Thorndene Residential Care Home

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 good. At this assessment the rating has remained good. This meant people were supported and treated with dignity and respect; and involved as partners in their care.

This service scored 70 (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. We observed staff interacting with people and found they were kind and caring and offered support in line with people’s preferences. People told us staff were supportive and maintained their dignity. One person said, “They [staff] are fine, they look after me. I am quite happy.” Another person said, “The staff are lovely.”

The provider treated people as individuals and made sure people’s care, support and treatment met people’s needs and preferences. However, they did not always take account of people’s strengths, abilities, aspirations, culture and unique backgrounds and protected characteristics. People were supported by staff who knew them well. However, people commented on the lack of social stimulation available. Activities in the home were minimal although this has been identified, and the activity programme reviewed. There had been some recent exploration around outings to various places of interest. Sourcing activities and social interests for people needed to improve.

The provider promoted people’s independence, so people knew their rights and had choice and control over their own care, treatment and wellbeing. People's choices and preferences were included in care plans including how people liked their drinks preparing. For example, 1 person liked a cup of hot water with a tea bag served at the side of their cup. This was important for them to retain a level of independence. Staff knew about this and ensured they provided support in line with this preference.

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 responded to people and understood their needs. For example, we saw staff supporting people in a very calm and caring way which people responded positively to. However, some people told us there were not enough staff available.

The provider cared about and promoted the wellbeing of their staff and supported and enabled staff to always deliver person-centred care. Staff were positive about the support they received from the management team. One staff member said, “From the first month I started [working at the home] they [management team] were very approachable. You can easily go to them for support or to raise concerns.” The management team held reflective discussions with staff, not only in response to challenges but also to explore and celebrate positive experiences and successes. This helped to reinforce good practice, boost confidence, and encourage shared learning across the team.