Independent Support & Care Ltd

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 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. 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 provider had a shared culture and direction. Staff told us the company was a good place to work. One member of staff said, “It feels like a family working here.” There was good communication between management, care staff and people who used the service, including through the use of WhatsApp groups and meetings.

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

There was a registered manager in place, who was also the owner of the company. Staff spoke positively about the registered manager. One member of staff said, “They [registered manager] are quite friendly, they are a good colleague. If you have any problems you can tell them.” A relative told us, “I am happy with [registered manager], they are very good.” The registered manager had carried out a ‘Staff Wellbeing Audit’ to help ensure they were acting as a responsible employer.

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

Systems were in place to support people to speak up. For example, the provider had both a whistleblowing and a complaints procedure in place. Staff and service user surveys were caried out which gave people the opportunity to raise any issues of concern they may have had or provide positive feedback. Staff had 1:1 meetings with the registered manager and staff meetings were held. These gave staff opportunities to speak up and raise issues of importance to them.

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.

The registered manager told us they promoted workforce equality, diversity and inclusion. For example, they said they provided flexible shift patterns for staff to help meet their family commitments. Staff supervision covered equality and diversity issues. Staff recruitment was carried out in line with good practice in relation to equalities legislation. Policies were in place to guide practice in this area, including an equality and diversity policy. The provider had recently arranged a staff party to celebrate a religious festival that was relevant to many of its staff.

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

The provider had various quality assurance and monitoring systems in place to help identify any shortfalls and drive improvements within the service. Audits were carried out, including of medicines records and accessible information standards. Staff had regular supervision with the registered manager and one of the items on the agenda was about identifying and discussing good practice issues. Spot checks were carried out which looked at how well staff were performing their duties.

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 provider worked in partnership with others, including staff and people who used the service. A member of the administrative staff gave an example of how they worked with people. They said, “We do spot checks and speak to the client, to check staff are punctual.” A person told us, “[Registered manager] phones me and occasionally visits, to make sure everything is fine.” The provider also worked with external agencies. They received support with staff training from Skills for Care and worked with healthcare agencies to meet people’s needs.

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.

There was a focus on learning and development across the service. For example, staff were provided with regular training to help them in their job. The registered manager told us they planned to introduce an electronic care planning system and electronic systems to monitor staff punctuality. They said this would help to improve efficiency at the service. The provider also planned to start carrying out telephone monitoring of people to further enhance their quality assurance processes.