West Lodge Care Home

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 required improvement. At this assessment the rating has changed to 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 new manager 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. The management team had a process in place to engage with people, relatives and staff and shared information and discussed improvements and concerns. For example, team meetings were used to share information and discuss areas for improvement to ensure staff were involved and understood the provider’s strategy. Other informal opportunities for engagement were provided for staff to engage with the manager and the provider to discuss any feedback or concerns.

The new manager was inclusive and understood the context in which they delivered care, treatment and support and embodied the culture and values of their workforce and organisation. The manager had the skills, knowledge, experience and credibility to lead effectively. They did so with openness and honesty. The manager had a good understanding of their role and regulatory requirements. They had implemented effective systems and processes to ensure they had an oversight of the service. Where issues, risks and concerns were identified, records demonstrated action was taken in a timely manner.

The provider fostered a positive culture where people felt they could speak up and their voice would be heard. Staff knew how to raise concerns and were confident action would be taken. Staff told us they felt they had the freedom to speak up. The provider had systems and processes in place to enable staff, people living at West Lodge Care Home and their relatives to speak up.

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. All staff we spoke to told us they felt they were treated fairly and equally. Staff who had protected characteristics were respected and valued.

There was not a CQC registered manager at the time of our assessment. However, the provider had recruited a new manager who told us they were going to become the CQC registered manager. 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 were visible, knowledgeable, and supportive, helping staff develop in their roles. There were clear arrangements for accountability and improvement using a range of audits to monitor quality and identify areas that could be improved.

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. The manager told us they had worked on improving a relationship that had broken down with a health professional because they understood the importance of working in partnership to ensure the people living at West Lodge received the best care possible. The provider and manager worked with the local authority and the ICB positively and had made the required improvements so the restrictions on their contract had been lifted.

The provider focussed 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. The manager moved to electronic daily note records since they started to allow a better oversight of people’s received care and support. The manager and provider focused on continuous learning and improvement. There was a clear action plan in place on how further improvements would be achieved. The management and staff were committed to learning and improving the care for people living at West Lodge Care Home.