Your Life (Stratford-upon-Avon)

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

Well-led – 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 question good. At this assessment the rating has remained 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.

The provider had a shared vision, strategy and culture. This was based on transparency, equity, equality and human rights, diversity and inclusion, engagement, and understanding challenges and the needs of people and their communities.

The provider had a mission, values and commitment statement that focussed on maintaining people’s independence and supporting them to live a fulfilled life. Staff told us they enjoyed working for the service and valued their role in helping people to continue living the lives they wanted to in their own home. Comments included: “I enjoy doing my role. I am proud of the service we provide, the fact they (people) are allowed to live an independent life with support from us", “We are here to support people when they need us to support them. It is so nice to be with them" and “I just love being involved with all the home owners. Everyone is so lovely here. It is a really relaxed place. If I knew jobs like this existed, I would have done it years ago."

The registered manager told us selecting the right staff was key to providing quality care and they tried to ensure staff had the right values and experience before working for the service. The provider’s duty managers carried out spot checks, competency reviews and individual supervisions with staff to ensure the level of service expected was being upheld.

The provider had inclusive leaders at all levels who understood the context in which they delivered care, treatment and support and embodied the culture and values of their workforce and organisation. Leaders had the skills, knowledge, experience and credibility to lead effectively. They did so with integrity, openness and honesty.

There was a clear management structure in place. To support the registered manager there were duty managers with clear and defined delegated responsibilities. Managers took on champion leads in specialised areas such as health and safety, infection control and fire safety to promote best practice and ensure it was consistently implemented. The provider’s recruitment process ensured managers had the appropriate qualifications and experience for their role and responsibilities.

Staff were very positive about the registered manager and their management of the service. One staff member told us, “[Registered manager] is a really supportive manager. He is very fair and he is always pushing us to strive to be better, and he does promote our confidence."

The provider fostered a positive culture where people felt they could speak up and their voice would be heard.

Staff were confident to speak up and share any concerns or make suggestions about the service and the care people received. Comments included: “[Registered manager] is all for our suggestions. I think we are a great team. Suggestions are taken on board by everyone" and "I do feel able to raise concerns if I have any. If we are concerned, [registered manager] will follow it up and go and see the individual." Staff also told us they could approach the provider’s representatives if they felt they needed to.

The provider had processes to support staff to speak up. This included supervision meetings, handovers, staff meetings and a whistleblowing policy.

The provider valued diversity in their workforce. They worked towards an inclusive and fair culture by improving equality and equity for people who worked for them.

The provider had an equality and inclusion policy which was reflected through staff recruitment, induction and ongoing training. Where people had health conditions, caring responsibilities or specific learning needs, reasonable adaptations were considered.

Staff described an inclusive working environment where diversity was respected. One staff member told us, “We all acknowledge everyone is an individual and come from different backgrounds and different religions."

The provider had clear responsibilities, roles, systems of accountability and good governance. They used these to manage and deliver good quality, sustainable care, treatment and support. They acted on the best information about risk, performance and outcomes, and shared this securely with others when appropriate.

The management team completed regular audits to assess the quality of the service. They checked people's care plans were completed and regularly reviewed and that medicines were administered safely by staff who continued to be competent to administer them. Each month the registered manager completed an audit of the service identifying any areas where actions were required. The monthly audit was monitored by the provider to ensure standards were maintained and regulations met.

The provider carried out their own audits to ensure their policies and processes were being followed. For example, auditing of accidents and incidents and ensuring safe recruitment checks were completed. The provider had processes to support performance through their compliance team and their care performance managers.

The provider understood their duty to collaborate and work in partnership, so services worked seamlessly for people. They shared information and learning with partners and collaborated for improvement.

People were positive about the support they received and described good communication to ensure their care plans met their needs. People were confident in the management of the service and the approachability of the registered manager. One person told us, “[Registered manager] is a great guy. He is very efficient and extremely on the ball. There isn't much that gets by him." Another person commented, "[Registered manager] is very nice, he is very good and he obviously cares for his customers."

The provider supported community relationships and had their own charitable foundation. The provider also offered staff 2 days paid volunteering to support a project, cause or charity of their own choice.

The provider focused on continuous learning, innovation and improvement across the organisation and local system. They encouraged creative ways of delivering equality of experience, outcomes and quality of life for people.

The provider encouraged the professional development of staff by supporting them to gain recognised qualifications in health and social care. The provider had also introduced an apprenticeship scheme giving staff an additional pathway to gaining further qualifications.

The provider shared learning and any health and safety alerts through ‘Tuesday Talk’, a weekly email. Managers were also encouraged to share learning or bring matters for discussion at regular meetings with other managers throughout the provider group.

The provider was introducing an electronic care planning and monitoring system into the service. The provider’s care performance manager explained the new system had been trialed and tested for 12 months and robust processes introduced to ensure the safe and effective implementation of the system. They were confident the system would benefit the service and improve people’s experiences of the care provided.