Highfield House Residential Care Home

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 71 (out of 100) for this area. Find out what we look at when we assess this area and How we calculate these scores.

Managers 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.

Managers told us, “Values of the service are at the front page of the induction folder, so expectations are set from the start.” They also said, "Our values evolve around promoting independence, dignity, choice and ensuring that everyone feels included in their care.” It was evident that these values were reflected in day-to-day care which people received. Staff emphasized these values telling us they meant, "This is like a person's home, so to make it a safe place for them".

Staff feedback described Highfield House as a positive place to work, highlighting supportive management and strong teamwork. Staff at all levels showed consistent knowledge of people at the service. Interactions between staff and people were warm and respectful. This reflected a culture that prioritised high quality care for people.

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.

There was a stable management team at the home. The current registered manager was very experienced and although moving to a different role with the provider, they were being replaced by another manager who was equally experienced. Managers were extremely knowledgeable about the people they supported and knew what was happening within the service. People at the service told us managers were, “Very good.” Managers led by example and were visible within the service. One staff member told us, "Managers have the right skills and act on issues quickly."

There were clear roles, responsibilities and expectations within the service. Managers encouraged staff development through qualifications and additional responsibilities such as champion roles. Staff completed National Vocational Qualifications (NVQ) in Health and Social Care. NVQs are work based qualifications enabling staff to demonstrate and develop their skills and knowledge. This meant people were supported by staff who were knowledgeable and experienced. Staff echoed this by reporting they appreciated having those opportunities.

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

Staff told us they felt comfortable raising concerns and that they would be listened to. One staff member told us if they raised a concern the manager, "Would look at the whole situation and investigate." Managers actively sought feedback and acted on it where appropriate.

Staff knew where to find information about ‘whistleblowing’ should they require it. This meant there was a strong, open culture within the service where concerns could be raised and addressed promptly, promoting safe care.

Managers valued diversity in their workforce. They worked towards an inclusive and fair culture by improving equality and equity for people who worked for them.

Staff did not raise any concerns about their experiences and felt they were treated fairly by managers and other staff members. One staff member told us, “Everyone is appreciated. People are kind to each other."

Managers told us that they organised ‘themed days’ for staff to celebrate their cultures with people at the service. Systems were in place to support staff to request reasonable adjustments. Examples included adapted duties following illness and for those with dyslexia providing information on different coloured paper. Managers worked collaboratively with staff to accommodate individual needs and personal circumstances when planning work rotas. This meant staff felt valued and supported in their roles, contributing to a positive working environment which helped promote continuity and quality of care for people.

Managers did not always have clear systems of accountability or good governance. They did not always act on the best information about risks to people.

Managers had governance systems in place however, they were not always effective. Medicines audits did not identify the shortfalls that we found. Additionally, not all risks to people were identified through internal auditing such as missing anticoagulant guidance and bowel management plans which lacked key information. This meant improvements needed were not always identified and addressed promptly.

Some audits, including those relating to recruitment checks and care plans, did not clearly detail the specific criteria which should be reviewed. This meant that there was a lack of clarity and consistency in how audits were completed.

Although managers responded when we raised these issues, they had not identified these issues independently. Managers began implementing changes following our feedback, however these will require time to become fully embedded to ensure their effectiveness.

Managers 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.

Professionals who visited the home spoke highly of their experiences. One professional told us, “We have regular and good contact. They are a pleasure to deal with.” Referrals to external professionals were made appropriately. For example, managers were concerned about 1 person and had collaborated with relevant professionals including the local authority to promote the person’s safety and wellbeing. This meant they would have additional support put in place to meet their needs.

Managers maintained good links with the local community, enabling people to access activities and groups which were meaningful to them. This meant people had opportunities to maintain social connections outside of the home.

Managers 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.

Lessons learnt were actively shared with staff, contributing to continuous improvement of practice. People, relatives and staff had plenty of opportunities to feedback their views about the service, the quality of the care and any ideas they had to improve the service. One staff member told us that following their feedback, "On call has recently been changed so that you are not on call if you have been on the shift at the weekend in case you get called back in to work." This meant managers regularly embedded suggested improvements into practice.

Managers were able to demonstrate innovation by involving staff in additional learning. Managers and staff had attended conferences. One recent conference discussed the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and technology and following this, managers had purchased a ‘Jolley Trolley’, an interactive entertainment trolley for people to use, where they could display pictures and different themes.