La Fontana

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 consistently managed and well-led. Leaders and the culture they created promoted good-quality care.

This service scored 79 (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 which was understood by staff and focused on improving people’s experiences.

People, relatives, staff and the management team all spoke about the period of significant change, including new ownership and management, but there was a clear and consistent message about improving the culture and quality of care. Staff told us morale, teamwork and communication had significantly improved in recent months, and they now felt valued, respected and listened to.

People and relatives also recognised improvements and said the service had become more open and responsive. The management team promoted a culture of learning and reflection, using meetings, staff training and reflective practice sessions, daily walkarounds and quality checks to reinforce the expectations and values of the service.

While some relatives remained cautious due to recent changes, overall, it was clear the service had improved in many areas, and staff were fully engaged in the improvement process.

The provider had leaders with the skills, knowledge and experience to lead the service effectively. Senior and acting managers were described as accessible, responsive and communicative, with staff welcoming their ‘open door’ approach. Staff said the management team were visible, approachable and provided support during a period of change, which helped build trust and stability. One staff member said, “The new acting manager [name] is brilliant. She's very approachable, you can say anything to her, and she makes time to listen to people and staff.”

The management team acted with integrity and honesty and responded promptly to concerns raised by staff and relatives. Staff felt supported through supervision and training, and managers acted when feedback highlighted issues.

This demonstrated compassionate and inclusive leadership, although the management team recognised further time was needed to fully embed confidence and stability following previous managerial changes.

The provider fostered a culture where people, relatives and staff felt able to speak up and raise concerns.

People and relatives told us they knew how to complain and felt confident that issues would be taken seriously and acted upon. One relative described the acting manager as “A gem, with patience never ending” and praised how quickly their concerns had been acted upon. Staff also said they felt empowered to share ideas and feedback and the management team listened and responded appropriately.

The service used a range of methods to encourage feedback, including newsletters, suggestion boxes, relative’s meetings and “you said, we did”. While some relatives said feedback methods were still being improved upon, there was clear evidence that concerns were acknowledged and used to drive improvement.

The provider promoted an inclusive and fair culture for staff. Staff described feeling valued, respected and supported, and said morale had improved significantly. The management team encouraged equity and fairness, and staff were confident concerns about their treatment, morale and overall wellbeing had been and would continue to be addressed.

Staff spoke of a positive and respectful working environment, with improved communication, morale and teamwork leading to consistent care for people. While the service was still embedding changes following a period of instability, the culture the current management team had created supported equality, diversity and inclusion and staff said they would recommend the home as a good place to work.

The provider had highly effective governance, management and oversight systems in place to monitor quality, manage risk and support improvement.

Quality assurance processes had been improved significantly by the new provider. These now included regular audits, observations, reviews and meetings within the home. One senior manager told us, “We use the daily manager walkarounds to check staff are supporting people in the right way and that we can actually see the improvements for ourselves. We also have managers from other services coming in who complete audits for us, so this gives us a fresh pair of eyes.” A daily ‘heads of department’ meeting was held to discuss any issues and plans for the day. A clinical review meeting was held each week.

A dining experience audit had been carried out which resulted in improvements being made for people, such as smaller, quieter and more varied dining areas. Audits were carried out for people who had pressure damage to their skin. The management team always completed a thorough analysis for any pressure wound acquired in the home to identify any learning to prevent this happening to other people. A meeting had been held with the activities team in April 2026 to discuss and plan improvements for people living with dementia. These would be implemented shortly.

The provider also held wider area meetings, such as health and safety meetings and manager’s meetings. Records showed managers acted when issues were identified and monitored improvements to ensure they were sustained.

Governance arrangements supported accountability, protected people’s rights and helped keep people safe. The management team had a clear understanding of high-quality person-centred care and used this to drive improvement. This team demonstrated a strong commitment to sustained improvement, investing in staffing, training and environmental improvements to support good outcomes for people.

The provider worked effectively with health and social care professionals to ensure people received coordinated and consistent care.

Staff and managers understood the importance of partnership working and described positive, professional relationships with external partners who provided guidance and support.

The service was developing its approach to community engagement, with plans and examples such as coffee mornings, more family events and work towards creating a dementia café. One staff member said, “Barbecues are starting the week after next. We did them last year with singers and music and they were really successful. They are a really nice atmosphere.”

These initiatives supported people to remain part of their community and contributed to a more open and inclusive service.

The provider demonstrated a commitment to learning and continuous improvement. An improved learning culture was evident, with the management team encouraging reflective practice and using incidents, feedback and audits to identify lessons and improve the quality and consistency of care to people. Staff described how communication and feedback had improved, helping them learn from issues and share good practice.

Quality assurance systems supported learning and improvement, and actions were taken promptly when concerns were identified, such as infection control risks being addressed during the assessment.

While the service was still on a journey of improvement, there was clear evidence that learning was embedded into practice and used to drive positive change.