Chartwell House

On this page

• Overview
• Shared direction and culture
• Capable, compassionate and inclusive leaders
• Freedom to speak up
• Workforce equality, diversity and inclusion
• Governance, management and sustainability
• Partnerships and communities
• Learning, improvement and innovation

Well-led – this means we looked for evidence that service leadership, management and governance assured high-quality, person-centred care; supported learning and innovation; and promoted an open, fair culture. This is the first assessment for this newly registered service. This key question has been rated Good. This meant the service was consistently managed and well-led. Leaders and the culture they created promoted high-quality, person-centred care.

This service scored 79 (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 had a shared vision, strategy and culture. This was based on transparency, equity, equality and human rights, diversity and inclusion, engagement, and understanding challenges and the needs of people and their communities. Staff attended regular staff meetings, one of the topics discussed was the provider’s values and ethos. Teams discussed various values and how they implemented them within their roles.

Staff received regular supervision and appraisal, staff practice was observed to check they were providing support following the provider’s values. Staff were given a handbook and job description, so they knew what was expected of them.

The provider had a shared vision, strategy and culture. This was based on transparency, equity, equality and human rights, diversity and inclusion, engagement, and understanding challenges and the needs of people and their communities. Staff attended regular staff meetings, one of the topics discussed was the provider’s values and ethos. Teams discussed various values and how they implemented them within their roles.

Staff received regular supervision and appraisal, staff practice was observed to check they were providing support following the provider’s values. Staff were given a handbook and job description, so they knew what was expected of them.

The provider had inclusive leaders at all levels who understood the context in which they delivered care, treatment and support and embodied the culture and values of their workforce and organisation. Leaders had the skills, knowledge, experience and credibility to lead effectively. They did so with integrity, openness and honesty. There was clear visible leadership within the service, the registered manager was known by people and relatives. The operations director visited the service each week and staff told us, they were supportive and approachable.

Each department had a leader or manager responsible for making sure their department ran smoothly to support people. There were regular managers meetings with senior managers in the service to discuss and address any areas of concerns.

The provider fostered a positive culture where people felt they could speak up and their voice would be heard. The registered manager had a sign on their door, ‘Open door policy, let’s talk’. The provider had a policy in place, and this was discussed in team meetings. Staff had recently attended a workshop on speaking up. Staff told us they were confident to raise concerns with the registered manager.

The provider valued diversity in their workforce. They worked towards an inclusive and fair culture by improving equality and equity for people who worked for them. There were staff members who had been recruited from oversees, they had been supported to settle into the country. Staff had received an induction which included training, working with more experienced staff and having their competency checked. Staff had been given another colleague as a buddy to support them. When staff required additional support to complete their training this was provided.

Staff meetings included discussions about respecting colleagues and anti-bullying. The registered manager made sure staff knew what behaviour was unacceptable and unkindness would not be tolerated.

The provider had clear responsibilities, roles, systems of accountability and good governance. They used these to manage and deliver good quality, sustainable care, treatment and support. The provider visited the service monthly and the operations manager completed ‘mini’ inspections on various aspects of the service. The management team within the service completed a variety of audits including falls, training, recruitment, infection control and medicines. When shortfalls were found an improvement had been developed to address these.

Relatives were asked to complete quality assurance surveys. The results were mainly positive but where improvements were required an action plan had been developed.

The provider understood their duty to collaborate and work in partnership, so services worked seamlessly for people. The service was proactive in working with the community and involving them in service. There were several clubs meeting at the service including Sight Loss club, stroke support group, coffee connections, dementia café and Crossroad for counselling support.

The service had links with schools in the area, which visited the service and interacted with people. The service had been awarded the status of a veteran friendly care home.

The registered manager had organised a dementia friendly event at Broadstairs Folk Week, this was now in the third year. The registered manager told us, “It was evident that during the 50-year history of the music event, there had never been a dementia friendly and accessible music event. As such we organised the first event designed to meet the needs of those living with dementia, also seniors with disabilities so that they could all become involved. We are now in our third year of hosting the dementia Gentle Ceilidh, which has now become an integral part of Folk Week and is well known in the community. Chartwell House residents, families and staff can take an active part in the event, bringing us together outside of the home for an afternoon of inspirational, music, dance and laughter.”

The provider focused on continuous learning, innovation and improvement across the organisation and local system. They encouraged creative ways of delivering equality of experience, outcome and quality of life for people. They actively contributed to safe, effective practice and research. The provider had developed a ‘Life Enrichment Programme’ to promote positive wellbeing. There were six principles including contribute, grow, reflect, feel, move and connect. These principles ran through all areas of the service and the support people received to improve their quality of life. Staff understood their role to promote and work within the principles. Staff told us they were supported to do this by the provider.