Whyke Lodge

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

The service was previously in breach of the legal regulation in relation to person centred care. Improvements were found at this assessment and the service was no longer in breach of this regulation.

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 always treated people with kindness, empathy and compassion and respected their privacy and dignity.

People and their relatives spoke highly of the staff and described them as kind and caring. People’s comments included, “They are all lovely, kind people.” “The staff are wonderful,” and, “I cannot fault any of them, they are all very nice.” Relatives told us staff were, “Friendly, kind and helpful.” One relative said they were supported by the staff and felt welcomed and included. They said, “You always get a great welcome, and a cup of tea.” A person said, “When my family visits they are always made very welcome.”

Staff were considerate of people’s privacy and respected their dignity. People had their own rooms, and we saw people could choose to spend time in their rooms if they wished. One person who was spending time in their room told us, “It gets a bit noisy downstairs sometimes, I like the peace here.” A relative told us, “He has his privacy, and they treat him with respect.” Another relative described how their relation liked to sit in the hall on their own. They said, “She likes people but at arm's length, that’s how she likes it, privacy is important to her.”

We observed staff speaking to people in a discreet way to ask if they needed support with personal care. A staff member made sure the bedroom door was closed to preserve a person’s dignity. Another staff member was observed supporting a person with their meal. They sat next to them and talked quietly, offering encouragement and supporting them with patience and at the person’s pace. Their approach was attentive and gentle, and they ensured the person’s clothes were kept clean to protect their dignity.

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.

Staff knew people well and supported them in the way they preferred and according to their needs. One person told us, “The staff know me well, they know how to look after me.” A relative said, “They know (person’s name) very well.”

Care plans were personalised and included details of individual needs and preferences including, for example, their religious and cultural background. A staff member told us how a person had particular religious beliefs that were important to them, they described how they attended regular church services. This was reflected within the person’s care records.

Staff demonstrated a good knowledge and understanding of people’s individual needs. For example, one staff member told us about a person and how a type of dementia affected them. They described the importance of understanding the effects of dementia and how staff supported the person when they were expressing emotions. We observed staff remained calm and spoke gently with the person offering reassurance when they showed signs of becoming distressed and agitated. This had a positive calming effect for the person.

The provider promoted people’s independence, so people knew their rights and had choice and control over their own care, treatment and wellbeing.

People were supported to remain as independent as possible. Staff described the importance of assisting people rather than doing things for them. One staff member said, “We need to give as much choice as possible, to give people control of their care. If they want to have a bath instead of a shower, then we make sure that’s what happens.”

People were encouraged to move around independently if there were able to. We observed a staff member supporting a person to stand from their chair, they appeared not to be confident and repeated, “I can’t do it.” The staff member bent down and spoke gently to the person, giving them clear instructions about how to stand up and using gentle touch to support them. They encouraged the person to take a few steps with their walking aid. This appeared to give the person the confidence they needed, they proceeded to walk with the support of the staff member who continued to give guidance and praise. The person responded to this positive encouragement with a broad smile, and continued walking forward with more confidence.

People told us they could choose how they spent their time. One person told us, “I can go to bed when I want to, I sometimes stay up late, the staff help me when I’m ready.” A relative told us staff respected people’s right to remain independent. They described the experience of their relative, saying, “She is very independent and insists on things the way she likes them.”

People were supported to have the food and drinks of their choice. One person was eating breakfast, a short time later they asked a staff member if they could have something else to eat. The staff member asked what they would like and then went to the kitchen to provide the egg on toast the person had requested. Relatives told us the food was of good quality, freshly prepared and plentiful and we observed people enjoying their lunchtime meal. One relative told us people could request food or drinks whenever they wanted them. They told us about their relation saying, “He often fancies Pot Noodle and crisps, if he wants one in the middle of the night, they do it for him.”

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.

People were receiving a responsive service from staff who were attentive and helpful in their approach. A relative told us, “They (staff) are 100% kind and attentive to the people who live here.” We observed how a person (who was at risk of falls) stood up and wanted to move from where they were sitting. A staff member was alerted to them moving and responded quickly, ensuring they had the correct walking frame and then walking alongside them, in line with their care plan, to reduce risks of falls.

We observed that people did not have to wait longer than they should for staff to respond to their care needs. Relatives confirmed staff were responsive to people’s needs and requests. One relative told us, “If someone asks for a cup of tea the carer will get one, not wait until the next tea round.” Another relative described how staff acted promptly by taking a person’s broken dentures to be repaired. Records confirmed staff acted promptly to address people’s needs. For example, when a person showed signs or symptoms of pain, they were offered appropriate medicine. A staff member said if they continued to show signs of distress they would contact the GP.

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

Staff spoke highly of the support they received including opportunities for training. One staff member described having recent training in how to support people with personal care. They said, “They showed us the correct technique for brushing hair and supporting with oral care for residents that have difficulty brushing their teeth.” The staff member described how this had improved their confidence, understanding and skills when providing support with personal care.

Another staff member described positive communication between staff that supported them to understand their role and responsibilities. They told us, “We have regular staff meetings and can ask questions and raise any concerns.” Another staff member described how the use of social media supported information sharing and had improved communication between staff.

We observed how staff were able to spend time sitting and talking with people. A registered manager was undertaking some practical tasks following the lunchtime meal, to enable staff members to sit with people and chat. One person told us, “The staff do take the time to talk to me.”