Willowbrooke Residential 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.

At our last assessment we rated this key question good. At this assessment the rating has remained good. This meant the service was generally well managed and well-led. Leaders and the culture they created promoted high-quality 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 service had a shared vision, strategy and culture. This was based on transparency, equity, equality and human rights, diversity and inclusion, engagement, and understanding challenges and the needs of people and their communities.

Staff spoke about the visions and values of the service. One staff member said, "I think they try to create a comfortable place to live and also promote independence. A safe place to live." The service adopted a positive and open culture which was easy to see during our inspection. Various policies were in place to support an open culture, and the registered manager told us, “My door is always open for people, their relatives and staff."

The service had 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 did so with integrity, openness and honesty.

Staff spoke positively about the management of the service. We found the management team approachable, capable, compassionate and open throughout our assessment. The registered manager was very involved in the service, they told us, "I am just really proud that our residents (people who used the service) are happy. I am working Christmas day as I love spending time with our residents."

The service fostered a positive culture where people felt they could speak up and their voice would be heard.

Staff knew how to whistle blow and they felt confident to speak up should they need to. The provider had a whistleblowing policy available to staff. Staff were able to raise any concerns in team meetings.

The service valued diversity in their workforce. They work towards an inclusive and fair culture by improving equality and equity for people who work for them.

Staff told us they felt they were treated equally and that the registered manager was approachable and fair to all staff. An equality and diversity policy was in place which set out how they supported equality and diversity. The service employed a diverse range of staff.

The service had clear responsibilities, roles, systems of accountability and good governance. They used these to manage and deliver good quality, sustainable care, treatment and support. They act on the best information about risk, performance and outcomes, and share this securely with others when appropriate. They acted promptly to resolve issues as they arose.

Staff told us they felt the service was well managed. Multiple audits and oversight tools were in place, and for the most part they were robust. However, we saw these had not identified some of the minor concerns we have found as detailed in this report. The registered manager was working to address this. The service had an external company come into the service to conduct audits and this helped to drive and sustain improvement, this also supported their open culture. Provider oversight was robust, they regularly visited the service and were in daily contact to be updated on the service. The provider worked collaboratively with the management team in the service. We saw good a working relationship was in place between the management and the provider.

We found people’s records were being securely stored in line with GDPR. During our assessment we found any issues we identified were acted upon immediately. This offered assurance that the registered manager, deputy manager and provider were passionate to provide good safe care for people.

The service understood their duty to collaborate and work in partnership, so services work seamlessly for people. They share information and learning with partners and collaborate for improvement.

People and their loved ones felt they were supported to attend or engage with the local community and events. One relative said, “[Person] has family that come and visit, and they go on trips such as to Blackpool with the service and to local community events.” The registered manager told us how they work in partnership with and involved external professionals. They told us, "We work with the GP, opticians, district nurses, speech and language therapist team, dieticians as well as the safeguarding team if we had any concerns." Feedback from partners was positive, one professional told us, “I know (Registered manager) has been to management meetings and gets involved."

We saw examples of the service working with various organisations and people could access advocates when and if needed.

The service focused on continuous learning, innovation and improvement across the organisation and local system. They encouraged creative ways of delivering equality of experience, outcome and quality of life for people. They actively contribute to safe and effective practice.

Leaders ensured that the service actively contributed to safe, effective practice as detailed throughout this report. The service had built strong external relationships that supported improvement, this was clear to see during our conversations with professionals. One professional told us, "They have a new electronic care planning system, that makes it easier for me." The registered manager told us the providerwas always willing to invest if there was something they needed to improve people’s care.