Autism Care UK (Bedford) Also known as Larchwood 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 inspection we rated this key question Requires improvement. At this inspection the rating has changed to Good. This meant people were supported and treated with dignity and respect; and involved as partners in their care.

People and relatives were very positive about the kind and caring nature of the staff team. People were happy and relaxed being supported by the staff team. Staff knew people well as individuals and supported them to make choices about their support and be independent if they chose to be.

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.

People and their relatives spoke positively about their/ their family members support and the kind and caring nature of the staff team. Staff spoke about people knowledgably and with kindness and compassion. We observed staff speaking with people kindly and in line with the way they wanted to be communicated with. Staff respected people’s dignity and personal space. They always made sure people were happy with what was happening and how they were being supported. People’s comments included, ‘‘[Staff] are lovely. They are all my darlings and all my favourites.’’ And ‘‘I like all the staff. They all know what I am like.’’ A relative said, ‘‘[Staff] are always respectful and kind. They always take the time to listen to [family member] and respond appropriately.’’

The provider treated people as individuals and made sure people’s care, support and treatment met people’s needs and preferences. Staff knew people well as individuals and knew how they liked to be supported. They explained what people’s preferences likes and dislikes were and understood how important these were when supporting people. They knew people’s cultural beliefs and how to respect and support people in line with these. We observed staff supporting people in line with their individual support needs as noted in their support plans. For example, staff knew how to prompt and encourage people to take part in past times based around their individual likes and dislikes. One person said, ‘‘[Staff] know me, and I know them. I can do all the things I like.’’ A family member told us, ‘‘[Staff] know how best to support [family member] in line with how they like to be supported.’’

Staff supported people to be independent if they chose to do this. People’s care plans showed where people needed support and where they could be more independent. We observed staff supporting and prompting people to be as independent as possible, for example by preparing their own food and drink or preparing what they needed to go out. One person said, ‘‘I do what I can myself and then the staff help me with what I cannot do.’’ People were supported to be in control and make choices about all aspects of their care. We observed staff offering choices to people such as what they wanted to eat or how they wanted to spend their time. Choices were offered to people in different ways such as verbally or by using photos and objects. One person showed us a board they had outside their room which had pictures of their choices of what to do and of their meals. They happily went through what they had chosen.

Staff responded to people’s immediate needs. People did not have to wait for support when they asked for it and staff were always on hand to support people. Staff noted when people needed more support or if their needs changed and raised this with the management team so changes could be made to their support. One person said, ‘‘There is always someone [staff] about to help me when I need it.’’

The provider cared about and promoted the wellbeing of their staff and supported and enabled staff to always deliver person-centred care. Staff enjoyed working at the service and felt well supported by the management team. They had regular discussions and supervisions to discuss their job roles and any support they may need.