Consensus Community Support - Croydon

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 service since their registration in August 2024. 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.

People were looked after well by staff. One person told us, “They are kind and caring. They do their best.” A staff member said, “I treat everyone with kindness. That’s the human thing. It’s a basic principle. You have to go out of the way to make people feel good and not hurt them in any way.”

Staff were respectful of people’s living environment and respected people’s privacy when they wished to spend time alone or with visiting friends or family.

Managers undertook regular observations to check people were treated with care, kindness and respect by staff. The interim service manager told us, “I observe staff when they are supporting people on shift. For example, are they respecting people’s privacy and dignity and are they talking to people?”

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 choices and preferences were used to tailor their care and support to meet their individual needs. Staff understood how to treat people as individuals and provide care and support in line with their needs and preferences. A staff member told us, “I know [person using the service] like the back of my hand.”

Managers monitored and reviewed people’s care and support at regular intervals to make sure care plans reflected their current needs and preferences.

The provider promoted people’s independence, so people knew their rights and had choice and control over their own care, treatment and wellbeing.

People had choice and control over how their care and support were provided and this was reflected in the way their care was planned and delivered. People’s care plans instructed staff to seek people’s consent, offer choice, and support them to do as much as they could and wanted to, with activities of daily living. A staff member told us, “If I’m speaking to [person using the service] I make it clear it’s their choice. I may give them advice but make it clear that it’s their choice...I get them to do the things they can. We have a routine for what [person] does every day, and this is about getting to do things themselves. Routine is key to [person’s] independence. They like being independent and we encourage this.”

Managers reviewed people’s records at regular intervals to make sure these remained up to date and current about people’s choices for their care and support needs.

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 knew people well and the signs, triggers and other factors that might cause people to become anxious or distressed in the moment. They minimised the risk of discomfort or distress to people in the way that was most safe and appropriate for them. A staff member told us, “I do games and arts and crafts, and these are good for [person using the service], to distract them when they become upset.”

The provider cared about and promoted the wellbeing of their staff and supported and enabled staff to always deliver person-centred care.

Staff were well supported by managers. A staff member told us, “They always check to see we are ok and doing well and ask if we need any more support.”

Managers were proactive in identifying any support staff needed to help them undertake their roles effectively. The registered manager told us, “We do flexible working and health risk assessments when these are needed. We listen when staff need time off and look at and review all incidents.” The interim service manager said, “We make sure there are incident debriefs with staff, and these identify any additional support that they may need.”

Managers signposted staff to additional support for their wellbeing when this was needed. There were mental health champions that staff could speak with. Staff also had access to an employee assistance programme which they could contact at any time for confidential advice about personal or work issues that may be impacting their work performance and wellbeing.