Link 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 assessment we rated this key question inadequate. At this assessment the rating has changed to 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.

Some of the people had lived at the home a long while. Staff ensured they helped people to stay as independent as possible. For example, when a person’s mobility declined, staff supported them to move to a downstairs bedroom. This meant they were not reliant on staff when they wanted to access their belongings or wanted some privacy.

Staff were knowledgeable about people’s hobbies and interests and could tell us how they supported people to engage with their interests. For example, by making time to look at people’s collections and discuss them.

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.

People were supported to take part in hobbies. Some people liked cooking and spent time in the kitchen. Staff understood people’s abilities and found the best way to support their independence in the kitchen. For example, some people used packet mixes for baking cakes as this allowed them to be independent while other people were able to bake following a recipe. People had an open choice of what to eat for breakfast and lunch. Evening meals were prepared for people to sit and eat as a group. Once a week, people sat together and planned a menu for their evening meals. One person told us, “You can eat what you like, you get to choose.”

One person was given a role of typing up the weekly menus as they liked to be useful. They were rewarded with an amazon voucher to spend as they wanted. The manager explained this allowed the person to feel good about contributing to the home and promoted their well-being.

People were supported to access services outside of the home. For example, people went out to various salons to get their hair cut and styled.

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

People were offered choices about their everyday lives. For example, one person chose to go and watch their friend go horse riding and then went into town as they needed something from the shops. People were supported to access and manage their money. While people’s money was kept safe for them they were able to access it whenever they wanted. They were offered the opportunity to decide how much money they took with them when they went out.

People told us how they made choices about their lives. A person told us how they liked to go for a swim and have lunch out.

People told us they were supported to go shopping when they needed anything. One person told us how they went to a shopping outlet for new clothes and had lunch out. They said that they enjoyed doing this.

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 aware of people’s immediate needs and supported them appropriately. For example, one person chose to smoke, staff were aware of their needs and care plans around this. They ensured the person has access to cigarettes when needed. Another person was able to use transport independently and meet family and friends in the local town. Before they left they asked the staff for support to plan the journey. Staff spoke with them making sure they were aware of the plans and bus times. This supported the person to remain independent and safe.

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

Staff told us that they were well supported by the provider. They felt there was enough staff so they could support people safely and with kindness and compassion. There was a room for staff where they could spend their breaks so they had time away from the workplace. Staff also spoke about how supportive the manager was, for example stepping in if needed to support people’s activities.