Cumbria Supported Living

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 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 82 (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.

The registered manager emphasised how the culture of the service was key and stressed how the people they supported were central to everything they did. She said, “People are included and lead everything we do.” They recognised the importance of effective partnership working, team togetherness and everyone pulling in the same direction to achieve, “Amazing outcomes for people.”

Senior staff were visible, supportive and drove the direction and culture within the service.

Staff were an essential part of the culture and were empowered to contribute, get involved and influence positive change. The service embraced diversity and inclusion, welcomed engagement, and understood the challenges and the needs of people and their communities.

Managers were positive, supportive and responsive to the needs of people and their staff. Team leaders described, “One team, working together”

Staff were positive about working in the service and had a good understanding of equality, diversity, respecting people’s rights and ensuring people’s needs came first always.

One staff member said, “I’m proud of what we do, and we want the best for the people we care for.”

A family member said, “There is a really good caring ethos – you can feel it. They’re not just doing a job. They all care and the managers do too. You can absolutely tell. They make sure they get it right."

The provider had exceptionally 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 always did so with integrity, openness and honesty.

Managers were committed and positive about the service and their roles. Staff described the registered manager as “inspirational, passionate and motivational.” They commented how they could contact the registered manager at any time to discuss professional and personal matters.

The registered manager was supported by team leaders who played a key role in supporting the day-to-day running of the service and helped to maintain oversight and continuity. Team leaders had been appointed for their values, competence and determination to make a positive difference to people they supported and cared for.

Team leaders were empowered to lead, take ownership and support their teams. They completed a ‘Learn to Lead’ course which provided essential skills to better support their staff, get the best from their team and to ensure people had the best life possible.

A new staff member commented how their team leader had been “caring and thoughtful” as they were getting to grips with the new role. They described the managers as “supportive and approachable.”

Another staff member described a period of personal difficulty and spoke positively about the support they received from their manager. They said, “My manager could not have been kinder and more compassionate.” They described how they were overwhelmed by the support and care provided.

Family members spoke positively about their relationships with management and the support they received.

One told us, “I have a great relationship with the managers. [The registered manager] is amazing. She has been really supportive and kind throughout. I have built a relationship with her, talk to her and can speak freely.”

Managers described how they, “rolled up their sleeves” to support people and their staff teams, and this was observed throughout the visit. People receiving care and support knew the managers well and could speak with them at any time about matters of importance or on social topics.

The provider fostered a positive culture where staff felt they could speak up and their voice would be heard.

Staff stated they would have no hesitation in raising concerns about any aspect of the service, their role or the care of people if they were unhappy about something.

Managers welcomed feedback from staff about all aspects of the service. The registered manager told us, “Staff tell me what works well and what doesn’t.”

Staff raised no concerns about a closed or blame culture and were confident that any issues would be listened to and dealt with appropriately.

Information about raising concerns and whistleblowing was available within organisational policies to guide staff. This supported a culture of openness and transparency where staff felt valued and able to contribute to service development and improvement.

The provider valued diversity in their workforce.

They worked towards an inclusive and fair culture by improving equality and equity for staff who worked for them.

Staff were actively supported to complete training in key areas such as autism, equality, diversity and inclusion, positive behavioural support and deescalation to reinforce best practice. This helped them feel confident and equipped to meet people’s individual needs.

Staff told us they felt valued and were treated well. They could work flexibly and managers made reasonable adjustments to support them where necessary.

The ‘Staff Wellbeing Hub’ provided accessible support to all staff. This inclusive approach aligned with organisation values, staff wellbeing initiatives and was replicated in person-centred care for people.

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 always acted on the best information about risk, performance and outcomes, and shared this securely with others when appropriate.

The provider had governance and assurance process at all levels which included service level audits, team leader audits, managerial reviews and meeting structures. The provider had specialist quality teams who provided external scrutiny of service standards against key quality indicators, compliance and regulation. Findings from these processes were used to inform the service’s quality dashboard and drive improvement.

Where actions arose from audits and checks, these were included onto the service quality improvement plan for progress updates, monitoring and review.

People were invited and supported to actively take part in quality reviews and audit processes. Outcomes from audits and reviews were shared with people receiving care and support. This involvement of people demonstrated the provider's commitment to inclusion, to people's views and direct experiences and the recognition of people's insight into service standards.

The registered manager demonstrated a clear understanding of the ‘Right support, right care, right culture’ principles, to ensure care and support was, person‑centred and focused on achieving positive outcomes for people.

The provider had business continuity plans in the event of an untoward event or emergency which may disrupt the safe running, continuity or sustainability of the service.

There were some inherent geographical considerations, but these were well managed and there were further staff appointments pending to reinforce service oversight across the county.

Senior managers responded proactively to feedback from staff, people and partners through satisfaction surveys, ‘HIVE’ staff engagement and provider forums to drive improvements in the service.

The provider understood their duty to work collaboratively with partners to ensure care was coordinated, safe and person centred.

Staff worked well across teams and services to deliver best outcomes for people. This involved healthcare professionals, specialist practitioners, social care colleagues and other external agencies to establish and maintain joined up systems of care and accessible pathways for those they supported.

Staff shared information with partners and collaborated with care providers for wider service improvements.

Staff had developed positive links with their local communities and amenities available to people they supported. People in the community worked with staff to support the service and people living there.

Local community stores assisted staff to re-design and landscape the courtyard garden into a safe and enjoyable outdoor space for people.

Staff, together with friends of the service, supported a person to achieve their wish of having a ‘prom’-style graduation celebration. The event was a success and created meaningful, lasting memories for the person. This demonstrated positive community and partnership involvement, which helped to enhance people’s experiences and outcomes.

In addition, it demonstrated the warmth and compassion of community spirit to contribute to improve the lives and outcomes for people in the service.

The provider focused on continuous learning and improvement across the organisation and local system.

Governance and assurance processes created opportunities for learning and improvement, which were positively embraced by managers, staff, and people. Staff engaged in celebrating positive outcomes for people and took appropriate action when areas for improvement were identified.

The registered manager told us, “I’m so proud of our willingness to share when we do something well and also when things go wrong. We own this. We reach out for support, we learn and we develop.”

Staff were encouraged to be innovative and come up with creative ways of delivering service improvements.

The service had positive links with external healthcare professionals, with scope to strengthen these partnerships to share best practice and improve outcomes and experiences for people.