Broom Lane Care Home

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

Care plans recorded some information, however some required improvements to ensure they captured peoples individualised preferences and backgrounds. This had been identified by the provider, who were taking action to address this issue. We observed staff interacting with people in a kind and caring way. People and relatives told us they were treated well and were happy with living at the service.

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.

People told us staff knew them well and understood their preferences. People were complimentary about the staff and told us staff treated them with kindness and dignity. One person said, “The staff are lovely here.” Another person said, “The staff are kind.”

Staff and leaders were committed to providing a caring environment. Staff told us how they involved people in their care and treated people with kindness. One staff member said, “I talk to the residents and ask them if I am ok to do something before I do it [care task].” Another staff member said, “I give residents the choice of clothing to wear etc and explain to them what tasks we need to do and ask if it's ok to carry out that task.”

Visiting professionals gave mixed comments about the home. One professional told us care plans were detailed although there were some contradictions in information. No concerns were raised in relation to DoLS and working within the guidelines of the Mental Capacity Act.

We observed some very king and caring interactions between staff and people. Staff had a good rapour with people and showed compassion. We saw staff speaking quietly to people so no one else could hear the conversation.

People told us staff treated them as individuals and offered choices and respected people’s decisions. One person said, “I can get up whenever I want. I usually get up at the same time, but I get to choose.” Another person said, “Staff are kind. They [staff] come pretty quick when I ask them to get me up.”

Staff knew the importance of ensuring people were offered choices and were included in decisions about their care. One staff member said, “The residents have lots of choices in different things every day as no day is the same. There is information in care plans about what they like/don’t like, but we always ask.”

We observed staff offering choices to people and respecting their decisions. Staff respected people. One staff member was asking someone about the chiropodist who was on site. The staff member got close to the person’s ear and asked if he could hear them before proceeding with the conversation. Another staff member offered reassurances when someone spilt a cup of juice. However, we saw a member of staff taking a telephone call in a communal area regarding a person living at the service. This did not show respect for the person.

Whilst we found people were treated as individuals and staff knew peoples likes and dislikes, care records could be improved to ensure these were more person centred and included information about people’s unique backgrounds.

Although people were complimentary about staff offering and respecting choices, people felt activities and social stimulation could be improved. One person said, "Well I am in bed nearly all the time, so it is difficult. I don't have any hobbies now. I just have the TV on in my room. That's it." Another person said, “They [staff] do activities for us. Not every day, but they do things. I get asked if I want to go outside every day, but they don't have any trips out or anything. I don't really have any hobbies now though, so most days I just sit here." Relatives shared the same view saying, "I don't think they get enough stimulation. I would imagine they are bored most of the time."

Staff knew the importance of ensuring people were offered choices and were included in decisions about their care. One staff member said, “The residents have lots of choices in different things every day as no day is the same. There is information in care plans about what they like/don’t like, but we always ask.”

We observed staff interacting with people and found they offered choice. However, 1 unit where we observed lunch, we found people were struggling to choose their meal option based on verbal communication. Staff did not offer other methods such as show plates or pictures to assist people to decide their meal option.

Activities were provided by activity co-ordinators, however, people commented that activities were uninteresting. We saw little evidence that people has access to the local community. Care plans were in place but required improvements around people’s interests and hobbies.

People and relatives were happy staff listened to them and responded well to their needs and understood their preferences. People told us staff responded when they required external professionals and took action to address any concerns.

Staff told us visiting professionals offered support and guidance and the doctor visited on a weekly basis.

Observations saw staff were kind and caring, interacted with people appropriately and it was an inclusive atmosphere.

Staff were complimentary about the manager and deputy manager and told us they were supportive and approachable. One staff member said, “The manager is fair and approachable. The manager and deputy manager have always listened to me when needed.” Another staff member said, “They [manager and deputy manager] are a good team and they both listen and are approachable.” Leaders told us they had the opportunity to progress within the organisation and were supported into promotion.

The provider had a system in place for staff to feedback their views and opinions. We also saw staff meetings took place regularly and support and guidance was offered. An equality and diversity policy was in place to ensure all staff could work in an environment that was free from harassment or discrimination. The provider was committed to ensuring all staff and job applicant received equal treatment regardless of their protected characteristics. The policy applied to all aspects of employment including probation, recruitment, pay, benefits, conduct at work and promotion.