Home Instead Portsmouth

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. This was the first inspection for this service. This key question has been rated outstanding. This meant service leadership was exceptional and distinctive. Leaders and the service culture they created drove and improved high-quality, person-centred care.

This service scored 89 (out of 100) for this area. Find out what we look at when we assess this area and How we calculate these scores.

The service had a very clear shared vision, strategy and culture. This was based on transparency, equity, equality and human rights, diversity and inclusion, engagement, and an exceptional understanding of the challenges and the needs of people and their communities. The provider’s clear vision and strategy had people at the heart of the service which staff understood and worked towards. The provider said their values were based on “Caring about people not just for them.” One external professional told us, “My experience of Home Instead has been a very positive one, I can say they truly value people, both their clients and staff.” A family member told us, “I’ve worked in and around adult social care for a long, long time and this service is beyond expectations! The carer’s bring joyfulness to Mum and communication is really strong, staff and customers are both treated well.”

The service had exceptionally inclusive leaders at all levels who understood the context in which they delivered care, treatment and support and embodied the culture and values of their workforce and organisation. Leaders had the skills, knowledge, experience and credibility to lead effectively. They always did so with integrity, openness and honesty. For example, the support that the provider had given to staff to increase their wellbeing had had a consistently positive impact on the care they provided to people. All staff were valued and the provider ensured positive feedback was shared with individual care staff. The provider had identified a need to further strengthen the office management team and had recruited additional staff who reflected their values and expectations to support the smooth running and development of the service. This had led to significant improvements for staff and communication. Key Performance Indicators for the office team were personalised, focusing on their growth and development as well as providing tangible metrics to measure. For instance, one staff members revolve around delegation, leadership, and supporting her growth into her role without overwhelming them. Health and social care professionals were extremely positive about the service and how it was managed. For example, one external professional told us, “Everyone [managers and staff] I have spoken to are helpful and cooperative and always with the needs of the service user in mind.”

The service fostered a positive culture where people felt they could speak up and their voice would be heard. The provider completed surveys of people and their relatives’ views. A family member told us, “I have the managers e-mail and telephone number.” An external professional told us, “The agency showed great flexibility in enabling the voice of the service user to be heard.”

The service strongly valued diversity in their workforce. They had an inclusive and fair culture which had improved equality and equity for people who work for them. There was a strong organisational commitment and effective action towards ensuring there was equality and inclusion across the workforce. Discussions with the provider showed a high level of empathy towards staff and their individual backgrounds and how these may impact their working and daily lives. They described how adjustments had been made to support staff. This approach had made a significantly positive impact on staff. The provider carried out regular staff surveys and analysed this to be able to take action where needed. For example, in response to staff feedback a staff buddy system had been set up to provide additional mentoring and support for new staff with a more experienced staff member. There was an exceptionally high level of satisfaction across all staff who were motivated and proud of the service.

The service had clear responsibilities, roles, systems of accountability and good governance. They used these to manage and deliver high-quality, sustainable care, treatment and support. They always act on the best information about risk, performance and outcomes, and share this securely with others when appropriate. Internal governance procedures were in place with a range of quality monitoring systems and audits. These had helped identify where actions were required and areas for improvement. The provider was supported in their governance procedures by an area manager and oversight from the franchiser.

The service clearly understood and carried out their duty to collaborate and work in partnership, and services worked seamlessly for people. They always shared information and learning with partners and collaborate for improvement. The management team were positive about their links with local voluntary, health and social care teams. They expressed an open positive attitude to receiving support and understood how and where they could access support from. The service was an important part of their local community. Feedback from external professionals all confirmed this. The provider undertook a range of community activities providing free dementia training to help ensure people living with dementia could continue to access and enjoy various social and community activities. For example, they had provided training for a voluntary sector social club and for Portsmouth football club. An external professional told us the training had helped volunteers to better understand and support people with dementia accessing and benefitting from the social club.

The service focused 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 contribute to safe, effective practice and research. There was an emphasis on continuous improvement with the views of staff and people actively sought both formally and informally.