Forward Care

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 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.

People were treated with kindness, compassion and dignity. People explained they had good relationships with staff who treated them well. Their comments included, “Staff are wonderful”, “Staff are loving and kind. They do not discriminate in any way” and “Everyone is kind.” People told us their privacy was respected. They were able to choose the gender of care workers. A person commented, “Staff make sure my privacy is respected and they encourage me to speak up for myself.”

Relatives told us there was a good atmosphere at the service and people were well treated. Some of the things they said were, “[Person] has a good relationship with staff”, “Staff are polite” and “Staff are kind and empathetic.” A professional commented, “One of the strengths of the service is the positive relationships people have developed with staff.”

We saw that staff supported people in a kind and respectful way. There were friendly interactions. Staff offered people choices. People and staff were relaxed and enjoyed each other’s company.

People were treated as individuals. They explained staff respected their culture, religion and identity. Staff used people’s preferred names and pronouns. People’s family and friends were welcomed and included in activities when this was what people wanted. A relative explained, “Staff treat me like part of the family here.” People were supported to celebrate their religion and to attend places of worship when they wanted. Staff assessed and planned for people’s needs. People received bespoke and personalised care which reflected their needs. A person explained, “I can do things at my own pace and that are right for me.”

People were able to make choices about their care, and these were respected by staff. Staff understood people’s individual needs and how they communicated. Staff provided informed choices in ways people understood and could process. Comments from people included, “I can decide what I want to do and how I spend my time. There is no pressure. It’s my choice”, “I can make my own choice about all sorts of things, for example, what food I have in the fridge; what time I get up at and go to bed. I have full choice to do what I want, I like it that way” and “Staff support [person] to express their wishes and views.”

Staff supported people to be independent. People were able to do things for themselves when this was their choice, and it was safe. Everyone had different levels of support depending on their individual needs. Some people needed help to learn skills and develop their independence. A person showed us a cookbook staff had supported them to create with photographs and step by step recipes of their favourite foods. They told us, “I love food and cooking. Staff help me follow the instructions in my cookbook.”

People were supported to budget, shop and cook for themselves. They were also supported to understand their own health and make healthy choices to improve their mental wellbeing. An external professional explained, “I have observed positive efforts to support people with their independence and personal wellbeing.” A staff member told us, “The best part of my job is seeing people become more independent and achieve their goals.”

Staff responded to people’s immediate needs. The supported living houses were staffed 24 hours a day and people could request staff support when they needed. The provider operated an on-call system where people or staff could contact a manager at any time. People told us staff contacted relevant healthcare professionals when they became unwell. An external professional explained, “Staff recognise when people are becoming unwell and ask for additional support from both the physical and mental healthcare services.”

The provider supported workforce wellbeing and enablement. Managers regularly met with all staff. Staff told us they had opportunities to discuss their work and any concerns they had. Staff said they felt supported. There were opportunities for staff to undertake qualifications extra training and promotion opportunities. Senior staff had all previously worked in other roles and been promoted. Staff got on well with each other. They explained there was positive communication and teamwork. Comments from staff included, “The best thing about working here is the growth opportunities for staff”, “I have regular supervision sessions, team meetings, and informal discussions with managers” and “Staff are encouraged to undertake additional qualifications and specialist training relevant to their roles.”