Scarborough Hall and Lodge 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 85 (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 was exceptional at treating people with kindness, empathy and compassion and in how they respected people’s privacy and dignity. Staff always treated colleagues from other organisations with kindness and respect.

Without exception, people and their relatives all told us staff were kind and caring. Comments from people included, “Staff are very kind, they go out of their way to be helpful”, “I’m not rushed; they are very patient”, “They (staff) take notice of what we’re interested in”, “They (staff) take time to talk to me” and, “They (staff) are really patient with all the people nothing is too much trouble.”

Staff were exceptionally thoughtful and gentle, and all interactions were extremely positive. Staff were vigilant about people who may be isolated and took every opportunity to involve them in conversation, smile, make eye contact or give them a gentle touch. For example, one person, whose first language was not English and who lived with advanced dementia, was not excluded. Staff constantly engaged and supported them to be understood. Staff fully respected people’s privacy and dignity. We observed one staff member asking a person’s permission to enter their room and go and find a key the person thought they had left in their own room. Staff always took time to listen to people, making eye contact and giving encouragement. One staff member described how they knew whether someone was distressed and what to do to comfort them. One person who lived with dementia enjoyed playing a musical instrument. Staff members made sure they had access to this every day, helped them to clean it, and it was played whilst others enjoyed a singalong. Staff always made sure people had things to do, or where they chose not to participate, that they were equally engaged. For example, directly after breakfast people were encouraged to complete adult colouring, look at books about subjects they enjoyed, or do jigsaws or puzzles. Comments overhead were, “You’re doing really good, do you want to write your name on it?” Where able and willing, staff supported people to assist them in their tasks. A staff member explained, “It’s encouraged to interact with [people] and do daily activities. One person helped me sweep up this morning, even washing a dish, it’s nice for them to do that.”

One person who was brought into the dining room asked to sit near the window. The staff member made sure they were positioned where they could see the view but positioned the curtain so that they were not sat in direct sunlight.

A staff member told us the best part about the job was the people they supported saying, “just making them laugh or smile”.

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.

Each person had their own ‘person cloud’ in their room. This was a poster of interesting things about the person, their social history, hobbies, and preferences. These were used by staff as prompts enabling them to chat with people and develop conversations and relationships. A relative said, “Staff will sit and chat, kind and patient absolutely.”

Staff were trained to support people with dementia and safely promote their independence and choice. However, the service also had a number of ‘dementia champions’ who provided additional support staff to help them better meet the needs of people who lived with dementia. A person told us, “I can make my own choices.”

Another relative told us, “[Name of person] had a birthday party; we were amazed. I think they do it for everyone but it made him feel special.”

A staff member said, “Everyone is different. One person enjoys music, others can’t stand it. Others like sitting and talking and holding my hand.”

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

Activities provision in the service was strong. Daily group activities took place, as well as those for individuals. Staff ensured everyone was included, where they wished to do so, by fostering community activities. For example, people were encouraged to participate in a group painting, with people on each floor participating, this was then taken to people in their rooms for those to participate individually should they wish. Other activities focused on individuals and their likes and interests. For example, one person who declined to participate in group activities was supported to play football in the garden, and because of the positive experience had started to take part in the percussion club. A staff member told us, “It’s finding what is specific to people and working on that. We make connections and build on it.” Activities staff ensured staff were matched with people and activities. People were supported to make and maintain friendships within the home, even if on differing floors, which was led by their interests. For example, a gentleman’s trip had been instrumental in supporting people to bond. Staff ensured relatives were able to maintain bonds with their loved ones by considering activities they could do together. For example, ‘rummage boxes’ were used throughout the home to promote conversations. Staff had identified one person who declined activities would discuss sport with their visitors, as such, staff made a sport rummage box, which supported that person and their family have meaningful visits.

The service made effective use of information technology, for example, smart speakers were used throughout the home to provide music suitable to people’s moods and wishes at the time. The service planned to develop person-centred playlists. The service facilitated Zoom calls between people and relatives who were unable to visit in person. Visually stimulating videos were played via YouTube, as well as digital photo frames to stimulate reminiscing and conversation.

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 were observant in identifying people’s immediate needs and making sure they were met. For example, one person had started to fidget and a staff member asked them ‘do you want to go and lay on your bed and be more comfy, or sit in the lounge?’. Staff knew people very well and were often able to anticipate people’s needs and ensure they were supported safely. For example, very discretely asking them if they wished to be supported to the toilet. Where people started to show signs of distress staff were immediately on hand to provide comfort and reassurance.

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

The home had a staff appreciation day once a month, where staff were able to vote for whether, for example, they wanted sweets or chocolate on that day. The registered manager regularly paid for staff to buy in, for example, pizza at the end of their shift. The service had an employee of the month, where staff voted for one another, and the winner received a gift to suit them. Another staff member said about their manager, “I can go to her about everything.”

The registered manager told us they were well-supported by the provider. Staff told us they were supported by the registered manager. The registered manager said, “I’m proud of the home we are and the staff we have. I know staff give 100%.”

A staff member told us, “Yes, I get recognised, and there’s employee of the month.” Another staff member described how the registered manager had recognised due to the staff member’s individual needs they may be better supported by a stable working environment and had arranged this.