The Beaufort 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 changed to requires improvement. This meant people did not always feel well-supported, cared for or treated with dignity and respect.

This service scored 55 (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 treated people with kindness, empathy and compassion and respected their privacy and dignity. Staff treated colleagues from other organisations with kindness and respect.

People were positive about the staff with one person describing carers as ‘lovely’. Relatives also shared positive feedback about the staff. One relative told us, “The staff are really nice, helpful and caring.”

The registered manager demonstrated a caring and compassionate approach. They told us, “If a resident is talking to me, I don’t care how long it takes. If someone needs support, I will support them.”

We observed positive and respectful interactions between staff and people living at the service.

The provider did not treat people as individuals or make sure people’s care, support and treatment met people’s needs and preferences. The provider did not take account of people’s strengths, abilities, aspirations, culture and unique backgrounds and protected characteristics.

People did not always receive care that reflected their individual preferences, interests and wellbeing needs. Opportunities for people to maintain independence, pursue their interests and access meaningful experiences outside their rooms were limited. Some people and their relatives told us they did not have regular opportunities to leave their rooms and take part in activities around the home. Comments included, “I spend most of my time in bed, I need staff to hoist me into a chair but that doesn’t happen often,” and “They could definitely do with more activities, there is never a lot happening.”

Staff did not always make people aware of the activities available which meant some people did not participate in activities that could have supported their wellbeing and reduced the risk of social isolation. During our inspection, some people we spoke to were not aware of the activities taking place that day.

In response to our feedback, the management team shared a commitment to supporting people to take part in activities that were meaningful to them. They told us they planned to gather feedback from people about their interests and preferences and use this information to develop plans that would help ensure these opportunities were provided.

The provider did not always promote people’s independence, so people did not always know their rights and have choice and control over their own care, treatment and wellbeing.

Care plans reviewed did not include sufficient guidance to help staff promote people's independence. Time pressures also meant support focused on completing tasks, which reduced opportunities for people to do things for themselves and maintain their skills and confidence.

People were not always able to make decisions about how they wished to spend their time. One relative told us their family member was put to bed at 7pm each evening to fit with night staff routines.

People's experiences of choice were mixed. One relative raised concerns about limited food choices. However, others told us staff respected people's preferences and accommodated requests. One relative said staff had gone "above and beyond" to provide food choices that met their loved one's wishes.

The provider did not always listen to and understand people’s needs, views and wishes. Staff did not always respond to people’s needs in the moment or act to minimise any discomfort, concern or distress.

People did not always receive assistance in a timely manner. We saw that one person had not had breakfast by 11am. After we raised this with a staff member who was serving drinks, breakfast was then provided.

Relatives told us their loved ones had long waits for support from staff. One relative told us, “[Person] waits 3 quarters of an hour sometimes to use the toilet.”

Records showed call bell audits took place, and we did not observe long waiting times for staff to respond to people during our visit.

The provider cared about and promoted the wellbeing of their staff and supported and enabled staff to always deliver person-centred care.

Staff told us they liked working at The Beaufort. Comments included, "I really enjoy it. The atmosphere is really supportive,” and “I like working here. It's the longest job I've ever been in.”

Staff described receiving support from the manager to achieve a positive work-life balance. One staff member told us adjustments had been made to their working pattern to help them manage their personal responsibilities.