St Anne's Nursing Home

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. At our last assessment we rated this key question good. At this assessment the rating has remained good.

This meant people were supported and treated with dignity and respect; and involved as partners in their care.

This service scored 80 (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 always treated people with kindness, empathy and compassion and respected their privacy and dignity. Staff treated colleagues from other organisations with kindness and respect.

A person living at St Anne’s told us, “They are very kind and caring”. This was the response from most people we spoke to.

We observed caring interactions between people and care staff. A person in distress was responded to with kindness and empathy. People were listened to, spoken to with respect and not spoken down to.

People’s privacy was respected. One person said, “They always knock on the door whether they are bringing in lunch or medication.”

Partner agencies told us, “I have often needed to visit incidentally as well as when planned and am always welcomed, professionally, but also with lots of heart.”

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.

Care plans were person-centred and focused on individuals, ensuring people were treated with dignity and respect. They included detailed information about communication needs, interests, cultural backgrounds, important relationships, and preferred routines, all discussed directly with people during assessments and reviews. This approach ensured care was tailored to fit around people’s lives, supporting engagement, positive experiences, and holistic outcomes.

Staff knew people and their individual personalities well. We observed interactions of staff engaging people in conversation about their specific backgrounds, family and interests from memory. In a group setting we saw staff encouraging and facilitating people to engage in conversation with others by highlighting similarities they shared to support engagement with one another. This resulted in people talking to each other about their shared memories of the country they grew up in leading to them laughing and smiling together.

The activities coordinator took time to get know people in order to ensure people were able to access activities they found enriching. There were some people with dementia who liked to take part in household tasks as a reflection of their life at home and this was facilitated safely. For example, one person wanted to do ironing as this reflected their past routine and they were supported to do so with the use of a lightweight, non-heating iron.

People’s spiritual needs were supported and respected. Individuals received visits from representatives of local religious organisations and were supported to attend a local church where they wished to do so. This helped people to remain connected to community with a positive impact on their wellbeing.

People’s preferences were accommodated in communal settings. This included music choices being available. A relative told us, “Sometimes I can't find [relative] and [relative] is over in the other lounge where there is the bar listening to Bob Marley music.” Rather than generic background music, this approach allowed for an expression of individuality and enjoyment.

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

People were supported to maintain personal relationships. Family members were able to visit freely and support in the care of their loved ones if they wished to. We observed families supporting people at lunch time during their visits. A family member said, “I can come and go when I want, which is amazing”.

Where required people had the right equipment to support their independence. This included walking and transfer aids with input from local Occupational Therapy (OT) services where needed.

There were many and varied activities for people. During our assessment we observed music sessions and people were well engaged. We also saw an interactive digital game played in a group. This game required some observation skill as well as physical interaction with the display, stimulating both mental and physical activity. Whilst playing one person said, “This is lovely, it’s very good.” This can also be used in people’s rooms if they are unable to attend the lounge area and can be used by those with reduced dexterity.

Other activities included board/card games, puzzles, baking and film. People who were unable to attend activities in communal areas or chose not to were visited by activity staff in their rooms and offered activities there based on their preferences. This could include pamper sessions, puzzles or just spending extended time having a chat if that was what people wanted. There were also books available of varying genres and these were regularly changed.

People attended weekly visits to a local theatre, where they participated in dementia friendly ‘Singing in Time’ sessions led by a professional conductor. These sessions were thoughtfully designed to support people living with both early and advanced stages of dementia and enabled people to engage in stimulating and therapeutic experiences which enhanced their wellbeing, confidence, and sense of belonging. In addition, the service organised twice-monthly outings by minibus, enabling people to enjoy meaningful trips to places such as London Zoo and Kew Gardens. These outings were highly valued by people and reflected the service’s commitment to ensuring people remained active, connected, and involved in the community.

People and their families played a central role in shaping the activity programme through regular quarterly meetings. The service actively encouraged feedback, welcomed suggestions, and took time to explore people’s past hobbies, interests, and aspirations to ensure activities were tailored to the people living at St Anne’s. This proactive and person-centred approach helped create a vibrant and responsive environment where people felt listened to, valued, and fully involved in decisions about their lives.

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.

Staff knew people well and were able to respond promptly when they showed signs which were unusual. We observed staff responding to people who were distressed appropriately and in ways which were specific to individual need. A relative told us, “They [staff] understand and know [relative] very well.”

We reviewed call bell responses and could see that these were acted upon in a timely way, which was also reported by most people we spoke to. There were some people who were unable to use call bells, they were observed by staff regularly for signs of discomfort.

Care plans we viewed clearly detailed people’s communication methods including how they may show signs of pain, discomfort or distress where they could not do so verbally.

We observed a staff member in the lounge reacting promptly to support a person who was at risk of falls when mobilising independently, but who did not understand the risk. The staff member was able to anticipate and react quickly to provide support as it was needed.

The provider cared about and promoted the wellbeing of their staff, and supported and enabled staff to always deliver person-centred care.

Staff we spoke to told us they were well supported in their roles. They felt valued and that their contributions were recognised. The service had an employee of the month scheme, chosen by people, visitors and colleagues. Nomination boxes were available so all people could share their experiences of individual members of staff. In addition, there were annual awards schemes.

During our assessment the service recognised international nurses’ day with decorations and afternoon tea. Nursing staff were celebrated by colleagues, and all staff were a part of celebrations alongside people who lived at St Annes.

A staff member told us, “I feel the work I do is valued, this is acknowledged in staff awards. In staff meetings, the manager always says how she appreciates the work we do. In general, I think there is good teamwork, we work as one and support each other.”