Warrington Borough Council Intermediate Care at Home

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 high-quality, person-centred care.

This service scored 71 (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.

Warrington Borough Council Intermediate Care at Home Service forms part of a larger service providing reablement and support through health and social care. The vision and the strategy of the service is combined with other statutory care and health services. The combined services meet on a regular basis to plan responsive services for the geographical area, make changes to improve service delivery and discuss areas of improvement, for example, unsafe discharges into the service from health care provisions.

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.

Within recent months the service had implemented changes, including trialling and piloting several projects to improve delivery of the service and improve the wellbeing of staff. The service has several tiers of management structure. Staff told us they have access to the management team to discuss any concerns or seek advice. They told us that recent changes have improved access to management and regular meetings are now taking place.

The provider fostered a positive culture where people felt they could speak up and their voice would be heard. Regular meetings took place with staff and the management team to give opportunities to speak up. In addition, staff told us there was always a manager available at the office to share their thoughts with.

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. Policies and procedures were in place to promote a fair and equitable workplace free from bullying and harassment. Systems were in place to provide reasonable adjustments when appropriate to the service delivery, promoting inclusive and supportive employment practices.

The provider did not always have clear responsibilities, roles, systems of accountability or good governance. They did not always act on the best information about risk, performance and outcomes, or share this securely with others when appropriate. The service formed part of a tiered service to meet the needs of people. For the service to deliver its objectives, it worked with other health and social care services. Cross agency decisions made around being able to safely meet the needs of people are essential. Recent guidance around decision making had been introduced. Improvements were required for the provider to expand the information to improve the understanding of all agencies involved of the role of registered manager and their responsibilities under the Regulations.

During this assessment we identified areas of improvement needed to provide person led information and further detail in the risk assessment, recording and care planning process. In addition, records showed that a number of staff needed updated training in a particular area impacting on rota management. The management team had identified the improvements needed and were working to an action plan to address these.

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 service worked with people and local health and care agencies to promote the best outcomes for individuals. Regular meeting took place to monitor people’s reablement journey and service delivery with other agencies involved with the service.

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, in line with local and national health and social care directives.