Cumberland Lodge

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. This the first assessment since a new provider has taken over the service. At this assessment the rating has remained good. This meant the service was consistently managed and well-led. Leaders and the culture they created promoted high-quality, person-centred 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 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. There was a person-centred culture at the service, which was open and inclusive and focused on empowering people to be as independent as possible. People were supported to be partners in all aspects of their care and treatment planning with their voice being prioritised in any decisions on their care.

The registered manager told us about the service vision and culture, “We want people to feel happy and content this is their home. We put people at forefront of everything we do and build their independence and esteem.”

The provider 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. The registered manager had the appropriate knowledge, experience and skills to lead effectively. Staff were supported to develop their skills with additional training and had identified roles at the service. The registered manager told us they were supported by the provider to keep their knowledge up to date and developed their skills further by attendance of relevant conferences and courses. Staff told us they felt well supported by the registered manager and deputy manager to perform their roles effectively.

A visiting healthcare professional told us, “Based on what I have experienced and witnessed, this service is managed exceptionally, and we have confidence in the care they provide.”

The provider fostered a positive culture where people felt they could speak up and their voice would be heard. The registered manager acted with openness, honesty and transparency. Staff were encouraged to speak up during staff meetings, 1:1 supervisions and staff surveys. There were policies in place to support staff with freedom to speak up and ‘whistle-blowing’.

The provider valued diversity in their workforce. They worked towards an inclusive and fair culture by improving equality and equity for people who worked for them. Staff were treated fairly at the service and there were policies in place to support this. The registered manager told us they placed accessible job adverts written in inclusive language which were shared across multiple platforms to reach a diverse range of applicants. Interviews were values based, focussing on attitude and experience to ensure equal opportunity for all candidates.

Staff received training on equality and inclusion, and this training was embedded through discussions of policies.

The registered manager informed us consideration was also given to staffs religious and cultural needs by recognising important events that would be celebrated. Events such as Ramadan and Eid were recognised, with adapted break times offered to accommodate prayer or breaking fast. A staff room provided a safe, private, respectful area for worship. These adjustments supported staff to observe their faith while feeling valued and understood at work.
 

The provider 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 acted on the best information about risk, performance and outcomes, and shared this securely with others when appropriate. The registered manager had implemented numerous systems and audits to provide good governance and oversight of the service to continually drive improvements and develop the service.

The registered manager understood their responsibility to raise notifications to the appropriate authorities when required such as the CQC and local authority safeguarding team.

The provider understood their duty to collaborate and work in partnership, so services worked seamlessly for people. They shared information and learning with partners and collaborated for improvement. The registered manager worked with other healthcare professionals to ensure people’s healthcare needs were being met and reviewed. This included GPs, community nurses, mental health professionals, social workers, dentists and SALT. Where people needed hospital reviews and specialist appointments the registered manager actively pursued these services to ensure people received appropriate follow up. We received positive feedback from healthcare professionals with the level of engagement the service had with them. One healthcare professional said, “The manager has kept us informed of any concerns and discussed ways support can be provided to better support both mental and physical health.” Another commented, “We have found the staff knowledgeable, approachable, always willing to discuss and support our client and feel that they have excelled at making sure that the placement does not break down.”

The provider 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. The registered manager was keen to share any learning from accident, incidents or complaints to drive improvements and provide effective care and support to people. Learning was shared during meetings and feedback sessions. The registered manager had been innovative in adapting to communication styles for people and staff and provided audio feedback on complaints, surveys, meeting minutes, service user guides and policies.

The registered manager completed a training analysis to ensure staff were being provided with the skills they needed to support people living at the service. Following this they had arranged for bespoke training to be delivered face to face to staff from their training provider

The registered manager kept themselves up to date by belonging to networks and attending training to share ideas and develop knowledge.