Great Oaks

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 is the first assessment for this service under the new provider. This key question has been rated good. This meant the service was consistently managed and well-led. Leaders and the culture they created promoted high-quality, person-centred care.

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.

The service had a shared vision, strategy and culture. This was based on transparency, equity, equality and human rights, diversity and inclusion, engagement, and understanding challenges and the needs of people and their communities. The provider was working to understand the needs of people and staff and bring them together for a common goal. The provider had undertaken various meetings with people, their relatives and staff. A relative said, “We have attended a relatives meeting, this was good, and they were open to listening to us. Actions were taken and worked on.”

The service had 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 did so with integrity, openness and honesty. The service had undergone management changes, we were told this had created a period of uncertainty, however, people, staff and relatives told us they had seen improvements. A member of staff said, “Staff morale has been low, but it is improving each day, the feedback is we are a strong team, and everything is going to be okay.” There had been a staffing restructure, changes and staff told us they understood what was expected of them. The manager spoke passionately about the home and told us they were committed to improving everything, this sentiment was shared by the provider.

The service fostered a positive culture where people felt they could speak up and their voice would be heard. Staff told us there were channels to raise concerns with the management of the service and morale was improving. The management team told us this was an area they were developing further, and improvements had been made. Concerns had been raised and appropriate action was taken by the provider to resolve.

The service valued diversity in their workforce. They worked towards an inclusive and fair culture by improving equality and equity for people who worked for them. Staff told us they felt included as part of a team. Records showed consideration of differences and individuality. The provider’s policies and procedures were all underpinned by equality and inclusion.

The service had clear responsibilities, roles, systems of accountability and good governance. They used these to manage and deliver good quality, sustainable care, treatment and support. They acted on the best information about risk, performance and outcomes, and shared this securely with others when appropriate. Great Oaks had undergone management changes following their registration, people and staff told us this had created some uncertainty. However, the governance systems introduced by the provider were structured and clear. Oversight was multi-layered and support had been visible, changes and improvements were ongoing. A relative told us, “Communication is very, very good and has improved.”

The service understood their duty to collaborate and work in partnership, so services worked seamlessly for people. They shared information and learning with partners and collaborated for improvement. Great Oaks is an established home in the local community, engagement and partnerships were a focus of the provider. The service had long standing links and told us they were keen to expand those further. One professional told us about their working relationship with the service and said, “I have always had a productive and supportive partnership.”

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 contributed to safe, effective practice and research. The provider was committed to hearing the voice of people and their relatives. They did this through meetings and quality assurance systems. One such example was, a digital reception where visitors signed in for safety purposes and on exit could give a quick rating of their visit satisfaction, they told us this enabled them to follow up on a visit which did not meet their expectations. One relative told us they had used this system on each visit to the home and had logged a less than satisfactory score. This was followed up by a telephone call from the manager and resolved to their satisfaction. This system had the oversight of the provider and had enabled them to make changes within the service.