Aspen Lodge Care 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. This is the first assessment for this newly registered provider. At our last assessment under a previous provider, we rated this key question good. Under the new provider, 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 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 always treated people with kindness, empathy and compassion and respected their privacy and dignity. Staff treated colleagues from other organisations with kindness and respect. People told us they were treated with kindness. They knew they could ask staff for anything, and they would do their best to help them. One person told us, “I can always ask for a cuppa even at night and the [staff] are really kind they say it is no trouble.” Another person said, “Everything is really good here. Nothing too much trouble and they are all very respectful.” Relatives echoed this. One relative said, “They are lovely staff. I don’t think my [family member] has found one they don’t like. There is a male [staff member] there, we didn’t think she would like a male [staff member], but they are fine. They said the [male staff member] gives the best shower; they are a really lovely person.” Another relative told us, “I stayed with my [family member] for the full week and the care was really good; We had no problems with their stay there. Everybody was really good, and they said never be scared to ask for anything. Everything was lovely, they were very accommodating. We had a big sleepover one night [with other relatives]; [staff] were lovely about it. Absolutely fabulous, I’ve no qualms about anything.”

A third relative said, “I cannot fault the carers, they are nice to my [family member], they have a laugh with them, it is like nothing is too much trouble for them.”

The provider treated people as individuals and made sure the care, support and treatment met people’s needs and preferences. They took account of people’s strengths, abilities, aspirations, culture and unique backgrounds and protected characteristics. Staff reviewed people’s preferences and feedback in order to develop a plan for improving individual care. Staff were aware of people who needed additional support to communicate or of individual cultural preferences, which were respected. A relative told us, “[Staff] come in and ask about things my [family member] likes, about their dogs and what they like to do.” And, “On my [family member’s] birthday the room was decorated with a banner. [Staff] bought them a present and a cake.” Another relative said, “From what I have seen I would say the staff try exceedingly hard. They want my [family member] to be as happy as they can be. It’s difficult, as they won’t go out of their room and hardly talks. [Staff] do a good a job as they can do.”

The provider promoted people’s independence, so people knew their rights and had choice and control over their own care, treatment and wellbeing. People’s choices were respected, and staff knew people well. Staff respected when people did not want to do something they suggested. A relative said, “My [family member] just doesn’t want to do activities, that’s their choice, staff have tried but they have always preferred to be alone.” Staff encouraged and supported people to maintain relationships with their relatives and friends, who could visit them any time and join people for meals. The provider was aware of new regulations in relation to visiting and had updated their policy accordingly.

People told us staff supported them to have control of how their care was delivered and encouraged them to do what they could for themselves while maintaining their dignity. One person said, “I need help with having a shower and the [staff] are nice to me and don’t make me feel undressed.” A professional told us how they did not have concerns about how the staff promoted people’s independence. They told us, “The home do promote independence for people and actively work with the relatives to ensure everyone’s needs, wishes, and wants are being met.”

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. We observed staff stepping in to support and distract people who became distressed to help them express their feelings while ensuring they were safe. This helped to prevent the person becoming more distressed and enabled them to communicate what they needed. People were not isolated or guided away from other people but instead supported to be understood. Staff continued to observe people while giving those who wanted it, space and time to process their feelings. People told us staff responded quickly in emergencies to seek medical support and relatives told us communication at those times were good and they were informed of any concerns straight away.

The provider cared about and promoted the wellbeing of their staff and supported and enabled staff to aim to deliver good care. The provider told us about schemes such as employee of the month to celebrate staff who had worked well. They explained how they could provide other means of support around working hours and patterns if a staff member was experiencing a personal crisis. Staff told us they could raise concerns and had regular opportunities to express their views and make suggestions for improving the care or staff experiences. Staff felt listened to and valued by the manager. One staff member told us, “It is an enjoyable job, I like caring for the people. It is a happy household now; things are improving because of the new manager. They do support us, when there has been [something stressful] they make you a cup of tea and support you. We know we can go to them if we need to.”