Avida Supported Living

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. 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 provider always treated people with kindness, empathy and compassion and respected their privacy and dignity. Staff treated colleagues from other organisations with kindness and respect.

People told us they liked the staff who cared for them. Relatives were complimentary about the staff teams supporting their family members and said staff had developed good bonds with the people they supported. One relative said, “Staff are always really pleasant and good and have looked after [person’s name] really well. [Person’s name] is confident with the staff, and does not mind now if we go on holiday.”

Staff took time to listen to people and to find out what mattered to them. They used this knowledge when offering people choices, so people’s well-being increased. Staff understood people’s right to dignity and privacy, and took steps to ensure people’s rights in these areas were promoted. For example, by knocking people’s doors and seeking their permission before they entered. Relatives were confident if they wanted an area to discuss things in private with their family members, this would be facilitated by staff.

Other health and social care professionals told us they were treated with respect by staff at the service.

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.

Staff understood people’s likes, dislikes, preferences and how they individually wished to be supported. For example, some people liked to be supported to attend church or practice their faith through support to have culturally appropriate food. Staff invested time in meeting each person’s individual preferences, and responded to them as individuals. One relative told us staff now understood their family member’s changing preferences better than they did, and were quick to identify and respond to changes in these.

There were positive interactions between people and staff and people were relaxed, comfortable and engaged well with the staff supporting them.

The provider promoted people’s independence, so people knew their rights and had choice and control over their own care, treatment and wellbeing.

People told us they chose the meals and snacks they wanted and enjoyed shopping with staff to get the foods they liked. Some people enjoyed the independence of making their own drinks, helping with meal preparation and vacuuming their home. People said they were supported to keep in touch with others who were important to them, and staff supported them to attend parties and celebrations at the time of their choice.

Staff encouraged people to spend their time as they wished, to get up and go to bed when they wanted, and to do interesting things that mattered to them.

Staff understood people’s right to decline elements of their care and took time to listen to what care and support people wanted.

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 did not have to wait long if they wanted support from staff. This included situations where individuals were anxious, distressed, or required assistance with their physical health.

Staff knew people well and were able to anticipate situations that might cause distress, responding in a calm and supportive manner. They understood what was important to each person and used this knowledge to provide personalised care. Care plans contained clear guidance to help staff recognise early signs of anxiety or distress and outlined strategies to prevent escalation.

The provider cared about and promoted the wellbeing of their staff, and supported and enabled staff to always deliver person-centred care.

New staff had an induction and completed the training they needed to provide safe, person‑centred care. Staff told us they had regular supervisions and staff meetings. This gave staff time to raise any concerns, talk about their development, and discuss their health and wellbeing.

The provider had systems to help keep people and staff safe when out in the community. These included additional equipment and risk‑management processes designed to support staff wellbeing.