Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need a consultant?
Most people who approach us want to improve their business. For some, this means acquiring more clients or improving their management and staff capabilities, whereas for others it means improving their CQC rating. Our approach, based on experience and research, will address these issues and will aim to help you achieve an improved rating in one or more areas.
If you are considering support to do this, you are probably already aware of one or more of the issues you face. What you may not have, is a clear plan on how to achieve your goals. Some of the ways we might be able to support you:
- We can help you identify and quantify your own measurements for success.
- We can help you to change the organisational culture to transform your service.
- We offer support to improve professional practice, to help your key employees step into more senior roles.
- We can train your client-facing employees to nationally recognised standards to develop competence in the delivery of services.
Some leaders are so busy managing their day-to-day tasks they struggle to know where to start. That’s where a consultant come in. We can support you at every stage, with as little or as much as you think you need, or until the goals you have identified are realised.
What is the difference between consultancy and mentoring?
To begin with, it is important to note that both are measurable. That is to say, by the end of the intervention, we will be able to say we have achieved X, produced Y and provided a map to take your organisation forward.
Consultancy is…
- Short, time limited, interventions that achieve clearly specified goals
- Usually takes between 1 – 3 weeks
- Often appropriate for organisations with 50+ clients
We are experienced in front-line operational management and delivery, governance, assurance and regulation of care services, as well as the strategic development of award-winning companies.
We can bring practical solutions that can be seen and felt throughout your organisation. These will allow you to rapidly implement key events for lasting results.
We have extensive knowledge and experience of Social Care in a variety of service settings including Residential and Domiciliary Care. This means that we can drill down to the core issues and ensure the time we spend with you, is used to its fullest.
We can facilitate improvements in your organisational performance and complement your own resources by:
- drafting policies, procedures, practice guidelines and working documents supporting your transformation programme to deliver new ideas and ways of working
- developing teams and individuals at any level assisting you to have more productive interactions and meetings
- evaluating your current processes and assisting you to refine or improve them
Mentoring is…
- Longer interventions where goals need to be clarified as they are developed
- No end date set at start (subject to contract)
- Usually occurs through several meetings, across a period of months
- Often appropriate for organisations with 1-50 clients
- Can be used prior to engaging first client (setup period)
We can facilitate improvements in your organisational performance and complement your own resources by:
- drafting policies, procedures, practice guidelines and working documents
- supporting your transformation programme to deliver new ideas and ways of working
- developing teams and individuals at any level
- assisting you to have more productive interactions and meetings
- evaluating your current processes and assisting you to refine or improve them
How does it work?
We will take care to understand your organisation and your goals. Depending on the size and complexity of your team(s), and your desired outcomes, this may be quite a quick process initially but may require refining as we go. We will do this by talking to you and/or your key personnel and confirm with you a series of goals/targets you wish to achieve.
Whilst some of our work can be conducted remotely, we believe face-to-face meetings provide more intangible opportunities for understanding. We will discuss with you how best to proceed with this.
We charge an hourly rate and will give you an estimate of how long we think it might take. You are welcome to negotiate the hours, or set limits, which we are happy to accommodate.
How much does it cost?
Our hourly charge is based on onsite and remote work. Before we start charging, we will agree with you an estimated time limit. Other charges may include travel and accommodation, but we will ensure that these are kept to a minimum and will appraise you of them prior to starting.
Our first meeting carries no charge.
Every four weeks, we will send an invoice detailing line-by-line the work we have completed and the cost associated with it.
How long does it take?
In discussion with you, we can set clear guidelines for each desired outcome. It may be the case that you just want us to help sort out your thinking and provide a suggested roadmap for change, at which point our time with you is very short.
Conversely, it may that you prefer us to support you to manage the change, at which point the time we spend will be over a greater span. Either way, we will only charge you for the time we have spent on your project.
Do I have to follow your advice?
Not at all. Our recommendations are just that and you are free to go another way. However, if you feel our advice is not appropriate, we would hope you would liaise with us the reasons why, so that we can review our understanding of your needs.
Do you guarantee results?
A straightforward question without a straightforward answer, unfortunately, as some clients merely want advice on how to proceed with their identified change, whereas others require a great deal more support to successfully change their culture.
In either event, we have a good track record of supporting organisations. We work by setting goals that are measurable, so you will be able to see the results during and at the end of the process. That way, you can see whether the progress we are making is to your satisfaction.
What we do guarantee, is that you will have an independent perspective of what we believe you will need to do in order to meet your goals.
Can you help me write my PIR?
Yes. We have extensive experience in supporting the completion of Provider Information Returns, to show your achievements and positive experiences to CQC. The PIR document can be daunting, and many providers don’t necessarily show all the good work they do. We can support you to find the best examples to show on your document, and will support you to write sections that reflect your practice accurately.
Can you help me with IT?
Yes, we can work with you to ensure your time is spent effectively, that your IT systems are fit for purpose, and that your staff are using them effectively.
DSPT Data Security & Protection Toolkit
The DSPT is now on version 8 with 42 mandatory evidence items. If you own or manage a service providing care and don’t fully understand what this is, you are in danger of falling foul of CQC and/or the Information Commissioners Office (ICO).
The Data Security and Protection Standards for health and care sets out the National Data Guardian’s (NDG) data security standards. By completing the Toolkit self-assessment and by providing evidence, you will demonstrate that your organisation is working towards or meeting the NDG standards.
The Toolkit covers items such as:
- Staffing and Roles
- IT Policies and Procedures
- Data Security
- IT Systems and Devices
We can assist you to complete the mandatory evidence items, as well as the non-mandatory items, to ensure you have the policies and practices in place to utilise safe and secure digital services to your staff and clients.
Secure Systems (Antivirus, Websafe, Anti-theft)
We can make your IT system as safe as it can be by using a combination of services to ensure your individual systems and devices are secure from virus, ransomware and theft. We can supply and configure these for each device you have.
We can also make recommendations as to preferred services for protecting your website from attacks, ensuring your ‘shop window’ is kept open for business 24/7.
Digital Planning Systems
We have experience across a range of care-planning solutions including:
- Access PeoplePlanner
- Access Mobizio
- Nourish CarePlanner
- Nourish CarePlanner App
- Birdie App
- CareAudits
Whilst we may be able to advise which solution would suit you best, we can certainly help you get the most out of it by making your configurations efficient and set to work for your office culture.
We also have some thoughts on cloud-services for communication, and can support you to install and set up for your entire workforce
Can you help me with policies and procedures?
Yes, we can assist with this. Clearly any policy needs to reflect changes in legislation and best practice, but it is also important to ensure that it works for the organisation. A series of up-to-date policies that reinforce each other, that are understood by managers and that are applied uniformly across the organisation, goes a long way towards ensuring equity in working practice.
How will my business improve?
An independent review of your organisation, its practise and culture, is always a benefit to owners and managers as it allows you to see what others (i.e. a CQC inspector, or potential client seeking care, or potential carer seeking work) may see of you. Finding a cost-effective way of doing this can be difficult, and inhouse solutions are not always as independent as you might want.
Whether you require consultancy or mentoring, we can support your desire to improve your organisation. We would expect observable changes in areas such as culture, practice and employee expectations over a period of time. We would hope to see an improved CQC rating, if that is your goal.
Can you train my staff?
Our consultants are also education specialists, and have a strong and successful track record of delivering both high quality training and support to local authorities, schools, social care and the healthcare sector.
Our programme development is driven by the recognition that well trained and supported staff are key to the successful delivery of quality outcomes for adults. Our packages are designed to be time effective and of high impact.
We can advise and mentor for the following:
- Level 7 Strategic Management (NVQ, CMI)
- Level 5 Operational Management (NVQ, CMI)
- Level 5 Health & Social Care (NVQ)
- Level 4 Health & Social Care (NVQ)
- Level 3 Supervisory Management (NVQ, CMI)
- Level 3 Health & Social Care (NVQ)
Our programme of training courses is designed to support best practice in the context of the challenging agendas facing the adult social care sector:
- The Care Certificate
- Induction
- Dementia Awareness
- Dementia Care (advanced practice)
- Moving & Handling
- Adult Safeguarding
- Medication Administration
- Personal & Pressure Care
- Food Hygiene
- End of Life Care
- Parkinson’s Disease Care
- MND Care
- Stroke Care
What areas do you cover?
United Kingdom, Republic of Ireland.