Willows Court

On this page

• Overview
• Learning culture
• Safe systems, pathways and transitions
• Safeguarding
• Involving people to manage risks
• Safe environments
• Safe and effective staffing
• Infection prevention and control
• Medicines optimisation

Safe – this means we looked for evidence that people were protected from abuse and avoidable harm. At our last assessment we rated this key question requires improvement. At this assessment the rating has changed to good. This meant people were safe and protected from avoidable harm.

This service scored 72 (out of 100) for this area. Find out what we look at when we assess this area and How we calculate these scores.

The provider had a proactive and positive culture of safety, based on openness and honesty. Staff listened to concerns about safety and investigated and reported safety events. Lessons were learnt to continually identify and embed good practice. These were shared through staff meetings and individual staff supervisions. Relatives confirmed staff assessed and responded to incidents of concern and involved people and relatives in solutions. A relative described how staff had investigated and responded to incidents involving their family member to ensure they were kept safe as their needs changed.

The provider worked with people and healthcare partners to establish and maintain safe systems of care, in which safety was managed or monitored. They made sure there was continuity of care, including when people moved between different services. Staff worked closely with health and social care partner agencies to ensure effective communication and people received timely care and treatment. People’s care plans included one page summaries which supported health professionals to understand their needs and abilities ‘at a glance’ in the event of a hospital admission.

The provider worked with people and healthcare partners to understand what being safe meant to them and the best way to achieve that. Staff concentrated on improving people’s lives while protecting their right to live in safety, free from bullying, harassment, abuse, discrimination, avoidable harm and neglect. The provider shared concerns quickly and appropriately. Staff understood their responsibilities to safeguarding people. A staff member told us, “We are good at safeguarding people and know how to keep people safe. We understand our roles in this.” Relatives were assured their family member were safe. A relative told us, “It just feels safe. There is always staff around, they are quick to respond to people and notice any changes.”

The provider worked with people to understand and manage risks by thinking holistically. Staff provided care to meet people’s needs that was safe, supportive and enabled people to do the things that mattered to them. People were supported safely by staff who understood and followed guidance in people’s care plans to mitigate risks. A relative described how staff had re-assessed their family member following a fall and consulted with them to put additional equipment in place to support the person. This had mitigated the risk of further incidents.

The provider detected and controlled potential risks in the care environment. They made sure equipment, facilities and technology supported the delivery of safe care. People and relatives were positive about the internal environment but felt improvements could be made so outdoor spaces were more accessible for people. Comments included, “I like the lounge now, it’s much better,” “I enjoy going to the café, it’s a really nice area,” and “I would like to go outside more but the garden is a mess.” Additionally, people felt there were limited options to spend time in quieter communal areas away from the main lounge areas. The provider had made extensive improvements to internal areas and had plans for further development. They told us they would take action to improve access to the garden for people. We found a loop system had been wired around a person’s door frame and required securing to reduce a trip risk. The registered manager acted on this following our site visit. The provider was in the process of improving internal signage in the service to support people to orientate independently.

The provider made sure there were enough qualified, skilled and experienced staff, who received effective support, supervision and development. They worked together well to provide safe care that met people’s individual needs. People and relatives told us they felt there were enough staff and we observed staff met people’s needs in a timely way. The provider followed robust recruitment procedures to ensure staff were safe to work in the service. Staff received support and guidance from managers. A staff member told us, “I receive all the support I need, and I can also raise issues freely with managers.”

The provider assessed and managed the risk of infection. They detected and controlled the risk of it spreading and shared concerns with appropriate agencies promptly. Staff demonstrated they understood and followed safe infection prevention and control processes. The environment and equipment was clean and well maintained.

The provider made sure that medicines and treatments were safe and met people’s needs, capacities and preferences. Staff involved people in planning, including when changes happened. Medicines were stored and administered safely. Staff used an electronic recording system which supported them to administer people’s medicines as prescribed, including time critical medicines and medicines to be taken as required. A relative told us, “[Name of family member] requires medicines when they become agitated, particularly after lunch. I know staff monitor them and assess if this is needed so they don’t become too distressed.”