Witham Community Care Limited

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 good.

This meant people were supported and treated with dignity and respect; and involved as partners in their 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 registered managers always treated people with kindness, empathy and compassion and respected their privacy and dignity. Feedback received from people and relatives consistently informed us that staff were caring, kind and respected people’s dignity. Comments from people included, “Very good, nice, helpful people” and “They are genuinely nice people, very caring.” A relative added, “They are compassionate and consistent.” Staff knew about the importance to people of maintaining people’s dignity and this was reinforced further in care plans that described the best ways to respect people. This included the language that was used and way people preferred to be spoken to. Professionals that worked alongside the care staff were also able to comment on the way staff treated people and spoke with them with one telling us, “I have noticed that all the staff I have met demonstrate kindness, compassion and respect towards the people they support. They take the time to get to know their service users and find out what they love.”

The registered managers treated people as individuals and made sure people’s care, support and treatment met people’s needs and preferences. They took account of people’s strengths, abilities, aspirations, culture and unique backgrounds and protected characteristics. People’s likes, dislikes, preferences and general routines were understood and respected by staff. Staff understood how people wanted to receive their support, the things that mattered to them and that made their lives and routines most comfortable. A person said, “They know my way of doing things and they respect that.” We heard a conversation between a staff member and a relative of a potential new client. Everything was explained calmly and the person’s exact current needs were quickly identified and an appointment made to meet, at their convenience. It was clear the staff member was aware that it was a difficult time for the family and they responded with compassion and an immediate understanding of what they needed.

The registered managers promoted people’s independence, so people knew their rights and had choice and control over their own care, treatment and wellbeing. Everyone supported was encouraged to be as independent as safely possible with daily tasks and routines. Most were independent with their medicines and food preparation and some were with some aspects of their personal care. Staff, however, were aware that independence was important but so too was monitoring people’s daily presentation and to be there to support when required. A staff member told us, “Some days people can do more than others and I’m aware of this and watch people closely.” Care plans promoted people’s independence by leading with information about people could achieve for themselves before describing where support was needed.

The registered managers 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. Staff were available to respond to requests from people during care calls and to respond if something had gone wrong or if additional support were needed. Staff told us about incidents where they had had to seek medical support for people because they had become unwell. In these circumstances staff remained with the person until relatives or other professional support had arrived. Subsequent care calls were managed by the service to enable that ongoing and consistent support. A person said, “I’m extremely pleased with their care and support. Their help is invaluable.” A staff member told us about a situation where a person had become unwell and they immediately were able to see differences in their presentation and take immediate action by calling an ambulance. They said, “After calling the ambulance I called office and family and stayed until they arrived.”

The provider cared about and promoted the wellbeing of their staff and supported and enabled staff to always deliver person-centred care. The registered managers recognised the importance of creating a positive work life balance for staff. This was achieved and staff told us they were supported by managers and that they felt comfortable in raising issues or requests. Staff retention was high with many staff having worked for the service since it started. This reflected the general atmosphere created at the service and staff willingness to remain and continue to work for managers that supported their needs. Support was provided for staff when on care calls. In the event of an incident or something happening that was unexpected and potentially upsetting for the staff member, a manger would quickly attend and provide support. Managers provided an on-call facility where advice could be sought at any time during care call hours. Some people lived in isolated rural areas and staff told us that managers would call them at the end of their call to make sure they were alright and had safely completed their calls. Festivals and staff birthdays were recognised and during a recent period of very hot weather, managers provided extra supplies of water for staff.