Woburn House

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 inspection we rated this key question good. At this inspection, 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.

People and their relatives spoke positively about their/ their family members support and the kind and caring nature of the staff team. Staff spoke about people knowledgably and with kindness and compassion. We observed staff speaking with people kindly and in line with the way they wanted to be communicated with. Staff respected people’s dignity and personal space. They always made sure people were happy with what was happening and how they were being supported. People showed us they were happy with their staff team using signs and gestures and in the way they reacted to the staff team as they were supported. One person said, ‘‘[Name] is happy with the staff team. Yes!’’ A relative said, ‘‘[Staff] are very patient and have been there for [family member] during some very difficult times. They have a great relationship.’’ Another relative told us, ‘‘[Staff] are fantastic with [family member]. They know exactly how to get them to feel their best.’’

The provider treated people as individuals and made sure people’s care, support and treatment met people’s needs and preferences. Staff knew people well as individuals and knew how they liked to be supported. They explained what people’s preferences likes and dislikes were and understood how important these were when supporting people. They knew people’s cultural beliefs and how to respect and support people in line with these. We observed staff supporting people in line with their individual support needs as noted in their support plans. For example, staff knew what people were asking for when they communicated using body language or signing. They knew how to support people to speak about their interests and to help them feel better when they felt upset or angry. Staff supported people to eat in line with their cultural preferences. One person showed us how happy they were to be eating food that met these preferences. Another person was visibly very happy when staff supported them to choose what they wanted for lunch. A relative told us, ‘‘[Family member] is understood as a person by the staff team and is in the best place they could be 100%.’’

Staff supported people to be independent if they chose to do this. People’s care plans showed where people needed support and where they could be more independent. We observed staff supporting and prompting people to be as independent as possible, for example by preparing their own food and drink or cleaning their home. People had been supported to access the community more often and improve their independence and confidence. Staff had adapted people’s daily and weekly lives to incorporate their choices and help people be in control of their lives as much as possible. For example, staff supported one person to choose specifically when they wanted to do what they had chosen to do and the person reacted well to this, having previously found accessing the community very difficult.

People were supported to be in control and make choices about all aspects of their care. We observed staff offering choices to people such as what they wanted to eat or how they wanted to spend their time. Choices were offered to people in different ways such as verbally or by using objects. One person happily showed us how they made choices about how they spent their time with staff. Other people were very happy to have developed their own specific routines which were supported and understood by staff. A relative said, ‘‘It amazes me how much of [family member’s] life was dictated by others until they started using the service. Its great they have the choices to do what they want now.’’

Staff responded to people’s immediate needs. People did not have to wait for support when they asked for it, and staff were always on hand to support people. Staff noted when people needed more support or if their needs changed and raised this with the management team so changes could be made to their support. We observed staff to be very aware of how people might show they need support and they acted swiftly to help people when they needed it. For example, people were completely in control of when they left their home to go in to the community and staff responded immediately to support them at any time. One relative said, ‘‘There has never been an issue with staffing and [person] never has to wait if they want to do something.’’

The provider cared about and promoted the wellbeing of their staff and supported and enabled staff to always deliver person-centred care. Staff enjoyed working at the service and felt well supported by the management team. They had regular discussions and supervisions to discuss their job roles and any support they may need. Regular meeting with staff took place to discuss how well supported they felt and any improvements they felt would benefit the service. Staff were supported to develop and progress in their roles if they chose to do so. Staff told us they really appreciated the openness and transparency of the management team who often visited people in their homes to see them.