Weald Heights

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

The service was well-led. Staff and management had a strong ethos around being open and transparent, developing learning and driving improvement in the home. People, relatives and staff all spoke positively about the approach of the registered manager and deputy manager, describing an ‘open-door’ policy and feeling confident in raising ideas, or concerns. People’s well-being was at the forefront of the leadership at the service, and governance measures were in place to ensure good quality care was being provided. There was an ethos on really getting to know people so care could be shaped how they wanted it. There was additional governance support from an operations manager and head office, and any learning identified was shared across the provider services. The registered manager was proactive in trying to resource innovative care provision to drive the service forward.

This service scored 82 (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 Shared direction and culture during this assessment. The score for this quality statement is based on the previous rating for Well-led.

We did not look at Capable, compassionate and inclusive leaders during this assessment. The score for this quality statement is based on the previous rating for Well-led.

We did not look at Freedom to speak up during this assessment. The score for this quality statement is based on the previous rating for Well-led.

We did not look at Workforce equality, diversity and inclusion during this assessment. The score for this quality statement is based on the previous rating for Well-led.

There was a strong, visible person-centred culture at Weald Heights. The leadership ensured staff were highly motivated, exceptionally compassionate and kind, and provided a consistently outstanding level of care. This was evident from our observations during the inspection. Staff were exceptional at helping people express their views, so that staff and managers at all levels understood their preferences, wishes and choices and could shape care accordingly. Staff told us that leadership were consistently visible within the home and spent a lot of their time working directly with people and staff, meaning they knew both exceptionally well. People and their relatives told us the home was remarkably well led. Management had an open and transparent approach with a robust leadership ethos which incorporated the providers visions and values. The registered manager and deputy manager spoke passionately about the importance of oversight and scrutiny, to drive improvement. They told us they would see it as a personal failure if audits and reviews were not completed at the required time. Management organised their time off to ensure that one of them was always available to ensure the consistency of high-level oversight was maintained. Team leaders told us that they regularly did spot checks, reviewed care plans and daily records and had a good oversight of the floor that they were leading on.

There was a robust governance system in place. Weald Heights endeavoured to meet their own vision and values. The registered and deputy managers spoke passionately about the homes values and how this is part of the whole way the home provides care and support to people. Governance included both internal and head office audits and oversight. A comprehensive list of audits, meetings and reviews were completed including management meetings, staff, residents and relatives’ meetings and surveys sent out. A monthly newsletter was produced for people and relatives. One relative told us, “The Management team is superb. I got to know the core team when [person] first went to Weald Heights, they are still doing a wonderful job in 2024. The management team should be credited with the fact that the home runs so well and has such a great atmosphere. They care so much for their residents, but it is also evident that they care for the staff and there seems to be a great feeling of camaraderie amongst the staff.” There was a lead person within the team who manages any complaints. Staff had designated roles and responsibilities, including leads in certain areas, for example a dementia lead. All had a good understanding of these, including confidence of who to go to if they needed support or to report any incidents. Management had developed several staff initiatives and rewards. These included ‘Gem of the month’ where staff members could be nominated by a colleague, relative, or person, to get a certificate and gift. An operations manager supported the registered manager to complete audits. They visited the home to undertake a full governance audit every 6 months, any feedback was shared with the quality team for learning across all the provider services. The provider also had quality development managers who visited the home to do a deep dive into a chosen subject, such as diabetes care. Again, to ensure practice was safe, up to date and relevant for those being supported.

We did not look at Partnerships and communities during this assessment. The score for this quality statement is based on the previous rating for Well-led.

Staff told us that staff meetings are highly beneficial for driving improvement in their practice. They described them as an open forum where they can have frank discussions about incidents that have occurred, without any judgement, with a pure ethos to aid professional development. They could also discuss changes in people’s care and suggest any improvements. This led to people receiving dynamic and extremely personalised care which was bespoke to their needs. Staff told us that they felt heard and would be comfortable to bring up any issues they have due to the open culture and approachableness of the management team. This included shared, reflective learning sessions to facilitate development, and staff showed significant dedication to achieve continued exceptional levels of care. Where necessary, adjustments had been made for staff who required some flexibility with their shifts. Regular well-being check ins were undertaken between staff and the management team. Staff were encouraged to undertake further learning should they wish, with a number of team leaders going on to train as nurses. This was fully supported by the provider.

There was a robust governance system in place to drive improvement in the home. There was a passion across the entire staff team to develop, learn and improve. There were numerous quality assurance processes in place and governance was methodical, with all information recorded both in folders and on the internal system to ensure that head office could access information remotely. There was a high level of transparency and eagerness to always learn and improve, and the registered manager used all feedback received to continually drive the service to provide the best care possible for people. The registered manager was dedicated and sought out innovative improvements to continually increase safety and care provision. An example of this was the recent introduction of the sensor system in people’s rooms to drive a significant reduction in the number of falls. A variety of methods to communicate learning were used to ensure staff did not miss any updates. All feedback we received demonstrated that the communication between management, staff, people and their relatives was excellent to continually drive improvement at the home. The home had just completed the veteran friendly framework to improve the approach with any veterans who lived at the home. This information was recorded in people’s care plans and in memory boxes outside people’s rooms. There were also strong links with the local British Legion. The service had recently been shortlisted for the ‘Most inspiring dementia care provider’ award. People had been supported to engage in a wildlife project. This focused on developing organic and regenerative land and people made a small wildlife garden at the home to encourage sustainability.