Imagine Act and Succeed

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 changed to Outstanding. This meant service leadership was exceptional and distinctive. Leaders and the culture they created drove and improved high-quality, person-centred care.

This service scored 89 (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 very clear shared vision, strategy and culture. This was based on transparency, equity, equality and human rights, diversity and inclusion, engagement, and an exceptional understanding of the challenges and the needs of the people they supported in and their communities.

Staff retention was excellent and was one of many strengths at the service. One third of the team had been with the service for 10 years or more. During the assessment staff were consulted by the service about the reasons they had stayed with IAS. They stated, “We stay with IAS because we love the people we support, they become like family and we can always have ideas to make them have the best life” and “Throughout my career I have seen so many wonderful things happen for people which have made me feel so proud. Seeing people happy and living their life is priceless and one of the many reasons why I have stayed with IAS for so long…I am lucky to have worked with some wonderful people who have got huge hearts and truly care about the people we support. It's clearly not all about the money as a support worker/leader etc.. you've got to have it in your heart and genuinely care about people and what you are doing.”

The feedback we received from healthcare professionals about their experience of working with IAS was outstanding. They told us, “I would just add that based on my experiences with them… they would also pass the “friends and family” test.” and “I enjoy working alongside IAS to achieve the best outcomes for the people they support and would be happy for them to care for a family member of mine.”

IAS’s Coproduction policy states, “Participation in co-production is something that we value greatly and working in co-production is an important part of our organisational culture. Co-production is captured in our “statement of purpose” and it is an integral part of how we deliver personalised support to the people that use our services. Co-production ensures that people continue to have choice and control over the care and support they receive. It is a practice where the person is central to the process but includes how we involve family, friends, carers, the community, housing, health professionals and commissioners to find a shared solution.” This was delivered in practice and demonstrated through many examples. One example was the Statement of Purpose (SOP)which was drawn up in consultation with people, families and staff. The SOP is a document which describes what a service does, where they operate and who for and includes the aims and objectives They spent a whole day agreeing this document and took into account everyone's views.

People’s families told us, “The staff are exceptional in every way, they are responsive, listen to the residents and provide brilliant communications to the family” and “Themanagement always consult me as a family member about my views when dealing with my [relatives] care. They have been extremely supportive helping me to cope with some of the issues regarding [relatives] care and issues with their deteriorating health. I am always able to contact them when I need to discuss issues, and they are always addressed.”

The provider had exceptionally 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 always did so with integrity, openness and honesty.

The leadership was exceptional. The person-centred values and clear focus on supporting people to live their lives was testament to the success of their approach. We received a high volume of feedback from people’s families, healthcare professionals and staff. The feedback was outstanding.

Healthcare professionals told us, “In my opinion they have a very good leadership team who have a strong value base and manage and support their staff well. The leadership team has been consistent for several years, and many of the support workers I meet have known the service users for a long time therefore IAS seem to do well in retaining and motivating their staff” and “They provide a very competent level of care, for example being thorough in their approach, making timely referrals to us when needed, and following up issues appropriately. I think it is fair to say that for any organisation these are very challenging times to work in, and despite this my experience is that they provide an excellent level of care to the people they support” and “The managers are excellent, they have been in the service for a long time and consequently they know the people they support really well.”

Staff told us, “All my years of working, I have never work in a company where the managers are so nice and brilliant. They treat the staff with respect and dignity and are always available when we need help. I feel very much appreciated by the management and all the staff and will always recommend IAS to anyone if the chance arises” and “I think the reason I've stayed with IAS is that I've always been given the opportunity to develop, learn and progress. I've always been encouraged and gently pushed to try so many different things and my confidence has continued to grow year after year in the job. I really like the supportive culture we have. I also feel I work with the nicest team anyone could wish for.”

Families told us, “I think IAS provide an excellent service” and “I have found them willing to listen, take on board what I say. He’s very part of our family and they know him well. We are all moving in the right direction together”.

The provider was exceptional at fostering a positive culture where people knew they could speak up and their voice would be heard.

Staff told us there was a culture of speaking up and senior staff actively listened and valued staff contributions. Staff were seen as an asset and equal partners in people’s care and support. All the staff we spoke to said they could speak up freely and they felt confident to do so. They told us, “Yes, I’ve never been worried about saying what I feel or what’s going on, whereas other places I have been worried, but not here” and “Yes, they don’t need to encourage me. We are always chatting, and I’m listened to. For that reason, things get resolved quickly and things are never left.”

The head of operations told us, “We encourage staff to report concerns, and we feel staff are supported well in this area. Regular discussions take place with staff in job consultations and team meetings, and we feel we have an open and honest culture. We make sure people are kept up to date with any concerns that have been raised and that concerns are followed up in a timely manner.”

The processes we reviewed including supervisions, team meeting minutes and staff surveys all evidenced staff were always able to speak up to help drive improvement. Actions taken in response had improved peoples’ quality of life. As noted in other areas of this report people had been supported to become more independent and their lives had been enriched by access to new opportunities and activities. The whole staff team were involved in this work.

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 service ensured there were effective and proactive ways to engage with and to involve staff. Staff felt empowered and were confident that their concerns and ideas resulted in positive change and created a more equitable and inclusive organisation.

All the staff we spoke to told is they were treated fairly and felt supported by IAS. IAS gave numerous examples where they supported staff including reasonable adjustments to support people with disabilities to remain in work.

The service was involved in several recruitment initiatives to encourage people into social care and to make it more inclusive. They worked with a college to try and make social care more appealing to young students. This had worked really and included work experience placements.

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

Clear governance processes were place and included processes to learn and to drive improvement. There was an effective and structured audit process in place, and this included a quarterly companywide Health and Safety meeting chaired by the Chief Executive.

The systems to manage current and future performance and risks to the quality of the service took a proportionate approach to managing risk that allowed new and innovative ideas to be safely tested within the service. There were numerous examples of this noted throughout this report. People were supported to attain their goals and to learn new skills. This model of care was in line with current best practice in accordance with CQC’s guidance ‘Right Support, Right Care, Right Culture’. In this area in particular the leadership excelled as people were supported to live their lives and the real-life outcomes for people were outstanding.

Leaders had clear roles and responsibilities. They had the skills, knowledge and experience to lead effectively. They led by example with integrity, openness and honesty. This fostered a culture of excellence within the service, which placed people at its heart and maintained a clear focus on achieving positive outcomes.

We had a high level of response from healthcare professionals in Trafford. The feedback about the management was excellent. They told us, “The managers are excellent; they have been in the service for a long time and consequently they know the people they support really well.”

We spoke to a large number of staff and they were all able to tell us about the systems in place to manage the service safely and effectively.Plans were in place to invest in electronic systems. This will help to further develop governance systems and will also help them to evidence the excellent work and outcomes they achieved with people.

The most recent report from Trafford Council rated IAS excellent and fully complaint with a score of 97%.

The provider clearly understood and carried out their duty to collaborate and work in partnership, to ensure services worked seamlessly for people. They always shared information and learning with partners and collaborated for improvement.

The service was a key player in the local community it served and was considered a valued partner by others in the community.New opportunities were created for people based on their goals and interests. People were integrated and involved in the communities where they lived.

Healthcare professionals gave excellent feedback about their experience of working with IAS. One partner agency told us, “They are always on hand for help, advice and will share good practice”. Another told us, “I have observed (manager) and the team are particularly person-centred, consistently striving to achieve the aims and aspirations of everyone whenever feasible and within the bounds of safety. From my experience, their approach is professional, they are reliable, and they are exceptionally good at communicating with families and effectively working with multiple agencies... I have no concerns; they are a pleasure to work together with.”

The service had strong community connections, and this resulted in numerous initiatives that had benefitted people and their communities. This included volunteering, gaining employment for the first time, independent travel, establishing new groups for community use, such as a social group, a café and coffee mornings. People and staff were involved in fundraising events; this had enabled them to raise money for a cancer charity. These activities benefitted the community as well as increasing people’s community connections, confidence, independence and pride.

The provider had been involved in the establishment of a new model of housing provision in the locality. This involved working with an investor and a housing association to promote integration and support networks for people to live as independently as possible in the community.

The local authority stated in their recent report, “The organisation actively collaborates with a wide range of teams across different areas and clearly recognises the importance of this way of working.”

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.

Systems were in place to ensure everyone was involved in learning to improve people’s care. Minutes of staff meetings evidenced collective problem solving and/or reflection in response to new ideas or concerns that needed prompt action. Staff said they were encouraged to speak up about new ideas. They told us, “We are encouraged to do that in our monthly staff meetings…We are encouraged to collaborate and problem solve” and “Yes, that happens every team meeting monthly…we lay out our concerns and where we feel there could be improvement.”

People were involved in or consulted about reviews of concerns, accidents, incidents and adverse events and in planning to prevent similar incidents in the future. Healthcare professionals were very positive about their engagement with the service. They told us, “IAS are a collaborative and communicative provider in Trafford…they are a creative provider in the current economic climate and work well with the Local Authority in considering innovation.”