Platters Farm Lodge

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. We saw quality feedback surveys that the service carried out. There were compliments forms that people filled out, about staff and care they had received. A worry box was being introduced, to be able to let staff share their concerns or worries. We had received mixed feedback from staff about the culture and inclusion, currently at the service. The management team were introducing more team meetings and feedback sessions. Some staff told us, that they had been supported by the management with their own health issues.

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 no current registered manager for this service, and the provider was conducting interviews at the time of inspection but had not yet completed this. Managers attended conferences and manager forums. There was an interim manager and director manager who had good oversight of the service and were implementing changes to ensure people’s needs were continually being met. The management team collaborated with the local Authority to work in partnership with them.

The provider fostered a positive culture where people felt they could speak up, and their voice would be heard. The management team had started implementing regular resident and staff meetings. The human resource team were visible and ensured people knew who they were. The management team were doing daily walk rounds and check ins with staff. Staff told us, “I can raise any concerns, I wouldn’t have a problem doing that.”

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 management team had introduced an anonymous feedback button online for staff, to share their views. The management told us how they made work adaptions for staff, for example being able to attend mass at church during the working week. Staff told us they enjoyed working at the service. There had been a night staff folder implemented for night staff to have essential information to hand. A staff newsletter was introduced to try to improve communication. A staff member told us, “I’ve never seen any kind of abuse here towards either the residents or staff, we all work with respect.”

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 told us changes they were implementing such as care plan folders for people’s bedroom and hospital packs to ensure people had a smooth transition between services. The management team had changed allocation of staff shifts to ensure that each shift had the correct number of skilled staff on to ensure people’s needs were being met. The management team had effective quality assurance oversight and carried out regular audits and checks to monitor and improve all aspects of care they delivered. This included carrying out weekly environmental walk arounds.

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 discussed in resident meetings places they would like to visit next. The management team told us, how they have the local schools in for carol singing and harvest festivals. The church comes in regularly and local schools volunteer at the service. Community health care professionals told us, "The close working relationship between Platters Farm Lodge and therapy ensures a smooth and efficient admission and discharge process again supported with regular and open dialogue between the teams."

The provider focused on continuous learning, innovation and improvement across the organisation and local system. They encouraged creative ways of delivering equality of experience, outcome and quality of life for people. They actively contributed to safe, effective practice and research. Staff had regular training. There was a business improvement plan in place. They had recently renovated one of the home living areas lounges. The management had implemented new dementia training that was face to face. The service had secured a new grant for a device that would support people who had falls to the floor and were waiting for an ambulance, the device was designed to make people as comfortable as possible and reduced the risk of pressure sores. New training would be rolled out to staff for this.