St Cecilia

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 service 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 changed to outstanding.This meant people were truly respected and valued as individuals; and empowered as partners in their care in an exceptional service.

This service scored 100 (out of 100) for this area. Find out what we look at when we assess this area and How we calculate these scores.

The service 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.

There was an exceptionally strong, visible, caring culture within the service. Person centred care was within the fabric of the service and in the actions of staff. People living at St Cecilia had significant and complex needs, which staff expertly supported with the utmost kindness and consideration. Staff were highly compassionate, overwhelmingly intuitive and continually anticipating the needs of people to ensure they lived a rich, full and comfortable life. Some comments were: “In my opinion, the very fact my loved one is still with us is down to their outstanding level of care”, “They do everything they can to make my loved one feel comfortable and loved. They can make them smile when I cannot and it is lovely to see the way the carers interact with them”, “My loved one living here and the standard of care here at St Cecilia, well we feel like we have won the lottery.”

People and their relatives told us the service consistently provided outstanding care. A relative said, “It’s the care that is important, and the care here is absolutely brilliant, I was completely astounded.”

Staff consistently sought to conduct themselves with kindness and empathy, we observed staff continually anticipating people’s needs and supporting them with a calm affection. People responded in ways which demonstrated the exceptionally strong bonds between them and each staff member. Everyone we spoke with had a story ofwarmth and thoughtfulness about the staff approach to people. A health and social care professional told us, “My visits to St Cecilia's allowed me to observe a number of staff working directly with residents, all of whom demonstrated a high level of skills in communication.”

Staff told us they were fully committed and passionate about the care they provided and for the people living at St Cecilia. A member of staff said, “The residents here are part of us, and we are part of them, we are family. It’s our sole job to make sure each person has the best life.”

The service treated people as individuals and made sure people’s care, support and treatment met and exceeded people’s needs and preferences. They took account of people’s strengths, abilities, aspirations, culture and unique backgrounds and protected characteristics.

Staff had a remarkable understanding of people’s needs; this was supported by a small, dedicated, long-serving team of staff which had promoted consistency for people. People were encouraged and supported to spend their day how they wished. Care, support and activities were tailored to people’s individual needs, wishes and preferences. We observed natural and consistent displays of the bond between staff and people, where regardless of need, they were put at the centre of their care and support, encouraged to spend their day they chose. The service had established firm foundations with people to find out their desires, and worked hard with people and relatives to achieve them, this had included maintaining and enhancing personal relationships. The support from staff had a measurable and significant impact on many people and those important to them, helping to change the course of people’s lives. A relative told us, “It’s unbelievable, my loved one is so well looked after, they are so, so kind. It’s because of the care my loved one and I have had, that we have our relationship back and I can go back to just ‘being’ with my beautiful loved one.”The service was exceptionally proactive in supporting and promoting people’s individuality and differences. Staff told us it was at the core of their care and approach. A person told us, “Staff make me so happy and comfortable, it’s wonderful to be here.” Overwhelmingly, people, relatives and professionals told us the service was unique and staff provided care at a consistently outstanding level. A health and social care professional said, “The highly positive culture and management of the home was clear from the moment you interacted with staff. There was a genuinely caring approach from staff, even in situations which could be physically or emotionally challenging. The focus on keeping residents engaged with a task or activity, whether that was a care intervention or a social activity, demonstrated a consistent approach. This all seems driven by the registered manager, who had expert knowledge of each resident and each staff member and had clearly developed trusting relationships with the family and loved ones of their residents.”

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

We found many examples where staff dedication had resulted in exceptional outcomes for people. For example, where people had previously experienced break downs in various other care settings, staff had worked tirelessly with professionals, people and their loved ones to make St Cecilia a permanent home. Relatives told us staff care and support had enabled such significant improvements in people, that they had managed to re-establish relationships with their loved ones who also no longer experienced prolonged periods of distress. A relative told us, “I was determined to keep my loved one at St Cecilia. It is such a weight off my mind.”The registered manager and staff had shown an unrivalled modesty when speaking about their achievements in supporting people. They told us, ‘It’s just the way we do it at St Cecilia.’ A staff member said, “We are family, we are one together.” We observed a consistently instinctive approach from staff towards people and their relatives; this was welcomed by them. People were continually at the centre of everything the staff at St Cecilia did. Staff demonstrated exceptionally compassionate approaches and commitment to people. A person and their relative told us, “It’s 100% care here, staff do everything you can imagine for us.” Another relative told us, “I leave after each visit feeling that my loved one is in exactly the right place for all her needs to be met and that I trust the staff at St Cecilia's completely.”Staff were guided by extensive care plans which detailed people’s abilities with their desired outcomes. These were continually developed to support people to regain and maintain their independence.

The service was exceptional in how they listened to and understood people’s needs, views and wishes. Staff respond to people’s needs in the moment and acted to minimise any discomfort, concern or distress.

Everyone told us the service was overwhelmingly consistent and dependable, having genuine impact on them and enhancing their quality of life.We received feedback from several health and social care professionals who told us the service was impressive in the support of people with significant and complex needs, many recommending the service to others. A health and social care professional said, “The staff are skilled at delivering care in a manner which meets the needs of the individual, whilst having the skills and understanding to identify developing risks and to react accordingly. The standard and timeliness of their communication was excellent.”

The responsiveness of the service played a significant role in improving outcomes for people. We were given many examples of how the service were skilled at identifying and responding to people’s needs. A relative told us about the significant impact the service had on their family and said, “My loved one’s health and wellbeing had declined a lot before coming to St Cecilia, within 2 months of them being here, well it’s just amazing, the difference.”

Observations made during the inspection showed with certainty staff were there for people, they anticipated their needs. Every interaction was naturally occurring and delivered. A relative told us, “From the start the staff at St Cecilia's have made my loved one so very welcome and loved them as one of their own.” Another relative said, “As an advocate for love and kindness, I think this is an outstanding care home for all the right reasons.”

The service always cared about and promoted the wellbeing of their staff and was exceptional at supporting and enabling staff to always deliver person-centred care.

Staff told us they were appreciated, supported and guided to provide the best possible care for people. They told us how the registered manager invested in them as an individual in terms of time and knowledge. A staff member told us, “They inspire us to be the best we can be.”

Overwhelmingly staff told us they were, ‘family.’ Most of the staff working at St Cecilia had long service over 5 years, and many over 10 years. This long service had directly contributed to continuity for people. Staff benefited from strong, holistic guidance from the provider and registered manager.

Staff felt valued and were all encouraged to contribute to the service; staff feedback and ideas were used to strengthen, continually improve and influence positive changes for people. They told us they were stronger together and were supported in everything they did. The provider had processes in place to provide both professional and personal assistance to the staff team.