News & events Woodlands are Headway Accredited!
A Headway accreditation is a special achievement. Much like how we receive assessments and guidance from the CQC, Headway assessments ensure our brain injury rehabilitation services offer specialist, and appropriate rehab care to the people we support.
Woodlands is one of our specialist brain injury rehabilitation services in Middlesbrough. They support up to 14 people with brain injuries, challenging behaviour, and mental health needs. They’re just one of our incredible brain injury services that have achieved their Headway accreditation. With an ‘Outstanding’ rating, the team seamlessly demonstrate their expertise and commitment to supporting positive outcomes for those who have suffered brain injuries.
We caught up with Service Manager, Lisa Hornsby, to learn more about the accreditation and how the team at the Woodlands are empowering people with brain injuries to live fulfilling lives.
What is a Headway Accreditation?
L: A Headway accreditation is very similar to CQC assessments, but specialises in brain injuries from the perspective of a person we support. Headway accreditations highlight the quality of care we give, ensuring our support teams are appropriately trained to work with people rehabilitating from brain injuries.
The assessments are carried out every three years and it gives us an opportunity to showcase the good work we do as a team, and how we are delivering person-centred care for the people we support.
What does the accreditation mean to the service and the people we support?
L: The accreditation helps us get recognised for the hard work we put in. It showcases our knowledge and expertise around brain injury care and motivates the team to continue reaching new heights for the people we support.
Being accredited by Headway also gives people confidence when they’re looking to place themselves or a loved in our home. Straight away, our Outstanding rating reassures them we’re the right place to meet their needs.
Tell us about the assessment process – what does it involve?
L: Prior to the assessment, the Headway assessor spoke to some of the people we support on Microsoft Teams so they could get familiar with them before they visited the service on assessment day.
The people we support instantly connected with them, and the Headway assessor explained they would be visiting the service to see all the exciting activities they get up to! This helped everyone understand what was happening and to feel more comfortable when the assessor arrived at Woodlands.
On the day of the assessment, we wanted to demonstrate what a normal day at Woodlands looks like! When the assessor arrived, we explained how everyone receives their own bespoke care plan and that the different activities they do are tailored to their individual needs and aspirations. We then showed them around the service, so they could see first-hand our amazing facilities.
The rest of the assessment consisted of the Headway assessor closely watching the people we support engaging in activities. They also got a feel for their daily routines, as well as their likes and dislikes.
They interacted with several people, asking them about their activities and how we’re helping them to develop and grow.
Finally, the assessor caught up with the whole team and gave us some wonderful feedback. They were especially impressed with how the team communicated, and how we’re providing everyone person-centred care, that helps them grow and achieve their goals.
How are you delivering person-centred care to the people we support?
L: There are many ways we ensure each person at Woodlands receives person-centred care.
Firstly, we get to know each person’s likes and dislikes. By interacting with them and learning about them, we can start to form a plan that meets their needs. We find out what they want to achieve and tailor their plan exactly to that. These could be goals such as cooking a meal, increasing independence, or gaining more confidence out in the community.
We then build an activity planner around their favourite activities and interests. It’s flexible, so each person we support can try new things when they want to!
To ensure all members of our team know everyone to a tee, we implement shadow training for new staff members. Shadowing each person we support, they get to know them well before they begin life as part of the Woodlands team.
We also organise a monthly team briefing, where each person we support is mentioned. We discuss their goals, any issues they might have and any upcoming events that are personal to them, such as birthdays.
Many of the people we support don’t have family – making person-centred support even more important. We make sure every special event for them is celebrated. If it’s their birthday, we’ll buy them a cake, throw a party, and decorate the service to their liking!
What tips would you give about achieving a Headway accreditation?
L: Always make sure you’re providing person-centred care to everyone. It’s important and empowering to know them as a person. If you don’t know everything about them, talk to them and find out their likes and dislikes. Some individuals may be nervous about talking to begin with. If that’s the case, make sure you revisit the chat, so they get an opportunity to open up.
Finally, always ask the question: have they got everything they need? And always make sure they do.
All these things add up when supporting someone with a brain injury. Giving them support that’s tailored to their needs and interests empowers them to live their best life!
Find out more about our specialist brain injury support!
If you’d like to learn more about our specialist brain injury support and how we can help you or a loved one, fill out our quick and easy form and a member of the team will be in touch.
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