Home Instead Central Hemel Hempstead & Chilterns

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 has remained Good. This meant the service was consistently managed and well-led. Leaders and the culture they created promoted high-quality, person-centred 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 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.

Staff were positive about the culture and approach at the service. A member of staff told us, “We have care professional meetings, supervisions, appraisals and I can always pop into the office. Everything I would expect to be in place for us is there and available.”

Staff felt proud to work for the service and were committed to provide a good standard of care. They understood the goals of the service and how they could share ideas for improvement. A member of staff told us, “Home Instead is a wonderful company that helps and looks after their staff. I'm so proud to say I work here.”
 

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.

Staff spoke positively about the leadership at the service. A member of staff told us, “Managers are involved. I have a supervision and appraisal; our training is always ongoing as we get assigned things on our learning cloud. We also have support visits where senior staff come and observe us with the clients.”

Management staff were approachable and available. They maintained good oversight of day-to-day matters, ensuring staff had the support and guidance needed to perform their roles effectively.
 

The provider fostered a positive culture where people felt they could speak up and their voice would be heard.

Staff felt confident to speak up. A member of staff told us, “I feel confident about speaking up at work and am aware of the whistleblowing process.”

The provider made available a variety of ways people, relatives and staff could give their views on the service. These included reviews, spot checks and quality assurance calls. For staff, this also included supervision sessions, team meetings, surveys and an ‘open door’ policy at the office.

The provider had processes in place to support staff to speak up, alongside an up-to-date whistleblowing policy.
 

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 provider had policies and procedures in place to promote workforce equality, diversity and inclusion.

All staff were invited to participate in opportunities for them to provide feedback on their experiences. This helped to promote a respectful and supportive team environment. Staff confirmed that the registered manager responded positively to their feedback.
 

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 had effective governance systems to oversee the quality and safety of the service. This included live monitoring of care delivery, with prompt and responsive action taken when issues were identified.

There was a system of audits and checks including care plan, medicines and quality audits. Using these, alongside spot checks of staff practice and satisfaction surveys, the provider had oversight of the service and ensured that people were experiencing care in line with their expectations. Where improvements were identified as needed, these were including on the continuous improvement plan that had been implemented by the registered manager.
 

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.

There was a clear system to ensure partnership working with health social care professionals, and local partners.

Staff were committed to enabling people to remain part of their local communities and maintain important relationships.
 

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.

The provider’s quality assurance system covered all aspects of the service and included people’s experiences, and feedback received from a variety of sources. Where any learning was identified, this was approached positively.

Staff told us the provider promoted a learning culture. They said they received ongoing mandatory training as well as additional training tailored to people’s individual needs.

The registered manager had a positive approach to learning and improvement. They were receptive in their response to our observations and feedback from the assessment.