Halland House

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

People were encouraged to make their own decisions and choices about their day-to-day life. People were supported by staff who were kind and compassionate. They promoted a supportive environment where people’s independence was promoted. However, some staff told us they did not always feel supported. We raised this with the management team as an area to review and develop.

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.

People were treated with kindness and their dignity maintained. One relative told us their loved one, “Loves all the staff at Halland House.” The relative spoke highly of staff and said, “There’s not one I’ve come across that I didn’t like.”

Staff spoke about people with compassion and kindness. They told us how they supported people to maintain their dignity, taking into account what was important to each person. A staff member spoke about the importance of providing the care people needed. They said, “Care has no time, it will take as long as people need.” Another staff member told us, “When you see the care staff have for people, it is not a burden, you feel proud of it.”

One visiting professional told us, “There is a warm, positive atmosphere, with residents interacting well with staff and each other, laughter and joy were frequently heard during our visit.”

Staff treated people with kindness. Staff were attentive to people’s changing moods and responded appropriately. We saw staff speaking with people, giving people time to chat and fully engaging with the person. Staff were genuinely interested in what people had to say and ensuring their needs were met with kindness and compassion.

One relative told us when they visited their loved one they were aware of staff speaking with other people. They told us, “I’ve always heard staff speaking with people as individuals, they (staff) seem to really know and enjoy spending time with people. It’s not just a job.”

Staff knew and treated people as individuals. One staff member told us how some people had lived at the home for a long time and although their needs had changed they were still the same person. One staff member said, “[Name] is still the same person, we know he likes going outside so we still take him out. He can feel the breeze on his face.”

Staff treated people as individuals, responding to each person in a way that met the person’s needs and demonstrated staff knowledge of that person. We saw people used a range of communication aids, and staff used these to support and enable people to communicate their needs.

Care plans contained information about people’s care and support needs. However, discussions with staff revealed more information about people. The care plans did not include all the finer details about people and their preferences that staff had discussed. This needs to be improved.

One relative told us about the activities their loved one took part in. They told us how their loved ones had been supported to go on holiday this year to a place of their choice. Another relative told us a holiday was not suitable for their loved one but they were supported to go out and engage in activities of their choice. Relatives told us their loved ones were supported to maintain contact with their families and friends and to continue with their own hobbies and interests. This included attending day centres.

Staff knew people well. They told us how they supported people to make choices and to maintain and improve their independence. They told us people chose what they done each day. People were also involved in planning the weekly menu for each ‘house.’ Staff told us although people had weekly activity planners and menus these were flexible. Staff also told us that following routines were very important for some people and staff understood the importance of maintaining these routines.

People were part of conversations about risks. Staff supported people to prepare meals for themselves and others. The staff member explained to the person what they were making and how to prepare the vegetables. One person had chosen not to go out in the morning but changed their mind in the afternoon. Staff supported this person to go out when they were ready.

Systems were in place to help support people maintain their independence and choices. Menus were planned with people each week. Each person had an activity planner which was developed with them with activities of their choice. Activity planners and care plans contained information about how staff should promote people’s independence. Whilst care plans were reviewed regularly they did not include all the information staff may need to support people.

Relatives told us staff responded to people’s immediate needs. One relative said, “They're always responsive to calls, they act immediately and they ensure any health conditions are treated immediately.”

Staff understood people and how to respond to immediate needs. This included knowledge of how people’s health or well-being may change throughout the day and the appropriate support they should provide. Staff told us about one person who was showing signs of distress. They told us at this time the person needed time and space, therefore they observed the person but did not approach them. Within a short time, we saw the person was calm and relaxed, engaging with staff.

We saw staff react promptly when people needed immediate support. One person became quiet and withdrawn. Staff spoke quietly with them and ascertained they were in pain, so supported them with some medicine to help.

The management told us they were committed to promoting and improving staff well-being. We received mixed feedback from staff about their well-being and support at work. Some staff told us they did not feel supported by the team at Halland House. They said they were reluctant to discuss concerns with them as they did not feel listened to. Staff spoke about supporting people with complex needs. They said they did not feel supported if an incident occurred. However, other staff said they felt well supported. They told us they could speak to the management team at any time to discuss any concerns. They gave examples of how they had been supported to develop at work and support they received following an incident. Some staff told us communication was poor, they told us they did not always feel updated about changes at the home or about people. One staff member said, “It’s (communication) poor, below average, all the way down.” Other staff told us they always felt informed and said communication was good.

There were systems in place to support staff well-being. They had designated breaks and there were areas in the home and in the grounds where they were able to spend time away from the workplace if they wished. Staff received regular supervision and staff meetings where they were updated about changes at the home. There were opportunities for staff to ask questions or give feedback. Staff received ongoing training to support them to understand and meet people’s needs. There was an ongoing emphasis on PBS, ensuring staff received appropriate training to help them support people with more complex needs. A staff survey had recently been sent to staff but responses were still being received and analysed. Following the inspection we discussed the feedback with the management team. They told us staff had recently been sent a feedback survey which they could respond to anonymously. They also told us about changes to the supervision process to ensure all staff had an opportunity to talk with the registered or deputy manager.