Care Assist Limited

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,dignityand 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 treated colleagues from other organisations with kindness and respect.

People toldusthey had good relationships withstaff.A person commented, “Staff are helpfuland they treat me well.” A relative told us,“I have a good relationship with staffthey are approachable.”

We saw friendly interactions between staff and the people they supported. They offered people choices and listened to their view. There was a relaxed atmosphere.

Staff knew and understood people well, including their preferences, wishes, personal histories and backgrounds.

Ateam leader of one of the serviceshad been nominated for aUK recognisedcarers awardby thefamily ofa personsupported.Thereasons for the nominationwerebecausethehigh-levelsupportthey were givingtheperson. Therelativesaid,“My relative[person]has spent many years in a range ofservices,I have never met a member of staff so kind.”

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.

Staffdemonstrateda good understanding of people as individuals. We saw staff engaging with people about their interests and preferences, and overall, records included information about people’s life histories and personal backgrounds. This promoted people being valued and recognised as individuals.

A person we spoke to said, “The staff know me well, I don’t like to go out very far, they encourage me but also respect mywishestochoose nottoo and this helps me."

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

People were supported to have independence,choiceand control over their daily lives. Care plans set out what peoplerequiredsupport with and what they could do for themselves.

People were encouraged and supported to access the community, developskillsand pursue theirindividualinterests. Staff promoted independence and supported people to take part in activities both within thesupported living settingsand in the local community. People’srooms were personalised to reflect their likes,interestsand preferences, helping to create a homely and comfortable environment

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,concernor distress.

Weobservedstaff providingtimelysupport when people requiredassistance. Staff understood how to escalateconcernsand seek support form managers when needed.

People were supported to health appointments and managers and staff worked with people and health professionals to address health needs.

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

The manager confirmed they had regular formal meetings with staff to discuss support and professional development opportunities. Staff had supervision, and appraisals in line with the provider’s policy. Staff also completed professional qualifications in health and social care. All the staff completed induction training to understand their role and develop their skills. The provider assessed staff competencies in particular medicines management, to ensure people’s medicines were managed and administered safely.

Staff were encouraged to speak up and raise concerns openly. The manager emphasised the importance of having a transparent culture where staff were able to speak up and where concernswereraised.The majority ofstaff we spoke with told us they felt supported and valued by their colleagues and management. A member of staff said, “This manager is always ready to support.” Another member of staff told us, “The management support us well. I can always call the management if I need to.”

Overall staff felt well supported, they explained they had opportunities for career development and any further training that enhanced peoples support needs.A staff member told us,“The Management are supportive. IfI think somethingis not working well, I follow the company’s procedure in raising it.” Antherstaff membercommented, "Wehave a staff meeting once a week where they check-in with us and ask how things are going. I can raise concerns if I needtobut Ihaven’thad to yet, they are approachable.”

The provider offered a range of wellbeing schemes for staff including access to counselling services if they were needed.