Clifton View Care Home

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.

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.

We received a warm welcome from all people, relatives and staff during our assessment. The whole staff team were happy to speak with us and were proud of the improvements to the service. Staff showed active listening skills and empathy when engaging with people. People were treated with respect, ensuring their dignity was upheld. The service operates with an open-door policy and encourages feedback to improve care standards. When people had visitors, they were welcomed by the management and staff team. People were enabled to spend time outside of their bedrooms with their visitors. There were private spaces in the home and garden that people could utilise. One person said, “I’ve got all I need here, and my family come and visit every week.” Another person said, “They are all so kind here, they really are. I can talk to staff about anything.”

The provider has employed a member of staff to ‘meet and greet’ people, relatives and visitors on arrival in the main reception. We saw this staff member engaging in a calm and understanding way, with visiting relatives, who may have been feeling anxious about their family members recent admission to the service.

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.

People living at Clifton View were respected and celebrated as individuals, with rich life stories. The service held regular events, including a summer party and celebrating Chinese New Year. People, relatives and staff were involved in celebrating people’s birthdays. One person had recently celebrated their 100th birthday, and a party had been held for them in the communal lounge.

One relative explained how the service supported their family member, who did not speak English as their first language. They told us, “My family member has reverted more to their native language nowadays due to their dementia progression. Some activities don’t fit their different culture, so they will often just watch. They do go on outings to the garden centre or park sometimes. On a Wednesday they can go to the local church service if people want. They’re doing another ‘Italian Day’ next week and asked our advice on what to do last year. My sibling came in to prepare authentic lasagne with the cook.”

The provider promoted people’s independence, so people knew their rights and had choice and control over their own care, treatment and wellbeing.

People we spoke with told us they could plan their bedtimes and waking, what to wear and how to spend their day. Although one person felt their waking time was impacted by a specific medicine they were prescribed. We raised this with the Registered Manager to review with the person and their GP.

People felt their individual choices and preferences were respected by staff. One person said, “I go to bed and get up in my own time and just wait a bit if I need any help. They let me choose what I fancy wearing each day and they usually pick out the right things for me.” Another person said, “I go to bed about 9pm and put my hearing aids on charge and go to sleep. In the morning, I wake up and sit on my bed until a carer comes to support me getting up.” Care plans we reviewed had clearly recorded people’s preferences, wishes and feelings. Staff we spoke with understood the importance of respecting these and enabling people’s independence where they could.

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 showed a calm and empathetic approach where people exhibited distress or anxiousness. One person, who struggled to express themselves verbally, was given two dolls to cuddle. A staff member explained that these ‘babies’ comforted and calmed the person. We saw the person sitting at the table with the dolls and her friend, looking relaxed and happy in their company.

Staff understood the importance of responding promptly to people and ensuring they explained choices clearly, in ways that people could understand. We saw one person happily walking along the corridor with a staff member, who said, “Come on then, my flower. Shall we get you a nice hot drink then.” The staff member explained this was the person’s preferred form of address, and all of the staff respected this.

People were supported to maintain good nutritional health and to keep hydrated. We saw drinks stations throughout the service, and people were offered drinks by staff throughout the day. A kitchenette was available on each floor, to enable people and their visitors to access refreshments.

The majority of people and their relatives we spoke with were positive about their or their family members’ mealtime experiences and the food provided. Puddings in particular were very popular. One relative told us, “My family member is now on a bite size diet and will eat most things happily enough. I’ve occasionally joined them for lunch but usually once they are eating, I will go and leave them with the staff.”

Another person said, “I’m a bit difficult as I don’t like peas or carrots, and cheese upsets me. I’ll ask what’s for dinner and I’ll maybe have a jacket potato and beans instead. I ask for ice cream too and they always oblige.”Another person explained they liked the atmosphere in the dining room and told us, “I like to go to the dining room for meals, and we do get a choice.” Another person said, “I’m not always keen on the vegetables. We get choices or can ask for something else. The puddings are really nice.”

People were happy the staff team supported them to stay hydrated. One person said, I have a jug of water but have got my own bottles in my mini fridge. The tea trolley makes the rounds regularly and I enjoy a mug of tea.” Another person said, “We get plenty of hot drinks provided. And I’ve got my jug of water here and my own squash.”

The provider cared about and promoted the wellbeing of their staff and supported and enabled staff to always deliver person-centred care.

Staff wellbeing had been given priority at Clifton View since our last assessment. Staff gave feedback this had a positive impact on the staff team. The provider and Registered Manager had altered the timings of shift patterns to support staff wellbeing. One staff member told us, “It’s been really nice over summer to finish at 7pm and get to see daylight and spend time with family and friends, rather than be working later."

Staff felt supported to bring the best of themselves to work each day. One staff member spoke of the improved approach of the new Registered Manager, saying, “There has been a huge change since there has been a change in management. It is so much more positive. The Registered Manager’s door is always open if we need anything.”