Beech Tree House

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 requires improvement. At this assessment the rating has changed to 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. Staff treated colleagues from other organisations with kindness and respect. We observed staff supporting people with kindness, compassion and dignity. People received support that was compassionate and personalised. People told us staff were mindful of their privacy and confidentiality. One person said, “The staff are all nice to me here. I love it here; I am very happy. This is my home”. Staff recognised people’s behavioural cues and responded quickly and compassionately. We observed one person stand and move to take their trousers off; the staff quickly recognised this and supported them to a more private part of the home. People could spend time outside of their bedrooms with their visitors, there were private spaces in the home and gardens that people could utilise. One relative told us “Staff are very caring towards [person]. They are well trained. [person] is in a safe place, and we have a review every year. She has a 1-1 and the staff know her well”.

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.

We observed staff treating people as individuals. Staff supported people in a person and relationship-centred manner that recognised their individuality and met their individual needs.

People’s communication needs were fully understood, and appropriate communication strategies utilised to enable people to engage in their care and support to maximise their experience and outcomes. Staff supported people to meet their cultural and spiritual needs. Where people wished to visit places of worship or celebrate specific cultural and religious festivals, staff supported them to do so. One person told us about their relative “[Person] does what they want when they want.”

The provider promoted people’s independence, so people knew their rights and had choice and control over their own care, treatment and wellbeing. Staff supported people to gain new skills and ensured they maintained skills they already had. People told us they independently chose to complete household task, including cleaning, putting away shopping and doing their laundry.

One person lived more independently in an annex outside the main house. They told us how they enjoyed having their own space and could ask for staff support when they needed it. They said, “I have always lived in the annex. If I need any help, I just ask for it, but I am in control of my own space”. We saw them cleaning the annex to their own standard.

Equipment was available for people to use independently, such as crockery and cutlery to support people to eat more independently. Staff told us how people’s need for support had reduced as people learned new skills and were more confident to do things for themselves. The deputy manager told us, “It is so great to see [person’s] journey. [They] are so genuinely happy here, after some initial challenges. It is so great to see people develop and grow. [Another person] now needs much less support with personal care – they can use the loo themselves without prompting”.

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.

Changes in people’s presentation, emotional state or distress which may have shown a deterioration in their health or wellbeing were recognised by staff. Staff took prompt action when they identified changes in people and escalated them to the relevant professionals.

We observed interactions between staff and people which were caring and compassionate when responding to people’s immediate needs. This enabled staff to anticipate and meet people’s needs promptly and in ways that reduced and mitigated people’s discomfort and distress.

The provider cared about and promoted the wellbeing of their staff and supported and enabled staff to always deliver person-centred care. People were supported by staff who felt valued in their roles. Staff stated they had regular supervision meetings and team meetings were held where they could raise any issues. Staff told us how they enjoyed working at the home. One support worker said, “It’s a very friendly home, the staff all keep an eye out for each other and step in if we need any help. We know each other and the [people] very well by now. If we need anything we just have to ask the managers”.