Helping Hands Gloucester

On this page

• Overview
• Person-centred Care
• Care provision, Integration and continuity
• Providing Information
• Listening to and involving people
• Equity in access
• Equity in experiences and outcomes
• Planning for the future

Responsive – this means we looked for evidence that the provider met people’s needs.

At our last assessment, we rated this key question Good. At this assessment the rating has remained Good. This meant people’s needs were met through good organisation and delivery.

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 made sure people were at the centre of their care and treatment choices and they decided, in partnership with people, how to respond to any relevant changes in people’s needs.

Each person had a care plan which contained relevant details about each individual and demonstrated when they were reviewed and updated. Care plans include a detailed daily routine and the person’s desired outcomes of support. People told us they were always involved in reviewing their care plans and were listened to during this process. One person said, “Yes, they do involve me and they do ask for my views.” Staff told us that information required to support people was accurate and one staff said, “The support plans are up to date. I know they are updated and if we see anything missing we tell them and they will update it always.”

Staff spoke about the ways in which they delivered person focused care and supported people to be active agents commenting, “It means supporting every individual in different ways, in their own certain way, that means that not every individual I work with requires the same things.” and “This means involving the clients as much as possible to make their own decisions and to encourage them to use their beliefs, values and preferences specific to them to make these decisions. It is their care and we want it to be as individual as possible.”

There was a whole service approach to improving the care that people received and helping them achieve the outcomes that mattered to them. We saw staff meeting minutes in February 2026, discussed being mindful to look for moments within the care delivery that could improve and enhance people’s quality of life.
 

The provider understood the diverse health and care needs of people and their local communities, so care was joined-up, flexible and supported choice and continuity.

The provider was clear on the type of care needs the service could provide and meet. They worked with external professionals to meet people’s needs where required. The registered manager shared an example where the service had worked alongside the community mental health team to support a person’s partner when they observed a deterioration in their wellbeing. They adjusted their support to the person to continue to involve their partner as much as possible in their care delivery, whilst they were still able to be involved. When this was no longer possible the service worked with the community mental health team to ensure their continued care aligned with the advice shared.

Staff supported the same people to ensure consistency in care and give people reassurance from seeing a familiar face. People told us this meant that their needs were met and understood by staff who had got to know them well. One person said, “My needs are fully met. I have 4 or 5 regular carers, and they have got to know me well.”

People continued to be involved in all decisions about their care provision following the initial care planning process. This ensured that any changes were discussed and implemented with the person’s agreement and undertaken in a way that reflected their choice. People and their relatives told us, “I feel involved in decisions, and they seek my input regularly” and “We discuss her ongoing care. I do feel involved.”
 

The provider supplied appropriate, accurate and up-to-date information in formats that were tailored to individual needs.

People’s communication needs had been identified and recorded within their care plans. There was good information recorded about people’s preferred communication styles and how staff could support them. One person’s care plan recorded how they needed to be given time to get their sentences out at their own pace and not be rushed or for staff to interject. It highlighted the importance of ensuring the person felt understood.

The provider had an accessible information policy and the registered manager confirmed people could be supported with having information supplied in a way that best suited their needs (Accessible information is information which is able to be read or received and understood by the individual or group for which it is intended). Staff told us they were aware of people who had any supportive aids to communicate and the importance of ensuring these were with the person. One staff said, “We have a few people with hearing aids. So, we always make sure that they have put the hearing aids on charge, make sure they have them. If their glasses are broken we let family members know and record in the notes.”
 

The provider made it easy for people to share feedback and ideas, or raise complaints about their care, treatment and support. Staff involved people in decisions about their care and told them what had changed as a result.

People were given the opportunity to feedback about the service they received in a variety of ways including quality monitoring calls and an annual feedback survey. Any feedback received is reviewed for trends and themes and actions set. People were kept informed about how their feedback was acted on and involved in shaping the solutions and measuring the impact. We saw that feedback responses were also compared to the previous year to assess any areas where the score was lower to understand if improvements had been sustained.

Complaints were reviewed, responded to and used as an opportunity to drive improvements within the service. Two previous complaints had related to communication which had been a key focus of improvement when the registered manager took up their position. Positive feedback had been received to show that people felt this had improved and their concerns taken seriously and managed well. One person told us, “Management seems strong, they seem to be very good. When we have raised concerns about a particular carer, action has been taken. Overall, I do have confidence in the service because concerns are addressed.”
 

The provider made sure that people could access the care, support and treatment they needed when they needed it.

The leadership team and staff understood people’s barriers to care and worked in a way to tailor care and support people to overcome these barriers where needed. This included areas of people’s health, home life situations and family support. The registered manager spoke about how the service would aim to be flexible to fit people’s circumstances saying, “We can put in extra visits for appointments, our cancellation is only 48 hours with no charge so we will work with people and be really flexible.”

The service had out of hours management support for staff should they need to seek advice about a person. Staff did raise there had been some issues with the out of hour service being responded to in a timely way, however this had been raised and was being worked on to improve.

People were supported to have access to information that they needed in the format of a service user guide. We saw this contained useful contacts that they might need to reach out to. Relatives were also supported to follow family members’ journey if the person consented and given online access to care plans and visit notes to keep informed and updated.
 

Staff and leaders actively listened to information about people who are most likely to experience inequality in experience or outcomes and tailored their care, support and treatment in response to this.

The management and staff team demonstrated awareness of potential discrimination people might face and were confident to advocate on their behalf where needed. The registered manager confirmed that staff undertook training around discrimination and equality saying, “We observe this directly, it’s instilled within our branch, and any concerns are looked into and addressed.”

Care was adapted to ensure people were comfortable and met their expectations for independence, choice and privacy when providing support with personal care. The registered manager spoke about supporting people to obtain medical support when required and the delays that were often experienced. Staff would make contact with healthcare professionals with people’s permission where needed to support this process.

People were supported to plan for important life changes, so they could have enough time to make informed decisions about their future, including at the end of their life.

We found that although care plans included people’s wishes for this stage of their lives, the information recorded was very brief. It was also not known if the person did not wish to have this conversation or if this had been revisited. We spoke with people and their relatives regarding their wishes who told us, “While this has not yet been a formal discussion, I am confident the service would involve us appropriately and respect his wishes” and “This has not been formally discussed yet, but I feel comfortable that this would be handled sensitively if needed.” The registered manager told us this would be re-looked at.

Staff had provided support to people when they became unwell or transitioned to needing end of life care. Staff told us they felt confident and trained in supporting people at these times commenting, “The office usually speaks with relatives and family and then they communicate with us. Then we get activities in our case files on things to do during our visits with them. I felt supported to provide end of life care..”

The service had supported 1 person at the end of their life to achieve the outcomes that were important to them. This included discussions of how the person wanted to be cared for and working alongside external professionals to ensure this person was comfortable. Staff also supported the person’s family during this time explaining any medical support given and talking them through care practices to involve them fully. This person was able to remain in their own home as they had wished and receive tailored care that was important to them delivered by staff who had listened and respected their choices.