Covent House

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.

At our last assessment we rated this key question good. At this assessment the rating has remained 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. A health professional said, “During the times of our visits I have consistently seen numerous staff members offering and delivering support to service users in a sensitive, respectful, and professional manner.”

People, relatives and health professionals all told us that staff treated people well, supported them in a dignified manner and respected their privacy. A relative commented, “They (staff) do look after dignity and they are very respectful in the way they speak to everyone. I have noticed that if something happens, such as someone falls, or feels unwell, they close off the area and put screens around to protect the person and keep everyone safe.”

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.

Equality, diversity and human rights policies were in place to make sure people were treated fairly, regardless of their age, sex, race, disability or religious belief. Staff spoke very fondly about people and interacted with them in a warm and friendly manner.

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 in control of their care, support and how they lived their lives. Staff encouraged people to be as independent as possible whilst remaining safe.

People were supported to spend time with their families and enjoyed activities both in the local community and their home. A relative commented, “There are two ladies who are always organising events, they have coffee mornings and bingo, there is quite a lot going on. [Person] will join in if it is Elvis singing.” Staff regularly asked people for suggestions of new activities they could offer in the home.

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 were attentive to their needs in a timely way. Daily records reflected care was delivered in accordance with people’s care plans. During observations, staff were seen responding promptly to people who presented discomfort or distress, ensuring their needs were promptly met.

When we asked a staff member for an example when they felt they had made a difference to people, they said, “An example of making a difference is that I have sat with residents when they have been upset, I have listened when they have been worried about wanting to see their family and gave them reassurance which helped them a lot. I have helped to calm situations if a resident has been agitated and have formed good bonds with those residents.”

The provider cared about and promoted the wellbeing of their staff and supported them to deliver person-centred care. Staff confirmed that the management team supported their wellbeing to make sure they could give their best to people when at work. A staff member told us, “I feel really supported being a care assistant because, if I have something important like a question, I know I can ask another care assistant or the nurse and even the manager. We also have supervisions that are frequent and annual appraisals.” Staff also told us they received regular training to support them and enable them to effectively do their jobs.