Care at Home Gloucester

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.

This is the first assessment for this registered service. This key question has been rated good.

This meant people were supported and treated with dignity and respect; and involved as partners in their care.

We have not awarded this service a score for Caring.

Find out about when we will not publish a key question score and what we look at when we assess Caring.

The provider always treated people with kindness, empathy and compassion and respected people’s privacy and dignity. Staff treated colleagues from other organisations with kindness and respect.

We observed very good interactions between staff and the people they supported in all the supported living homes we visited. Staff were very person-centred and clearly knew people very well, showing a genuine dedication to ensuring the best possible care for those they supported.

Staff told us, “I really enjoy looking after the people we support and providing really good quality of care to them”, “I think the service users are fantastic. We all get on well with the staff and get on well together as a team” and “The clients and staff are the best thing. The clients are like part of the family. It is nice to know that I am making a difference.”

We received positive feedback from relatives about the caring nature of staff. Comments included, “[Manager] sounded nice and wanted to make sure everyone’s getting the best.

Staff are lovely and they high-five [my relative]”, “Yes, [staff] are always really kind and always check if [my relative is] okay, and when [they are] ready to go. [They] lead in [their] own way and I’d say they’re respectful in that way” and “They are good to [my relative] and if [they] want something straight away they explain ‘we’ll be with you in a minute’ and the way they [carry out personal care] is dignified in the way they do it.”

One person told us, "I really like it here and staff are really nice."

Professionals gave us positive feedback about the kindness of staff. One professional said, “From my observations and involvement, [they] appear to be supported well, safely, and in a person-centred way.”

Professionals also told us staff and managers treated them with respect and were kind and polite.

The provider treated people as individuals and made sure people’s care, support and treatment met people’s needs and preferences. They took account of people’s strengths, abilities, aspirations, culture and unique backgrounds and protected characteristics.

People were supported by a core staff team who knew them well. People were empowered to choose meaningful activities and explore new experiences.

People experienced a range of holidays, community experiences and outings. Their rooms were highly personalised and unique to each person’s individual taste and interests.

People were supported to maintain contact with their families undertake visits or to make telephone or video calls at a time of their choosing.

A staff member told us, “I love seeing the joy on people's faces when they achieve their goals. It can be quite stressful, but it is very fulfilling.” A professional said, “Staff demonstrate a good understanding of their individual needs, preferences, and communication styles, and interactions are generally caring, respectful, and supportive.”

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 independence was reflected in care records, along with their goals and achievements. Staff received specific training in ‘making goals’ to ensure they promoted people’s independence in an individualised way.

People were supported to improve their communication which had then improved their ability to make choices about their day-to-day lives and overall independence.

Staff told us, “People are more than just hours, we want to know the person, we want to know their goals and aspirations”, “We work in their home, they don't live in our workplace. Everything we do is around the people we support” and “We have challenged where it has been advised that someone does not have capacity.”

People had been supported to decorate their homes in a way which reflected their interests and sensory needs.

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.

We observed staff being attentive to people’s needs and interacting with people to ensure they were safe and comfortable. Staff responded to people’s changing needs. One person’s health needs had recently deteriorated, and the service had increased their level of support to ensure they could continue to live as independently at home for as long as possible.

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

Staff confirmed they were well supported by the home managers, the registered manager and senior staff. The provider valued the well-being of their staff and wanted to encourage development and career progression. The provider supported staff during de-brief sessions following incidents. Staff were matched to work with individuals based on skills and interests. The provider had a 24-hour helpline for staff and a well-being guardian to support all staff.

The majority of staff were happy in their role and praised the provider and their managers. Comments included, “Staff morale is good. Every little win is appreciated and that gives morale to people”, “I would say staff morale is positive. Everything is a lot better now. I am very passionate about my job and I like to think I improve their quality of life. It can be very rewarding and no two days are the same” and “The night staff is good morale, we have a good response from managers.”

However, some staff were unhappy with the staff and management arrangements in one specific location. We shared this with the provider who was aware of these concerns and had introduced a strategy of support.