Overview

A specialist group of care homes (15 homes) approached us with a clear goal: to genuinely understand the experiences of the relatives and staff at the heart of their organisation. Specialising in high-dependency care, they recognised that the voices most able to speak to quality weren't always the residents themselves, but the families who trusted them and the staff who showed up every day.

The Challenge

Because of the complex needs and varying capacity levels of residents, direct surveying wasn't appropriate. The provider needed another way to ensure that meaningful feedback was captured - not just as a compliance exercise, but as a genuine tool for improvement. They wanted to hear from families honestly, and to understand how their staff were really feeling about their work.

How We Approached It

We designed a structured feedback programme running across all homes simultaneously, covering both relatives and staff.

Relatives received surveys by post, with the option to respond online via QR code or a direct web link - giving people the flexibility to engage in whichever way suited them best. This approach kept response rates strong without placing unnecessary demands on families who often have plenty on their minds already.

Staff surveys ran at the same time, providing a fuller and more honest picture of life inside the homes - both the experience of care being delivered and the environment in which staff were doing their jobs.

Where individuals gave permission, responses could be linked back to them directly, allowing the provider to follow up personally on any concerns raised or compliments shared.

What We Explored

The surveys were designed carefully to cover the topics that matter most - without overwhelming the people completing them. Themes included:

• Confidence in the quality of care being provided

• How well the home communicates with families

• The emotional wellbeing of residents

• Cleanliness and the overall environment

• Safety and how reassured relatives felt

• Coordination of healthcare needs

• Activities, engagement and stimulation

• The professionalism and kindness of staff

• How concerns are handled and responded to

• Staff morale, support and workload

• Access to training and development

Every question was chosen with purpose - to give the provider real insight, not just data.

What We Delivered

At the end of the programme, the client received a comprehensive package of findings, including:

• A detailed written report

• Individual breakdowns for each home

• Thematic analysis of open-written comments

• Clear priority recommendations and suggested next steps

• A presentation of findings to the senior leadership team

The Difference it Made

The feedback programme gave the provider something genuinely valuable: a clearer, more honest picture of what relatives needed - and where the organisation could do better. Communication and reassurance emerged as priorities, and the team acted on that.

Changes introduced following the survey included more proactive updates to families, stronger escalation processes for concerns, improved communication training for staff, greater visibility of managers within the homes, and better sharing of information about activities and daily life.

Beyond the operational improvements, the findings also served as meaningful evidence for quality monitoring and external inspections - demonstrating not just that the organisation listens, but that it acts on what it hears.