Accolade Support and Care Ltd

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.

This meant people were supported and treated with dignity and respect; and involved as partners in their care.

This service scored 80 (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.

There was a positive culture of kindness and respect embedded within the service that translated into practice when caring for people. The staff team would strive to ensure special occasions were marked by delivering celebration related cards and treats to ensure people knew they were thought about.

People and their families had high praise for the staff team and care they received, commenting, “We’re very, very, pleased with the staff, they’re friendly and bubbly and lovely with my [relative]” and “Staff are very good, very courteous and caring. They get down to [relative’s] level so they can speak at the same face level, and they have a good laugh.”

Staff had developed good relationships with people and demonstrated genuine care to support people well. Staff told us, “It takes time to get to know clients to ensure that they are happy and comfortable with the care they are receiving” and “I believe there is a kind culture from the staff I interact with. I believe we are a person-centred care company, and we strive to provide kind care that leaves them in a better position than when we went there.”

The provider treated people as individuals and was exceptional in how they made sure people’s care, support and treatment met people’s needs and preferences. The provider took account of people’s strengths, abilities, aspirations, culture and unique backgrounds and protected characteristics.

People’s individual needs and preferences were understood and reflected in their care, treatment and support. Within the staff handbook and guides, there was information relating to supporting people with personal care. This highlighted to staff that personal care support went beyond basic tasks of washing and dressing but was ‘also about the little touches that makes a person feel like themselves.’

Staff spoke about the importance of recognising each person as an individual and providing care that met each person’s needs. Staff told us, “I communicate with them constantly. I always listen to what is being said by my clients. How they wish for things to be done/not done” and “Everyone is different, so we continually communicate with our clients to ensure that they’re personal needs are being met at all times.”

At Christmas, people had all been given a service branded pen in a gift box. One person who showed particular interest in the pen had shared they were using it for journalling a book. They were later visited by the registered manager who ensured they had an extra supply of these pens to continue their writing with.

People’s cultural and religious preferences were respected and encouraged. We saw some people were supported with attending their chosen places of worship. One staff member had stepped in to drive 1 person, when they saw the impact of not attending weekly had on their mental wellbeing. The registered manager then implemented this as part of their care support. Staff told us, “We have people who are [religion] and go to [place of worship] and we will drive them there. The plan is designed around their life” and “We respect every religion and if they need to go somewhere, we will support them. For example, for 1 person to go to [place of worship] and interact with other [worshippers] is very good for them. We also give companionship to watch the [religious] programme in the winter when it’s cold.”

The registered manager had put in place a document shared with people called the ‘Bucket list’. We saw this encouraged people to share parts of their lives and hopes with the service so they could be further understood and recognised for the unique individuals they were. The booklet asked people to record their favourite memory, inspiration and what is important to them now and anything they want to achieve or do. The registered manager told us the plan was to review these goal objectives at the next management quality assurance meeting and see if support could be given to people to achieve their aspiration and goals.

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

People were encouraged to maintain and increase their independence where able. Staff recognised and understood the importance of supporting people to retain independence stating, “I adopt a person-centred approach for everyone I provide care for and focus on what they can do rather than their limitations, enabling self-care and offering choices in daily routines such as dressing choice and eating choice.” and “I support them to do some tasks themselves, give encouragement, and respect their choices while pushing safety.”

We saw people’s care plans centred around their choices and how they wanted their care delivered. One person’s care plan stated, ‘I am a very independent and head strong [person] but require assistance with tasks such as typing. Please do not underestimate me, I am not defined by my health conditions and strive to achieve great things.”

Staff spoke about giving people choice and the importance of listening to and respecting how people wanted things undertaken. One staff said, “We always give choice in what to wear or eat. If they have capacity to make a cup of tea for example, we empower them to do this themselves and support them if they are struggling.”

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 demonstrated good insight into people’s needs and were alert to recognising changes in people. Staff had guidelines in place that recorded the action they should take in the event a person required immediate support. This reminded staff not to lift a person up off the floor if they had fallen and there was a suspected injury and to raise an alert at the earliest opportunity.

People and their families were confident that staff would respond appropriately and timely to their needs. They said comments such as, “Staff are good at picking up if any health concerns and will report to relevant authorities and inform me. [Relative] was recently poorly and [staff] rang up 3 times to ask how they were” and “The manager had called because [relative] had thought they’d pulled a muscle. [Staff] had gone through the notes and noted that [relative] hadn’t opened bowels and thought maybe they were constipated. I was impressed the manager was checking up and taking action.”

We saw the service had applied for and gained access to a service that authorised health and social care workers in a variety of care settings to access the GP records of people they supported with their consent. This enabled the staff to ensure people’s medicines were correct and implement any additional care and support around people’s health conditions and increase the safety of care provided. The registered manager had updated the provider’s privacy notice in respect of this.

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

Staff wellbeing was a priority within the service, and the staff felt recognised and valued within their roles. Staff told us, “Since working with Accolade I have found them to be very professional and supportive. They also encourage me to further my role in care, giving relevant feedback about my service.” and “I do feel valued. There is a nice group of ladies in the office who we can call any time and if they are able to help you, they are always willing to help. Also, with clients whenever we call the office, we get supported every time.”

There were incentives in place for staff including recommendation bonuses, staff awards and additional leave after time in service. Staff had access to a ‘wellbeing line’ to gain support for themselves should they need this at any time.Staff were supported to come together for a festive celebration which ran throughout a week to ensure everyone could have the opportunity to be part of and received tokens of appreciation.

Staff received good information about the service when they joined in the form of a staff handbook and useful practice guides. These had information on end-of-life care, important information on unfamiliar cleaning products and information on time management. One staff member told us, “I enjoy engaging with my management team they are all very helpful, happy, communicative and approachable.”

Staff were supported with flexible working and reasonable adjustments, where needed. The registered manager told us, “Everyone has a different working pattern and we try accommodating this. We have a working pattern set so everyone knows it and when their time is off so they can plan around this.” One staff member praised the support they had received when they had been going through a personal matter, stating the management had been “very considerate and supportive.”