Celebrating Excellent ratings across all Care Inspectorate Wales inspection areas at Holywell home

Pen-Y-Bryn, which supports adults with learning disabilities and complex communication needs, achieved Excellent ratings for Wellbeing, Care & Support, Environment, and Leadership & Management.

The inspection recognised the exceptional quality of support we provided throughout the home and the positive impact this has on the people living there. Inspectors found that people enjoy an excellent quality of life because team members know them exceptionally well and provide highly personalised support that promotes choice, independence and wellbeing.

Putting people at the centre

Inspectors praised the home’s person-centred approach and highlighted how people are encouraged to express their views, make choices and take an active role in decisions about their daily lives.

The report recognised the team’s understanding of each person’s individual communication needs, preferences and aspirations, helping ensure people are listened to, understood and supported in ways that work best for them.

Inspectors also highlighted the home’s detailed support planning arrangements, which focus on achieving positive outcomes and helping people maximise their independence and potential. People are actively involved in setting goals and reviewing their progress, ensuring support remains centred around what matters most to them.

An environment that supports independence

The report praised the quality of Pen-Y-Bryn’s environment, describing it as excellent, safe and maintained to a very high standard.

Inspectors highlighted the personalised living spaces that reflect people’s interests and identities, as well as welcoming communal areas that support social interaction and meaningful activities. Outdoor spaces were also recognised for promoting wellbeing, physical activity and relaxation.

The report concluded that the quality of the environment contributes significantly to people’s wellbeing and helps them achieve the best possible outcomes.

Strong leadership driving excellent outcomes

CIW also recognised the strength of leadership and management within the home.

Inspectors highlighted the positive culture created by leaders and team members, where people’s rights, choices and aspirations are at the heart of decision-making. Strong governance, quality assurance and workforce development arrangements were recognised for helping maintain consistently high standards and excellent outcomes.

Importantly, the inspection identified no areas for improvement and no Priority Action Notices.

Rachael Hawkins, Director of Operations – Wales & West, Achieve together, said:

“We are absolutely delighted that Pen-Y-Bryn has achieved Excellent ratings across all four inspection areas. This result reflects the dedication, compassion and professionalism of our team members, who are committed to supporting people to live happy, healthy and meaningful lives.”

Gwenda Williams, Head of Area Operations, Achieve together, added:

“This is an outstanding achievement and one that everybody connected to Pen-Y-Bryn should be incredibly proud of.

“The report highlights what matters most to us: supporting people to make choices, build independence and live happy, healthy and meaningful lives. We’re incredibly proud of the positive culture that our team members have created at Pen-Y-Bryn.”

Inspection highlights

The report highlighted a number of strengths, including:

• Excellent person-centred care and support

• Strong relationships between team members and the people they support

• Outstanding promotion of independence, choice and community involvement

• Highly effective safeguarding and risk management arrangements

• An excellent, personalised and accessible environment

• Strong leadership, governance and quality assurance

• No areas for improvement identified by CIW

This fantastic achievement reflects the dedication of the Pen-Y-Bryn team and the positive outcomes that person-centred support helps people achieve every day. We remain committed to helping people live happy, healthy and meaningful lives while continuing to build on this success.