You First Support Services CIC

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 this assessment we have rated this key question good. This meant people were supported and treated with dignity and respect; and involved as partners in their care.

This service scored 70 (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 respect, and staff demonstrated a person‑centred approach in their day‑to‑day practice. People and relatives described staff as kind and respectful, and said staff understood how to support them in ways that helped them feel comfortable and at ease. One person said, “I’m happy with staff.”

One relative explained that staff listened carefully to how their family member preferred their care to be delivered, which helped them feel safe and respected during personal care support.

Staff promoted people’s dignity and ensured support was carried out in a sensitive and professional manner. Relationships between people and staff were positive, and people felt able to speak to staff or relatives if they were unhappy about anything, knowing concerns would be taken seriously.

Staff always treated people as individuals and supported them in a way that reflected their personal needs, preferences, and circumstances. Staff built positive, trusting relationships with people, and relatives told us staff understood how each person wished their care to be delivered. One relative said their family member “Has struggled to learn to trust carers, but some carers put her at ease very quickly because they listened to how she likes her care to be delivered.”

People and relatives said staff consistently demonstrated a person‑centred approach that helped people feel valued and understood. Care plans were personalised and regularly updated to reflect people’s changing needs, and people were involved in decisions about their care whenever possible.

Staff always supported people to have choice, control and as much independence as possible. People were involved in decisions about their care and daily routines, and relatives confirmed staff respected their family member’s preferences when planning support. Staff encouraged independence but also recognised when a person needed help to remain safe.

People felt able to choose who supported them, and relatives explained that trust was an important factor in enabling individuals to engage fully in activities and community life. People needed to feel confident staff understood their needs.

Staff 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. Staff were knowledgeable about each person.

Staff knew how to recognise when someone required urgent help or reassurance. Staff demonstrated good understanding of people’s physical health needs and responded promptly when someone showed signs of becoming unwell.

Care plans were followed and reviewed regularly so support remained responsive to any changes in a person’s needs. Staff worked collaboratively with other professionals to ensure people received prompt support when required.

There had been significant organisational and management changes, and staff said this had affected morale across the service. Some staff said morale was good. Other staff said changes within the management team, and the organisation more widely, had adversely affected staff morale.

One staff member said there had been “A big change in management with managers leaving recently and team leaders leaving or stepping down and new managers coming in and new team leaders. This has caused some concerns.” Another staff member told us, “Over the year there have been a few changes of managers in our team, which naturally creates change and can, at the time, give an unsettled feeling. Obviously with managers leaving and new ones arriving, good communication has been affected.”

Staff were committed to providing high-quality, person-centred care, but the number of changes in a short period of time had caused instability and at times had affected some staff member’s wellbeing and confidence in their roles.

Staff wellbeing and engagement was receiving continued attention. The management team understood and acknowledged how staff were feeling and had taken steps to try to ensure they were supported through this period of change, by improving communication and staff engagement.