organisation and local system. Staff described a positive learning culture and told us the registered manager shared learning and development opportunities with the team. We also saw evidence of this in monthly staff meeting records. Staff spoke positively about the opportunities they had been given for professional development, learn new skills and highlighted the benefits of working alongside a range of professionals, such as social workers, schools and clinical teams, which had enhanced their understanding and practice.