Harbour Lights Community Support

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. This is the first assessment for this service. This key question has been rated Outstanding. This meant people were truly respected and valued as individuals; and empowered as partners in their care in an exceptional service.

This service scored 90 (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 was exceptional at treating people with kindness, empathy and compassion and in how they respected people’s privacy and dignity. Staff always treated colleagues from other organisations with kindness and respect.

People and their relatives told us staff were kind and caring. Comments included, “They (staff) don’t just look after [Name] but they look out for me as a carer as well”, “When [registered manager] recruits I don’t know how they do it but they must be looking for empathy and compassion as well as the skills to do the jobs” and “They (staff) are so caring, kind, knowledgeable, friendly but confidential as well.”

One person explained how staff supported them to the shops and to the Post Office. They told us, “They (staff) give me space to deal with my things privately, but I know that if I said their name they’d be there straight away to support me.”

Another person said, “They (staff) are extremely thoughtful, they’ve made my life so much easier. I feel like I am very well respected. They think about my family too. They go above and beyond to say ‘hello’ to them.” This gave the person additional reassurance and trust in the staff because it emphasised to them the caring nature of staff.

People told us staff took time to get to know them as people and this allowed professional relationships to develop. A staff member explained, “Just something like watching television with [people] and giving them the company that they need.” One person told us, “I trust them (staff) completely.”

Care was delivered with a focus on people’s overall wellbeing. For example, staff had recognised the importance of reminiscing for a person who lived with dementia as this helped reduce their anxiety. Staff had created a memory box, which included their childhood teddy bear as well as photographs of their favourite things and holidays they had enjoyed when they were younger. To aid communication staff had also developed a series of pictures which the person could use to express themselves.

The provider treated people as individuals and was exceptional in how they made sure people’s care, support and treatment met people’s needs and preferences. The provider took account of people’s strengths, abilities, aspirations, culture and unique backgrounds and protected characteristics.

Staff were exceptionally considerate of people’s protected characteristics. One person explained, “[Staff] allow us to feel comfortable. We have never been made to feel uncomfortable, quite the opposite. They (staff) absolutely respect us.”

The service celebrated people’s individuality. For example, 1 person had written a book about their unique life view of their experiences, and the service had supported them and celebrated this. Other people were supported to undertake arts and crafts and the service celebrated these with them. For example, for Valentine’s Day little boxes of chocolates created by them had been shared across the service. This fostered a feeling of community between everyone who used the service. The service had celebrated, for example, VE day by taking VE day celebrations to people in their own homes. Staff wore hats, waved flags and sung songs when entering people’s homes and took a packed picnic lunch. This had been very well received by people.

Care plans were written with the person at the very heart of their support and included details about people’s likes, preferences and wishes. Staff recognised the importance of people’s individuality. One explained, “We put things into [people’s] plans and it’s never ‘no we can’t’ it’s always ‘we will’; we go above and beyond to support their wishes.”

Care calls were flexible and arranged around the needs of people and their lives. One person told us, “They work flexibly; we’ve got really good relationships. It’s so important when you get older and feel vulnerable.”

The provider promoted people’s independence, so people knew their rights and had choice and control over their own care, treatment and wellbeing.

One person told us, “The [staff] know I’m as independent as I can be. They don’t restrict my independence, but if I’m having a bad day I know I can say ‘can you give me some support’ and they step up straight away.” Another said, “I feel like I am treated as an individual.”

A staff member said, “It’s not all task-orientated, for example, it’s about getting [Name] out and it’s made a massive difference to them; giving them that experience of independence.”

The provider 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.

Daily notes showed how staff were vigilant to people’s needs and were proactive about anticipating them. For example, supporting one person to choose their clothes for a day out the next day to ensure they weren’t anxious.

One person described the additional support the service provided to them when they were admitted to hospital. For example, arranging for their specialist equipment to be taken to the hospital to enable them to have it in place and making sure staff were available to settle them in back at home on their discharge. They told us, “I lost all my core strength. I couldn’t stand up and I rang [the registered manager] and they immediately sent someone out at the drop of a hat.”

One person said, “They always ask how I am and they make sure I’ve got everything to hand, leaving my drinks, and making sure everything is as it should be.”

Another person described how staff had noticed they had a broken nail and had “spent so long filing it to make sure it’s safe and it’s not going to catch me. They (staff) are just really wonderful.”

The provider always cared about and promoted the wellbeing of their staff, and was exceptional at supporting and enabling staff to always deliver person-centred care.

Staff completed a health questionnaire before they started work at the service and the provider used this to ensure any risks to staff were assessed and mitigated. This meant staff were safe to deliver care and people were protected. Staff had access to regular breaks and were provided with personalised support.

Staff were recognised for their work. At the most recent staff meeting each staff member was given a thank you bag containing a voucher, and items such as pens, bracelets and stickers all with inspirational quotes. A staff member confirmed, “It was lovely, with words of inspiration saying you were loved and valued and wanted; it was so nice”. The registered manager told us, “I make it my business to say thank you and how much I appreciate them (staff).”

The provider recognised the importance of good mental health. There were posters displayed throughout the office and rooms were available for staff to speak privately should they wish. The registered manager told us, “Our door is always open, (staff) are always in an out. They come in here rather than go home. They come for a cuppa and a chat.” A staff member said, “The service is big on mental health. For example, a [person] passed away and [registered manager] was straight on the phone asking if staff were OK, did we need to talk? The support is always there.”