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Living Well North Ltd

Overall: Good read more about inspection ratings

House On The Hill, Sunderland Road, Gateshead, NE10 9LR (0191) 477 3559

Provided and run by:
Living Well North Ltd

Assessment report published 4 September 2025

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Well-led

Good

4 September 2025

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 inspection for this service. This key question has been rated good. This meant the service management and leadership were consistent. Leaders and the culture they created supported the delivery of of high-quality, person-centred care.

 

This service scored 64 (out of 100) for this area. Find out what we look at when we assess this area and How we calculate these scores.

Shared direction and culture

Score: 3

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. Equality and diversity within the service was promoted. New staff received support and training which helped them to show those values in their daily work with people.

Capable, compassionate and inclusive leaders

Score: 2

The registered manager had the skills, knowledge, experience and credibility to lead effectively. They did so with integrity, openness and honesty. However, not all managers involved in running the service demonstrated they had the skills and knowledge to manage the service effectively to ensure the safety of service provision. A person commented, “The management work well with [Name] and often check that things are going ok.”

Freedom to speak up

Score: 3

The provider had a proactive and positive culture of safety, based on openness and honesty. They listened to concerns about safety and investigated and reported safety events. Lessons were learnt to continually identify and embed good practice. When accidents and incidents occurred, staff took appropriate action including seeking medical attention. The registered manager had a process in place to review incidents that occurred to identify any trends, patterns and lessons learnt and to share with staff to reduce risks to people.

Workforce equality, diversity and inclusion

Score: 3

The provider valued diversity in their workforce. They worked towards an inclusive and fair culture by improving equality and equity for people who work for them. Staff told us they were treated equally and did not experience any discrimination. They told us they felt valued and respected in their roles. They said they felt supported by the management, some said they were well-supported personally when needed.

Governance, management and sustainability

Score: 2

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. They act on the best information about risk, performance and outcomes, and share this securely with others when appropriate. There was oversight from the provider to review the quality and safety of the service in line with regulatory requirements, with quality checks carried out. However, some audits such as around care records, medicine management and other areas identified during our inspection needed to be more robust.

Partnerships and communities

Score: 3

Staff at the service understood their duty to collaborate and work in partnership, so services work seamlessly for people. They shared information and learning with partners and collaborated for improvement. Staff worked alongside other professionals to ensure appropriate support was provided. Professionals fed back the service worked in partnership with them. The provider attended network meetings with the local authority and other providers to share best practice.

Learning, improvement and innovation

Score: 2

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. Staff and leaders had a good understanding of how to make improvement happen. Leaders encouraged staff to speak up with ideas for improvement. Processes to ensure that learning happens when things go wrong, and from examples of good practice were well-established. There was evidence of changes that had been made to the service to make improvements and to address checks and audits outcomes and in response to people and staff feedback. However, we identified further improvements were needed in areas as described in sections of the above report.