Cera Lanehurst Gardens

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 service under its new registration. 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.

People living at Cera Lanehurst Gardens spoke positively about the care they received.

During the inspection we observed friendly natural interactions between the carers and people using the service with the carers demonstrating a good knowledge and awareness of the needs of the people they were supporting.

Feedback from people was unanimous on the caring and respectful approach of staff. One person said about the carers, “They are very friendly they always have a chat.” Another person said, “The care was great, and the carers are brilliant.” Another person said, “Staff are very friendly very good very helpful.”

People and their relatives stated that carers knew them and their needs. Our conversations with staff confirmed this. Staff spoke about the people they were caring for with compassion and respect. Feedback from partners and professionals was positive in the approach of care staff with people they supported. One professional said, “In my view the care and support are good, the care team work very hard, nothing is too much trouble. I have seen first-hand the care and compassion some of the carers have shown towards residents.”

People were treated as individuals by staff who took time to get to know them and understand them. Feedback from people and their relatives spoke warmly about the proactive approach of the manager and staff in getting to know individuals. One professional said, “I have found the care team to be caring towards those who receive care and support. They genuinely value each customer as individuals and try their best to accommodate the ‘home for life’ ethos at the extra care scheme.”

Staff knew and respected the people they cared for, including their preferences, personal histories, backgrounds and diverse needs. Care plans were detailed and had detailed person-centred recording of people’s backgrounds. One relative said, “The carers talked to Mum about things she liked and had interests in, which told me they already had been informed about her and actually cared even before the first day of care had started.”

Feedback from people, carers alike confirmed that they were treated equally, with respect. The provider had a detailed equality and diversity policy in place. Each person had an assessment of communication needs and discussions took place around how people would like the information about their care. One person said, “They are very courteous and respectful.”

Staff sought to actively support and maximise people’s independence, choice and control.

People told us, without exception, that staff supported them to remain as independent as possible by encouraging them to keep active and maintain control over their personal care. One person said, “They encourage me to do a lot for myself. Talk to me respectfully. Help me wash my back and feet and are very careful. They try to keep me mobile.” Another person said, “The carers help me be independent. I can’t fault them at all.”

Staff prioritised this approach to independence and control. Staff encouraged people’s independence with positive attitudes and understood the value people they support placed on their independence. One staff member said, “I put a focus on their independence encourage them to do as much for themselves as possible then share this with the manager so the care plan can be updated for all the carers to follow.” One professional told us, “The management made themselves available to support (specialist) input and staff had a positive approach to recommendations to enable my customer to maximise their independence.”

People were supported with a range of appropriate equipment to maintain their independence, such as mobility equipment or utensils to help them prepare food and eat. One person told us how the manager and carers had supported them to find ways to grow their independence using a one touch hot eater dispenser and a modified food preparation board with moulding that supported them with the use of only one hand. One relative said, “Mum didn’t used to walk much at all in Croydon but since coming here and it hasn’t been long Mum started to walk more often, I was surprised to hear she is walking from her flat to the communal area which is quite far so it’s great for her strength and getting back her independence.”

People were supported by staff to access the community, maintain contact with friends and family. The provider organised communal activities for people to engage if they wished. One person said of the activities, “Yes there are enough, and I get invited to them. They’re really good and there’s a quiz today.”

Staff responded to people’s needs in the moment and acted to minimise any discomfort, concern or distress. Staff were supported by person centred care planning that provided detailed personal, health and social care history to support them to respond accordingly.

Staff were skilled at anticipating need and escalated any concerns in a timely manner when people’s need changed. Feedback from people and relatives confirmed that carers were responsive to their needs. One person said, “If there's anything wrong with you, they’ll spot it. Their power of observation is very good. They pick up on it straight away.” One relative spoke of the care to their loved one, “They are very skilled with dementia, comforting and reassuring. Very patient when she's distressed and they will explain things to her.”

People told us that when they needed additional support, staff were responsive to requests from their call bell systems. One person commented, “I have a call bell I wear around my neck and if I press it the carers come to see what I need.” Another person said, “You can use it for whenever you need support, and the carers come very quickly and have never not attended.”

The registered manager and provider valued the inclusion, wellbeing and contributions of staff that enabled them to provide safe, effective and person-centred support.

People receive safe, effective and person-centred care as the provider recognised and met the well-being needs of staff. Support systems were available to staff such as an employee assistance program, as well as a separate mental health first aider resource provided by Cera care staff who had additional training for the role. Staff recognition schemes, opportunities to provide feedback and concerns were all available to staff.

Staff explained how they felt supported and listened to by the manager which allowed them to fulfil their roles to the best of their ability. The registered manager stated that she had an open-door policy and staff members were free to speak with her whenever they needed to. One staff member said, “The rest of the staff team also support me with my health condition and cover shifts if I have a hard day then I help with one of theirs. We work well together as a team.” Another staff member said, “(The manager) is very supportive, and she tries to help whenever she can.”

Staff were supported with working adjustments to accommodate personal matters, changes in wellbeing and any religious practices or events. For example, when staff had childcare needs or if staff practiced fasting, shift patterns were changed.