The Rowans Care Home

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 newly registered service. This key question has been rated outstanding.

This meant service leadership was exceptional and distinctive. Leaders and the culture they created drove and improved high-quality, person-centred care. The provider fully engaged and collaborated on various levels with people, staff, professionals, stakeholders and external agencies.

This service scored 89 (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 very clear shared vision, strategy and culture. The Rowans had an open culture, which embraced diversity and was inclusive for all. The management team led by example, and staff understood the importance of upholding the values of the organisation. People’s human rights were fully embraced and supported.

The service had a strong focus on how they could enable people to be fully involved in life as part of their home. Links with the wider community were already established and being developed further; plans were in place to help support people access this more frequently and a company vehicle had recently been purchased.

The provider aspired to be a leader in excellent dementia practice and was working towards the National Dementia Accreditation Award. The comprehensive programme has been developed with a robust qualitative methodology supported by University College London’s Dementia Training Academy, giving a clear route map to delivering personalised dementia care. This scheme aligned with the values and ethos of the company.

The provider valued the emotional intelligence of staff and gauging this was a focus in each recruitment wave. Emotional quotient (EQ), also known as emotional intelligence (EI), isthe ability to understand and manage one's own emotions, as well as the emotions of others.The provider had rebranded the group to EQ Care to align with this value.

The recruitment policy outlined that only team members of the highest calibre, possessing the necessary values, skills and abilities to provide an effective and efficient service, were recruited. The organisational culture was one offering quality heart-centred services so that people could have a life well lived, and be closely connected to their families, friends and community. To ensure these outcomes were achieved for people it was imperative that staff understood the philosophy by which people were supported; a philosophy of no judgment, support, kindness, personhood, equality love. This required team members who were emotionally intelligent, and the provider placed great emphasis on recruiting, investing in and developing those staff who reflected the right values.

The provider saw the one-to-one model of care as intrusive for the individual, potentially distressing for people with dementia and resource-intensive. The philosophy of the care home was not to provide one-to-one care. They viewed people were more able to thrive with a group-based care approach; staff were able to encourage social interaction and community among people, and this was evident during the assessment.

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. The management and staff team all showed confidence in their practice, and an openness when engaging in discussions.

All managers and staff we spoke with displayed a passion for the home and for what they were aspiring to achieve – good quality care with positive outcomes for people who lived there. Everyone who worked at The Rowans had a part to play in this and this was fully appreciated and acknowledged by the management team. Staff told us they were inspired by the manager and the management. Staff were fully supported at work, were encouraged to question practices and suggest new ideas or initiatives to help continually improve their practice. Staff were also fully supported in their personal lives.

Staff we spoke with were extremely complimentary about managers at every level. A member of staff told us, “Management are very supportive; you don’t feel like you’re on your own. You can reach out.”

The new manager, who gained registration shortly after this assessment, had held an introductory meeting to formally meet relatives and visitors to the home. A relative we spoke with said, “I feel it’s gone up a notch; [the home] feels happier; it feels more content. [There was an] introduction meeting with [the manager]. I went the other week. He wants staff to be more visible, and they are.” They and others considered the new manager brought a more personal touch to the home.

The provider was always mindful of the culture it advocated. In discussions with an external company regarding the design of a bespoke advanced dementia training package they had stipulated that the training had to align with induction values such as dignity, respect, empathy, and staff self-control. The manager who was new in the role was supported by members of the senior team, for example a quality lead and recruitment manager. The manager told us this level of support was not unusual; the Group Operations and Clinical Director and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) also visited the home during the assessment to further support the manager and to inform the inspection team.

The provider was good at fostering a positive culture where people knew they could speak upand their voice would be heard.

Leaders told us they had an open-door policy, and this was demonstrated throughout the assessment. Staff were readily able to approach any manager or leader as they were highly visible in the service and did so at regular intervals. Staff we spoke with said they had ample opportunities to speak up if they had any concerns. Staff were very comfortable in speaking with leaders and told us leaders had listened to their concerns and had made changes when required.

Policies and processes were in place to give staff the freedom to speak up; including regular staff supervisions and meetings. Staff were made aware of the whistle-blowing policy during their induction. Staff were encouraged to complete an annual survey and the service also encouraged people’s families and friends to speak up by sending out an annual questionnaire; actions were taken from feedback received.

The provider strongly valued diversity in their workforce. They had an inclusive and fair culture which had improved equality and equity for people who worked for them. Staff team meetings showed staff were provided with equal opportunities, supported to build a cohesive team and afforded time to discuss their work. Meeting minutes showed best practices were discussed, any issues relating to risk, health and safety and building good partnerships with professionals and other agencies.

Staff told us they felt they were listened to, especially since the appointment of the new manager; Staff told us the manager was quick to take positive action where needed to make improvements. Staff morale was high; one staff member told us, “We are all heading in the same direction; it’s not like work. We are more like a family.”

Staff who opted to leave the service were met with, so management could explore the reasons for this. They recognised the potential negative impact leavers could have on care delivery. The provider invested in the development of staff and worked hard to retain them.

The provider had clear responsibilities, roles, systems of accountability and good governance. They used these to manage and deliver high-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 management team were eager to demonstrate the systems, mechanisms and processes in place that promoted and maintained effective governance, management and oversight of the service. A dashboard provided data and gave managers the ability to review everything from a governance perspective, some examples being skin integrity, falls, accidents, weights, infections, medication, any errors and staff data relating to training, new starters and leavers. All of which was used in handovers to inform and instruct staff. We were fully assured that staff understood their roles and responsibilities and the management team could account for the actions, behaviours and performance of staff.

Staff were clear about their roles and told us they had had regular supervision and opportunities to discuss any concerns with management. The manager demonstrated a clear understanding of their responsibilities and were fully familiar in how to comply with legal regulations. Daily walk rounds in the service were completed and daily meetings with senior staff to help maintain oversight and address any concerns in a timely way. All areas of the home were represented in these meetings that linked in with the wider monthly governance meetings held at senior level and attended by the CEO.

Leaders were open and honest with people living in the service and their relatives when things went wrong with their care and provided them with an apology. Any complaints were seen as a learning opportunity to improve the service, and we saw a robust response to one historical concern.

During the recruitment file review, we noted some interview documents from 2024 did not have scores assigned to them. In feedback with the provider the management team discussed how a recent internal audit had also identified this, and were able to demonstrate how the implementation of a 'traffic lighting' system had improved this aspect of recruitment. This visual tool allowed managers to select appropriate colours to indicate the candidate's performance based on their responses provided at interview. We were assured people received their care from a service that continually monitored standards and constantly looked at how improvements could be made. The governance and improvement agenda were firmly embedded into all areas to improve service provision.

The provider clearly understood and carried out their duty to collaborate and worked in partnership, and services worked seamlessly for people. They always shared information and learning with partners and collaborated for improvement.

The management team worked effectively with people, their representatives and staff to build a culture that focused on enabling people to be the best they could be; staff supported and encouraged people to achieve. Families we spoke with spoke very positively about their partnership with the service. We heard examples from relatives how the service worked in partnership with them to ensure people’s needs were safely met in the service. People and their relatives told us they would recommend the service to others.

The service worked collaboratively with an extensive range of health professionals and specialists to improve people’s health and wellbeing. We saw numerous examples of innovative collaborations between the service and other agencies, outlined earlier within this report. A health professional involved with the service said, “I have no concern regarding safety, and I found the new management to be approachable and keen on improving the provided service within the Rowans.”

The provider aspired to be a key player in improving care practices and outcomes for people, both at a local and a national level. They had been approached by commissioners to pilot a local authority initiative, the National Dementia Accreditation Award. The provider had mapped out the positive impacts for people living in the care home. The scheme would optimise the care home environment to meet the needs of people living with dementia in all stages; staff would become up to date with current best practice and the team’s knowledge and skills would improve.

The CEO was a non-executive director of The Outstanding Society, a community interest company, set up to share best practice amongst providers striving to deliver excellent standards of care. Membership of groups and participation in research projects, such as The Vivaldi Study around reducing infections,gave senior managers an insight into the issues affecting the older population and were an opportunity to help shape social care and influence positive change.

Partnerships had been made within the community including links with a local school, visits by school children and a community volunteer. The activity co-ordinator told us how the service was integrating itself within the community; this benefited the well-being of people in the community as well as those who lived in the service. Strong partnerships were forming.

Effective processes were in place and embedded in the service to ensure partnership working with people, relatives, health professionals were maintained and to improve people's experiences, health, and wellbeing.

The provider had a strong focus on continuous learning, innovation and improvement across the organisation and local system. They always encouraged creative ways of delivering equality of experience, outcome and quality of life for people. They actively contributed to safe, effective practice and research.

The provider used technology to support residents in a person-centred way. For example, we saw the service had introduced an innovative piece of technology to help assess people who were unable to verbalise their pain. The system identified pain in people and was used as an evidence base to support pain management interventions for people who weren’t able to request this.

Following feedback from people and meal-time audits the service had identified people benefitted from a main meal in the evening. A lighter lunch was served following a good breakfast. Kitchen staff stayed on shift until late evening to ensure oversight of this. There was less food waste and people retained weight.

Analysis of falls had indicated a trend; a number of falls occurring within a window of 3 hours, between 6 and 9pm. An additional evening shift had been created to increase staffing resources and help reduce falls.

The provider had adopted an innovative recruitment programme, that measured the emotional intelligence of potential employees. This and other training resources had been devised by the recruitment manager, who had been recognised for a national award for workplace and development. There was a culture of continuous learning and development in relation to the training and upskilling of staff.

Effective systems were in place for continuous learning and improvement. Incidents and learning from incidents were discussed in Lessons Learned Lab meetings, where staff considered new approaches regarding the delivery of excellent person-centred care, so ultimately people’s lives were improved.