Hales Group Limited - Sheffield

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. 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 70 (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 and relatives said all staff treated them or their family member with dignity and respect. One relative said, “[Family member] feels very happy with the carer and regards them as a friend. They are very calm, very efficient, engaging, cups of tea and a card for [family member’s] birthday. There is a good rapport between them [staff and family member].” Another relative said, “I always find the carers are very courteous.”

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 care plans included information about their life history and what mattered to them, such as previous work history and hobbies and interests.

The provider promoted people’s independence, so people knew their rights and had choice and control over their own care, treatment and wellbeing. Care plans included information about how people preferred to be supported. People and relatives told us they and their family members were asked for their consent before delivering care and support. One staff member said, “I involve people by explaining what I am doing before I start and asking for their permission. We include relatives by involving them in reviews if the service user wishes. People are supported to have choice by offering options for things like meals or clothing.”

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. Emergency contacts were included in people's care plans. For example, 1 person’s care plan instructed staff to contact their relative in an event of an emergency regarding their health and wellbeing. Another person’s care plan instructed staff to speak with the GP on their behalf, about and health concerns. Staff told us they knew people well and would be able to recognise and changes in people’s health. Professionals we spoke with told us the registered manager liaised with them and made changes to people’s care and support to ensure their current needs were met.

The provider did not always care about and promote the wellbeing of their staff. They did not always support or enable staff to deliver person-centred care. We obtained feedback from staff about their experience of working for the provider. We received mixed feedback. Some staff did not feel valued or supported, and most staff commented that staff morale was low. We raised these concerns with the registered manager who told us they would strengthen supervision discussions and team meetings to regularly address feedback and engagement. Staff had access to a staff handbook which contained information about expectations from the provider, policies and procedures. The registered manager told us Hales Group Sheffield actively promoted staff recognition through a staff recognition scheme known as ‘Hales Heros’, and care award nominations.