Archived: Summerhill Care Home

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 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 and respected their privacy and dignity.

Staff felt they delivered a high standard of care which gave people dignity and promoted their emotional wellbeing. One staff member told us, “We provide people with dignity by being discreet during personal care, offering them choice and asking them if they are OK with how we are supporting them.” One person told us, “I couldn't ask for better people to care for me. They are respectful and treat me with kindness. I can have a shower when I want one and the staff help me but allow me independence and dignity.”

Staff treated colleagues from other organisations with kindness and respect. One visiting professional told us, “The staff are great, and I love coming here. People come here, and don't want to go when they could as staff interact with them very well.” Another visiting professional told us, “Staff are very good with us when we visit the care home.”

The provider treated people as individuals and made sure people’s care, support and treatment met people’s needs and preferences. For example, we observed one person asking for staff after they finished their meal. The staff member responded kindly, discussed the dessert options and brought the person’s dessert of choice. The person appeared very comfortable and appreciative of the staff member’s approach.

The provider took account of people’s strengths, abilities, aspirations, culture and unique backgrounds and protected characteristics. One person told us, “As I was so ill when I first came here, I had to rely fully on staff. Since I have been recovering, I have discussed everything with staff, and we have planned my care together.” One staff member told us, “We have people from diverse backgrounds. We ask people about their preferences and support them with their religious needs. For example, people attend church or receive visits from the local church.”

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

One person told us, “I go to a community event independently however staff are always at hand to help me get back safely. We are always looking for ways to make my life easier and resolve problems I may encounter.” Another person told us, “They [staff] give 100% and sometimes go the extra mile for you. I am trying to build my confidence with staff help. They give me independence but plenty of support.”

The provider employed a wellbeing team who supported people to take part in a range of individual and group activities which were person centred and promoted their wellbeing.

One staff member told us, “We have strong links with local community services such as the neighbourhood watch, school and nursery and we participate in activities together. Where people consent, we keep families up to date with what residents take part in via social media. We do Magic Moments where we meet with residents individually, find out what they would like to do and make it happen. For example, residents have taken part in sporting activities in and out of the care home, visited heritage sites and dined at their place of choice.”

The provider had access to a minibus to support people to participate in activities outside of the home both individually and in groups.

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.

We observed people were responded to straight away when they requested support.

Where people’s health concerns required to be escalated to specialist health agencies, this was done in a timely way. One visiting professional told us, “I think the care home is great, we work closely, and the provider is in regular contact for advice and to escalate issues.”

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

All the staff members we spoke with enjoyed working at the care home and spoke warmly about the registered manager and how supportive they were. One staff member told us, “The registered manager is genuine and really cares about us.” Another staff member told us, “When something happened in my personal life, the [registered manager] was very supportive and worked with me so that I could still provide good care for people.”

Staff wellbeing and how to promote person-centred care was discussed in one-to-meetings with a senior or manager, and in team meetings. Handover meetings took place to ensure staff were up to date with people’s needs and risks.