Beech House

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 70 (out of 100) for this area. Find out what we look at when we assess this area and How we calculate these scores.

People were treated with kindness and compassion which had a positive impact on people’s wellbeing. A relative said, “It's wonderful, really wonderful, I'm so happy [my relative’s] there. Staff are so caring and attentive, and they have staff to do activities. It's really brought [my relative] back, well as close to being back to who they were.”

People and their relatives gave consistently positive feedback about staff and the meaningful relationships they had developed with people. When talking about their relationship with staff, a person said, “You’ve got to have banter with them. They're very friendly and easy to get on with.” A relative said, “I love the way staff are with my [relative] as well. They have a really good rapport with them.” A staff member told us, “We’ve stuck by people and fall in love with them all. We're a good unit together and don't want to let people down.” We saw multiple positive interactions between people and staff which were relaxed, respectful and at times playful where people enjoyed these types of relationships.

Staff upheld people’s right to privacy and maintained their dignity which was confirmed by people whom we spoke with. When speaking with staff, they gave clear examples of how they maintained people’s privacy and dignity.

People were always treated as individuals with care tasks, activities and communication tailored to each person’s preferences. A wide range of activities were available for people to join in with, though some people preferred not to and staff respected their decisions. A local church leader attended the service to support with religious activities to meet people’s spiritual needs.

Staff knew people and their personal histories and interactions were tailored to this. For example, one person used to work with children and enjoyed interacting with a doll. Staff engaged positively with them and also included other people with the activity to promote each person’s wellbeing through socialising.

Staff promoted people’s independence and sought consent before providing support which was confirmed by people and their relatives. A staff member said, “As long as it's safe for people to do it, we let them try before we help them. It’s for their wellbeing so we encourage them.” We saw staff encouraging people to mobilise to help maintain their skills and independence in this area.

Staff upheld the values of people having choice and control over their lives. Choices for people varied from everyday options such as meals, drinks and a wide range of activities to more complex choices around their health. Choices were offered in a way people could understand. For example, there was a picture menu so people could pick the option which appealed to them. If they didn’t want either option, alternatives were provided. A relative said, “They do tailor for [my relative’s] needs. They always have a good choice for dinner and tea.”

People were supported to maintain relationships with their loved ones. Visitors were welcomed and people could have private meetings with their friends and relatives.

Staff 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 responded promptly to people’s needs. We saw they reacted quickly to call bells and could be easily located to provide the support people needed, when they needed it.

Staff provided appropriate support to people where communication was difficult at times. Some people demonstrated their needs through their behaviours. Staff understood what people may be trying to communicate and provided appropriate support. Some people expressed their distress and agitation through their behaviour and had medicines prescribed in the event of the behaviours posing a risk to the person and other people. We found staff had managed these behaviours well and the medicines were used as prescribed.

The provider had tried to maintain staff wellbeing through the prompt recruitment of a new management team. However, staff told us they were feeling unsettled due to lots of recent changes which led to them feeling confused at times as to what was expected of them. The provider and new management team were aware of this and were considering how best to support staff.

Staff spoke positively about the provider increasing staffing levels on their busiest day which meant they could complete required work and ensuring people’s needs were met which supported their wellbeing.