Woburn House

On this page

• Overview
• Assessing needs
• Delivering evidence-based care and treatment
• How staff, teams and services work together
• Supporting people to live healthier lives
• Monitoring and improving outcomes
• Consent to care and treatment

Effective – this means we looked for evidence that people’s care, treatment, and support achieved good outcomes and promoted a good quality of life, based on best available evidence.

At our last inspection we rated this key question good. At this inspection, the rating has remained good. This meant people’s outcomes were consistently good, and people’s feedback confirmed this.

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 made sure people’s care and treatment were effective because they assessed their needs when they started using the service and reassessed these regularly. When new people started using the service, their needs were thoroughly assessed by the management team to make sure their needs could be met. The staff team worked with people to get to know them and continually update their care plans and risk assessments. As a result of staff support people had positive experiences when they started using the service. People had been using the service for many years. This had not been something many people found easy to do, and it was thanks to the strong assessment process and staff dedication that people had been able to live in their own homes for such a long time. People responded positively when we asked them if they liked living in their own homes. A relative told us, ‘‘[Family member] jumped from place to place because of their support needs but have been living in their home for a long time now. Staff have been fantastic with them.’’

The provider planned and delivered people’s care and treatment with them, including what was important and mattered to them. They did this in line with legislation and current evidence-based good practice and standards. The staff team spoke knowledgably about their training in area such as supporting people living with a learning disability. The management team understood RSRCRC guidance and supported people in line with this. For example, supported to follow their interests and had regular opportunities to discuss they were happy with their support at the service. This included how they were getting on with other people they lived with. The management and staff team were dedicated to ensuring people could live safely in the community. One person showed us photographs of what they used to look like and how they looked now, telling us they were much happier.’’ A relative told us, ‘‘You can see the change in [family member]. It got to the point before using the service we did not feel safe going out and about with them. But now we are very confident to do so. It has been a great thing for them and for us.’’

The provider worked well across teams and services to support people. Staff were positive and complimentary about their colleagues and how well they worked together. They shared information with each other on a regular basis and worked well with each other. Staff primarily worked at one supported living setting enabling them to form consistent strong working relationships with each other. Staff worked well with other professionals such as GP’s and nurses and followed their advice when it came to supporting people. Feedback from professionals about the service was positive. One person said, ‘‘[Staff] are happy. They do handovers about how I am.’’ A relative told us, ‘‘[Staffing] was a bit up and down a few years ago but it’s well under control now. They all work together for the best of [family member].’’

The provider supported people to manage their health and wellbeing to maximise their independence, choice and control. Staff supported people to be healthy in line with their support needs. For example, where necessary they recorded how and what people were eating and drinking to make sure this was in line with their identified support needs. Staff prompted and supported people to have regular exercise if they chose to do so. Many people using the service had significantly improved their physical health through diet and exercise, supported by staff. This had made a big impact on how people were feeling in themselves. Staff worked closely with people to gently encourage and support them to be independent and increase their confidence in the community. This helped people live healthily in relation to their mental health and wellbeing. Staff told us how they helped people identify foods they enjoyed and exercise they liked doing to help promote them to live healthily. A relative said, ‘‘Before living at the service [family member’s] diet was bad. Now the staff have them eating well but it is still all their choice and what they want. They look so much better and it’s great to see how happy they are.’’

The provider routinely monitored people’s care and treatment to continuously improve it. They ensured that outcomes were positive and consistent, and they met the expectations of people and their relatives. Staff knew people well and knew how to support them to achieve their health-related outcomes. Staff worked with people to help them identify goals and outcomes such as going in to the community more often or increasing their independence in areas such as cooking or personal hygiene. People had lived in their own homes using the service for extended periods of time which was a big achievement and outcome for them. A relative told us, ‘‘[Staff] have changed [family members] life. They never used to come out of their room but now they are out and about all the time. I could not be more thankful to the staff team.’’

The provider told people about their rights around consent and respected these when delivering person-centred care and treatment. Staff were trained in the MCA and knew the importance of this legislation and making sure people were asked for consent whilst being supported. The management team completed assessments and made decisions in people’s best interests if they lacked the full capacity to make decisions themselves. We observed staff offering choices to people, regardless of their assessed capacity in ways that made sense to them. We saw staff making sure people were happy with their choices if they chose them using pictures or signs. Care plans clearly stated how staff were to check with people that they were happy with their choices. A relative said, ‘‘[Staff] have a great understanding of consent and make sure [family member] is happy with what is going on.’’