Salutem Supported Living East

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.

At our last inspection we rated this key question good. At this inspection, the rating has remained 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 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 had a shared vision, strategy and culture. The culture at the service was positive. Staff understood their main role was to support people to have the best experiences possible. People were happy and relaxed being supported by the staff team. Staff respected people’s home and were led by people as to how they wanted to be supported and how they wanted to spend their time. People were supported to take positive risks and follow their interests and pastimes if they chose to do so. One person said ‘‘I am really happy living here. I’ve been living here a little while now and I can see myself staying here for a long time.’’ Other people showed us how happy and relaxed they were in the way they interacted with us and staff supporting them. They comfortably asked staff for support and staff patiently helped them with what they needed. A relative told us, ‘‘The staff are in the job because they love it and for no other reason. [Registered manager] does not just employ anyone. They find the ones who are in it for the right reasons, and you can tell the difference this has made to [supported living setting].’’

Leaders had the skills, knowledge, experience and credibility to lead effectively. They did so with integrity, openness and honesty. Staff told us the management team were approachable and included them in discussions about the service and how best to support people. The management team were capable in their job roles and had a good oversight of the service. They worked alongside the staff team and spent time with people. This helped them to understand the way staff supported people and identify any areas they could help with further. One person said, ‘‘[Management team] are always popping in to make sure I am OK and ask if there is anything I need.’’ A relative told us, ‘‘The service has the right leadership in place and things are taken seriously. Since [registered manager] came in communication has been really good and they really seem to want what is best for people.’’

The provider fostered a positive culture where people felt they could speak up and their voice would be heard. There was a complaint and speaking up policy in place at the service. When people and relative raised concerns these were looked into and addressed promptly. Relatives told us they knew how to raise concerns and were confident these would be addressed. Staff told us they knew how to raise concerns and felt comfortable and confident in speaking up at the service. People were given easy to understand information about who they could speak with if they were worried about the service or wanted to talk about anything. They were also encouraged to feed back about the service in meetings with staff members. The management team kept a record of complaints to help inform learning and make sure issues raised were not repeated. A relative told us, ‘‘If you speak up, you get listened to, it is as simple as that.’’

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. Staff told us they enjoyed working at the service and felt well supported by the management team. The provider supported their equality and wellbeing by offering preferred working patterns and discussing their job roles with them regularly. The providers recruitment process was fair and equitable.

The provider had clear responsibilities, roles and systems of accountability or good governance. Audits and governance measures at the service were effective and the management team had a good oversight of risk and the quality of people’s care and support. This covered areas such as health and safety, improvements to the service, people’s experiences and staff training and supervision. The registered manager was very responsive to the findings at this inspection in relation to minor improvements to be considered in relation to care plans and care records. They strengthened audits in this area and evidence this to us during this inspection.

The provider understood their duty to collaborate and work in partnership, so services worked seamlessly for people. They shared information and learning with partners and collaborated for improvement. The management and staff team had good working relationships with partners such as health professionals and local authorities. Staff supported people to be a part of their community and follow their interests and past times. People went shopping, went to work and attended local establishments such as restaurants and zoos and other areas of interest on a regular basis. One person said, ‘‘I like going out and I like staying at home.’’ A relative told us, ‘‘I think staff try their very best to encourage [family member] to go out and about but it is always up to them if they go or not.''

The provider focused on continuous learning, innovation and improvement. The management team had improvement plans in place based on findings from internal and the audits and findings. Actions on improvement plans were monitored to help make sure improvements were benefitting people using the service. Staff told us they were involved in discussions and meeting about the service and their feedback about how to improve the service was listened to and taken seriously.

People were happy with their support and relatives told us they felt the service had and continued to improve. Since starting their role, the registered manager had identified multiple areas for improvement and had successfully started to implement these. One person said, ‘‘Things get better when you speak with [registered manager].’’ A relative told us, ‘‘I think it is fair to say the service has been through ups and downs, but I can honestly say it is on the up at the moment. The staff team is very stable and [registered manager] is keen to keep improving the service and make it the best it can be for [family member].’’