Via - New Beginnings - Brent

On this page

• Overview
• Shared direction and culture
• Capable, compassionate and inclusive leaders
• Freedom to speak up
• Workforce equality, diversity and inclusion
• Governance, management and sustainability
• Partnerships and communities
• Learning, improvement and innovation

This means we looked for evidence that service leadership, management and governance assured high-quality, person-centred care, supported learning and innovation, and promoted an open, fair culture.

At our last assessment we rated this key questions as requires improvement. At this assessment the rating has changed to good.

This meant the service was consistently managed and well-led. Leaders and the culture they created promoted high-quality, person-centred 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.

Staff had opportunities to contribute to discussions about the vision and strategy of the service through team away days and at team meetings. Staff told us that they contributed to changes in the service. The service demonstrated the values of Via including working in partnership with clients, having strong belief in service users and being community focussed. The vision was for the service to be the best service that Brent residents could access easily. To be able to receive comprehensive structured and unstructured interventions for all types that provides the best outcomes for service users to reach their goals.

Goals included establishing a shared partnership vision, inclusive governance, and embedding a reflective and learning culture to promote creativity. There was a focus on staff support, clear service user pathways, ensuring continuity, client involvement, and reducing stigma.

Staff said they felt respected, supported and valued. Staff spoke positively about the visibility of senior leadership. Several team members had remained in the staff team over ten years. They described a very stable staff team who knew their work well.

Staff reported that the provider promoted equality and diversity in its day-to-day work and in providing opportunities for development, for example previous clients had the opportunity to become voluntary staff and then go on to become substantive members of the team.

The staff teams worked well together and where there were difficulties managers dealt with them appropriately.

Managers had systems to identify and deal with poor performance when needed in a supportive manner.

Staff reported that the provider promoted equality and diversity in its day-to-day work.

Staff spoke positively about the service leadership, clients’ recovery and how they supported them to achieve their goals.

Staff described their managers as supportive and motivating. The operations manager provided oversight across both services, and supervision to the service manager on a regular basis. The operations manager had identified additional leadership courses that would be offered for team leaders, the service manager and other staff that wanted this.

Leaders could clearly explain their roles and demonstrated a clear understanding of the services they managed.

Leaders were visible in the service and approachable for clients and staff. Via New Beginnings Brent is one treatment system operating from two sites, Cobbold Road and the Willesden Centre for Health. There was one full time service manager who covered both sites which were close by. The service manager worked across both sites but was based at the Cobbold Road site.

Staff told us that they would have no hesitation in whistleblowing if they had concerns about the service.

Staff said they felt able to raise concerns with management if they needed to.

Clients stated that they felt that they were able to raise any concerns and knew how to do this.

The provider worked towards an inclusive and fair working culture. All staff we spoke to stated that they felt respected and valued. Staff have attended London Pride every year since 2018.

Staff received training on equality, diversity and inclusion.

Managers put reasonable adjustments in place for staff if needed.

There was a neurodiversity group and other diversity networks, including a menopause allies group and LGBTQIA group, that all staff could join.

The service had an integrated governance policy, which included policies for complaints, quality, record management, risk management, incident reporting and health, safety and wellbeing. Appropriate systems were in place to evaluate the safety and effectiveness of the service.

The service held integrated governance meetings monthly, during which topics discussed included learning from incidents, safeguarding, audits, policies, and piloting of new treatments. There were also local hub meetings at each location, and morning staff briefing meetings.

The provider had a clear framework of what had to be discussed at team meetings to ensure essential information was shared amongst the staff. The service held monthly team meetings where pertinent information was discussed. Clinical governance meetings were held, and information shared with the Cobbold Road location. This included an overview of service incident reports, compliments, safeguarding and complaints.

Data and notifications were submitted to some external bodies as required, for example to social services and commissioners. Since the last inspection all notifiable notifications were submitted to CQC.

Staff had implemented recommendations from incident reviews and safeguarding alerts at the service level.

Teams had access to the information they needed to provide safe and effective care and used that information to good effect.

Managers engaged with various local community providers to ensure that an integrated care system was provided to meet patient needs. For example, we attended the Community Connections weekly drop-in session. Partner agencies in attendance included peer support organisations, local authority, supported accommodation provider and a homelessness charity. We observed clients attending for support and advice from the partner organisations.

The service had a Community Asset Register which had 135 local partners contact details, including domestic violence support, women’s support, elders support, and others. The register acted as a signposting tool for managers and practitioners.

The service had started a new cookery group in collaboration with the local authority. The course was 6 sessions where clients were able to cook various dishes with ingredients provided by the local authority. After cooking the meal, the client could take the meal home.

Staff used quality improvement (QI) methods and knew how to apply them. Staff provided two examples of QI projects, that were in partnership with the NHS trust. Projects included creating women only spaces that included art groups and a capital card where clients earn points they could spend on items such as clothes, cinema, and theatre tickets. Since the introduction of the women only groups, the service has seen an increase in women entering the service for structured treatment.

Staff had started working on a QI project to improve targeting and uptake of screening and vaccination for blood borne viruses for all new clients. The service was to procure its own fibro scan (for measuring liver health), and in the interim period had regular visits from a nurse specialist in liver health.

The service had a quality improvement project for members of the LGBTQ+ community. They had 2 practitioners that worked directly with members of the community engaged in Chemsex (sexual activity under the influence of drugs). The service delivered a quality improvement project surrounding and set up LGBTQ+ weekly group.

Via had an Innovation and Research Unit (IRU). This unit had designed or co-designed multiple research and evaluation projects. For example, evaluating the effectiveness of interventions delivered in the New Beginnings service. The service had worked well with its NHS partner to complete a lot of research on addictions-based treatment.