Heron Lea Residential 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

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 service. This key question has been rated 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’s care plans were written in a respectful way, and staff spoke with people and interacted with them in a kind and respectful manner. One person commented, ‘The staff show respect for people.’ Another told us about receiving personal care, ‘I always get covered up…the staff are very good like that.’

The provider treated people as individuals and made sure people’s 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. People’s individual characters were clear from their records which included comprehensive information about what was important to them, their likes, dislikes and preferences. Staff knew people well and valued them as individuals.

The provider promoted people’s independence, so people knew their rights and had choice and control over their own care, treatment and wellbeing. People were encouraged and supported to maintain their independence as much as possible. People told us they made key decisions about their care and treatment at the service. One person said, ‘I like to go to bed early – either 7 of 8 o’clock. I have a bath or a shower when I want. The staff wander with me in the garden when I want to get some air.’ Some people were supported to have their own pets living with them. People occasionally accessed the community with support and more outings were planned for those who were interested.

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 understood some people living with dementia could experience periods where they were anxious or distressed. Staff responded with patience, skill and caring when people became distressed. We observed staff gently supporting people to focus on something else when they became upset or confused. We saw staff had promptly contacted the local GP service when they suspected an undiagnosed infection might be having a significant effect on a person’s mood or behaviour. Staff were trained to respond to people’s physical needs should they become unwell or have an accident requiring first aid.

The provider cared about and promoted the wellbeing of their staff and supported and enabled staff to always deliver person-centred care. Staff told us they found the new provider supportive and felt they had been given the skills and training they needed to make them more confident in their roles. One staff member told us, ‘[The provider] teaches you and then checks you understand and makes you go over it until you are confident.’ Another staff member told us they found the new provider supportive and said, ‘It was such a low point before [the new provider] took over but I now look forward to coming to work and enjoy my job.’