Woodlands Care Home

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. At our last assessment we rated this key question good. At this assessment the rating has remained good. This meant people were supported and treated with dignity and respect; and involved as partners in their care.

This service scored 85 (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 was exceptional at treating people with kindness, empathy and compassion and in how they respected people’s privacy and dignity. Staff always treated colleagues from other organisations with kindness and respect. Throughout the inspection we received positive feedback from people, relatives and external professionals. We observed staff interacting with people and found they treated people with respect, kindness and understanding. Staff knew people extremely well and took account of people’s individual needs and preferences, while supporting them in a dignified way. One person said, “They [staff] are all very nice, understanding people who soon notice if I am not feeling 100%. The staff tend to stay long term, so that says everything really.” One relative said, “I have often found 1 of the younger carers chatting away to [family member] while they sit with [family member], holding their hand. [Family member] sometimes takes a while to even notice I am there, but it’s lovely to see them engaging with people. People are really respected and cared for.” One external professional said, “I have always been very impressed with the way Woodlands Care Home cares for the residents, and the caring nature of their approach.”

The provider 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. We saw care plans and guidance provided to staff gave information about each person and how they expressed their choices. This enabled staff, particularly new staff, to become familiar with how to support people in the way they preferred. One relative said, “The [staff] know [family member] is a bit of a character and enjoy a bit of banter and laughter with them when [family member] is in the mood, even though they are no longer very verbal.” One relative said, “Staff make sure that [family member] is sitting in their friendship group when they come to the lounge.” Another relative said, “I am grateful they [staff] don’t take the easy route and leave [family member] in bed but get them washed and dressed and down in the lounge where they are encouraged to join in, which they usually do.”

The provider was exceptional at promoting people’s independence, so people knew their rights and had choice and control over their own care, treatment and well-being. People had access to a varied programme of social activities. People were happy with the social activities available and had been involved in planning them around their preferences. The registered manager said, “Butterfly time is at 11am, the team sit with residents, this isn’t a break, this is what I expect staff to do, to spend time with residents. I try and encourage people to come out of their rooms, so they are not bored and isolated.” The registered manager was in the process of improving activities even further and wanted activities to be of a high quality. The registered manager said, “Painting might just involve 3 people all day, but it’s quality and other things will be happening for other people. For example, 1 person sits on reception as this is what they used to do, we look at people’s skills and see what they can do. It is important that activities are meaningful.” The staff and management team included people on interview panels when recruiting new staff. This included supporting people to contact the successful applicant and offer them the post. A large electronic tablet was available for activities and also used to contact relatives using video calls. There was a sensory mode, and the tablet was on wheels so could be used for 1-1 time for people who like to spend time in their bedrooms. One external professional said, “The care home often tries to promote independence for their residents and healthier choices for example they have hydration stations and give residents roles in the home if they want some purpose in life, such as meeting and greeting visitors or helping with simple domestic tasks in the home, such as setting the table.”

The provider 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. People and relatives told us staff were attentive and quick to offer support. One relative said, “They [staff] know [family member] has no sight in one eye and are ready to support them if they see them struggling.” During the site visit we saw staff responded well to an emergency situation and continued to provide appropriate care in a calm and reassuring way.

The provider cared about and promoted the well-being of their staff and supported and enabled staff to always deliver person-centred care. Staff had access to a staff handbook which included the providers policies and procedures. Staff had opportunities to progress within the organisation if they had a desire to. Staff retention was good and staff enjoyed working at the home and felt valued. Staff birthdays were celebrated, for example 1 member of staff was celebrating a special birthday, and everyone had planned to have a pizza day to celebrate. The provider had staff member of the month awards in recognition of good work.