Empress Social Care

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.
This was the first inspection since the service was registered on 30 July 2020.
 

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 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. 

The provider told us that all staff were provided with the company's vision and values in the staff handbook. Staff were consistently reminded at every team meeting the importance of the company’s culture and values and ensured that all meetings have minutes taken which are circulated to all staff members. Staff were supportive of the development and direction of the company and felt they were very much part of that journey.
 

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. 
The provider and registered manager demonstrated compassion throughout the inspection process, always putting the people they support at the centre of all they did. The leadership team were, kind and caring knowledgeable, skilled, and sensitive when dealing with the people they supported and or families.
We found the management team and staff were open and honest in all their dealing with people, professionals, and the wider community. Staff told us about how important it was to maintain trust and integrity in all aspects of their work.
 

The provider fostered a positive culture where people felt they could speak up and their voice would be heard.
Staff told us they had autonomy and felt able to speak up and be heard. The management team operated an open-door policy, and staff could speak to them at any time both for support and to report any problems or concerns.
Staff told us they organised and chaired their own team meetings, setting their own agenda with all staff within the team contributing.

Staff were supported and encouraged to share their views in a pre-supervision form to enable them to share their views where verbally sharing may be more difficult.

Staff told us they were empowered to take a lead in disseminating information wherever possible and our champions address their colleagues in meetings and through electronic messaging with information and advice.

All staff felt valued and management recognised their staff are essential to the service provided, their voices matter as do their experiences and opinions. Staff are asked to provide feedback in relation to their views, opinions, and any suggestions for improvement in staff surveys on a biannual basis.

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. 
The registered manager told us workforce equality, diversity, and inclusion were vital to the welfare of their staff and management. The staff mix tried as much as possible to reflect the communities they support, proving a greater understanding of different communities they supported.
There was a whistle blowing policy in place and staff were aware they could report any concerns anonymously if they wished. Staff were protected from any harassment as part of the whistle blowing policy. Staff told us that they were treated equally, irrelevant of background or culture and opportunities for development and promotional opportunities were open to all.

The registered manager told us they held annual awards in December to celebrate and include all faiths and beliefs. They told us they were committed to ensuring that their staff felt treated equitably and fairly. Empress is also a disability confident employer and ensured that they can offer opportunities to all within the community who would like to work for Empress.

The provider had clear responsibilities, roles, systems of accountability and good governance. They used these to manage and deliver good quality, sustainable care, treatment, and support. They acted on the best information about risk, performance, and outcomes, and shared this securely with others when appropriate.

The provider told us the importance of good quality governance, management and sustainability were essential components to the continued smooth operations development and sustainability of Empress. We noted robust records were kept. The staff team had clear roles, responsibilities, systems of accountability and governance.
We saw that a range of audits and quality assurance checks were in place and completed at different periods of time. This meant that audits were part of the business-as-usual approach, and everyone understood the importance of having these in place to maintain quality.

Regular stakeholder engagement was facilitated to ensure a comprehensive approach to people care and support, and to keep everyone in the loop, while adhering to GDPR [general data protection register legislation]. We noted that the management and staff team were working towards greater sustainability and were considering how they can do more for the organisation and environment. For example, staff were encouraged to car share, take public transport, or walk where possible. Teams were encouraged to use IT systems where this was appropriate for example online teams’ meetings. The provider told us they were recycling, and moving away from paper records, instead using a range of paperless systems.

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 management team told us how they tried to develop professional working relationships with partnerships and communities. The benefits of these partnerships meant that people received good quality joined up care and support. When any support or interventions were required, it was positive to have named workers and or contacts with whom the management team knew.
We received positive feedback from a healthcare professional working with staff and managers at Empress. The professional told us, “I am the allocated worker for [name] and feel they have been well looked after. The staff are always responsive and keep me informed if there are any changes or updates.”

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. They actively contributed to safe, effective practice and research.
 
Empress strived to promote internal opportunities for the growth and development of staff. For example, the responsibility for the Empress internal newsletter role has been developed by an existing staff member who has responsibility for producing this document monthly.

Staff told us they were recognised, commended, and celebrated for their hard work throughout the year, during an awards event in December.

Staff were supported with fixed shifts so that they could better manage their work/life balance and offer flexibility where possible for personal and family commitments.

We noted that there was a robust recruitment policy in place. Empress always ensured they follow safer recruitment practices, check references, qualifications, stated experience and check the enhanced DBS certificates on an annual basis.

Staff were encouraged to provide feedback including suggestions and improvements in a biannual survey on the support they receive from the management team.

Quality monitoring and assurance was collected through surveys and feedback, and we noted the most recent feedback was extremely positive. Staff told us they were satisfied or extremely satisfied with their employer and had confidence in the senior leadership team and felt that the service was professionally managed and well-led. Staff told us they felt they had the right qualifications, skills, and training to perform their role and provide safe care, and felt that the service is safe, caring, and responsive.