Arlington 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

We identified an area of practice that needed improvement, in respect to person centred care planning. However, we saw that staff knew people well. Staff supported people with kindness, dignity and respect. There was a cheerful, friendly atmosphere in the service, and we saw people were being encouraged by staff to remain as independent as possible.

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.

We did not look at Kindness, compassion and dignity during this assessment. The score for this quality statement is based on the previous rating for Caring.

We did not look at Treating people as individuals during this assessment. The score for this quality statement is based on the previous rating for Caring.

People told us staff encouraged and supported them to be as independent as possible. One person told us, “They help me in the morning and at night, but I can do my own thing, it’s very flexible." People also told us how staff treated them with kindness, dignity and respect. A relative said, "It takes a lot to make [my relative] happy and the staff and manager here certainly do. He looks great and it’s a joy to come here and take him out for lunch. We’re happy with the care. Not sure about the previous issues, but everything seems fine to us.” People were offered choice in all aspects of their daily life. One person told us, “Endless choice, they always want to know that Im doing well, am I happy and how can they help.”

Staff described to us how they encourage people to do things for themselves, so they can retain some independence. One member of staff told us, “They can do what they wish, we encourage them to choose.” Staff also told us how they enjoyed caring for people and how the service was a happy place to live and work. One member of staff said, “I love caring for the residents, I like learning about their lives and making them happy. We have people who are anxious and living with dementia, so we have lots of input from the families. There are a good mix of residents, we all help to support each other like a big family. We encourage residents to support other resident and make friends.”

We observed people being supported by kind and empathetic staff. We saw people who needed assistance with eating and drinking were supported in a respectful manner with staff following good practice guidance. There was a friendly and relaxed atmosphere in the service, and staff interacted with people frequently and with genuine care and friendly humour. Staff attended to people in a timely manner, and attention had been given to people’s clothing, hair, nails and make up. There was a range of appropriate equipment to support and maximise people’s independence and outcomes from care and treatment. For example, bespoke cutlery, walking frames, wheelchairs and hoists.

People's choices and preferences were included in their care plans. However, much of this information was historical and had not been routinely reviewed. Additionally, some information in respect to people’s choices around their care was sparse and did not fully guide staff on what they needed to do to meet people’s needs. No harm had occurred to people in light of this, and staff were very knowledgeable of people’s needs and preferences. However, this was not formalised in people’s care for newer staff or agency staff to use. The manager was aware of the issues and had put an action plan in place to review all care plans.

We did not look at Responding to people’s immediate needs during this assessment. The score for this quality statement is based on the previous rating for Caring.

We did not look at Workforce wellbeing and enablement during this assessment. The score for this quality statement is based on the previous rating for Caring.