Archived: House on the Hill

We observed staff providing support in the home and saw people were treated with respect. Personal care issues were discussed sensitively and discreetly. There was now information about people's care needs including their preferences and how they wanted care provided.

During our visits people told us the staff were welcoming and provided good care and support. People said, 'We like it here, we have everything we need' and 'There's staff here if we want them, and they're always polite.'

People were dressed in their own style and if they needed support, staff helped them to continue to take a pride in their appearance. Staff listened to people and spent time with them, talking and carrying out activities, as well as providing care.

Family and friends could visit the home whenever they wanted, and family members were able to continue to provide care for a relative and spend time in the home. People told us that they went to family homes and continued to enjoy family events.

People knew how to make a complaint and told us they did not have any concerns about the home, but would talk to staff if they did.

Before we visited the service we spoke to other people who had an interest in the service including the safeguarding team and staff from the local authority. We did this to determine if they had any concerns or observations they wanted to make about the quality of service provided. No further concerns were identified.

People told us they were concerned about the support they received as on some days staff were responsible for cooking and care duties. This meant that staff were not always available to provide support. People stated the staff were busy but were always polite and spoke respectfully.

People said, 'The staff are so busy, they try and do more than one thing at once, like trying to dress me when sitting on the toilet'

'If the cook is off sick, the staff have to do the cooking too, so they are not around.'

'There's only one staff here at night.'

'Even though staff are very rushed and busy, they are good, they do care, they just don't get enough time.'

We saw that if people needed support at lunch time, the staff provided this but allowed people to retain their independence. Staff spoke respectfully to people and knew how people wanted to be addressed.

People were able to use two living rooms and a dining room; communal areas were homely and decorated to a good standard. People told us they were happy with the living areas in the home and there were hand rails around the home to support people to move around. Some people told us they were not happy about the equipment in the rooms, toilet roll holders and light bulbs had not been replaced.

We saw people were dressed in their own style and people told us they could dress how they wanted and continue to take a pride in their appearance.

Each person had a plan of care which recorded information about how they wanted to be supported and their health needs. People who use the service told us they were happy with the care and support provided and the staff treated them with respect and listened to them. The staff team received regular training and were competent and knew how to care for people safely. Comments from people included,

'the staff always ask me if I want anything, though if I'm ok I do it myself.'

'the staff look after us well, they're all wonderful' and

'they're always there for us, nothing is too much trouble.'

Daily routines were flexible and people could choose when to get up and how to spend their day. Following a review of activities people said more external activities were arranged and people told us their daily activities were flexible and they could choose whether to join in activities. Comments about activities included,

'It's up to you whether you join in, sometimes I do but generally I like to just talk with my friends.'

People knew how to make a complaint and people told us they did not have any concerns about the home, but would talk to staff if they did. People were asked for their views on the quality of care in the home, and felt that their views were listened to. Comments included,

'You can tell people if you want things differently, they are always ready to make adjustments.'