We have adopted, adapted and are developing a QMS to ensure that we have the organisational structure, leadership, procedures, processes and resources in place needed to continually improve our services and to manage quality for our customers. Our QMS seeks to identify, understand and manage all of the interrelated processes, and to learn from customers, staff, partners and other stakeholders and to continually improve the quality of our service.
Our QMS is based on a cyclical process of quality assurance, control, planning and improvement supported by an effective and well planned cycle of evaluation and review so that identified improvements feed into our Business Planning, Team Planning and Performance and Development Review (PDR) processes. We intend to manage our processes so that they will achieve the requirements of ISO 9001 together with our own operational needs and we have adopted the following management principles:
- Customer focus – we aim to fully understand the needs of the people we support now and will support in the future, to meet those needs and try to exceed their expectations
- Leadership – we have a strong Board and Senior Management Team, including and involving our customers, to establish unity of purpose and direction and so people can become fully involved in achieving our quality objectives
- Involvement of people – we involve people at all levels to enable us to use their abilities for the benefit of the organization
- Process approach – our activities and related resources are managed as processes to achieve the desired outcomes and results (e.g. referral and assessment; support planning and monitoring; move on processes)
- System approach to management – identifying, understanding and managing all interrelated processes as a system
- Continual improvement – One of our permanent quality objectives is the continual improvement of our overall performance.
- Factual approach to decision making –we make decisions based on data analysis and information
- Mutually beneficial partnership relationships – to increase the ability of both to add value
Common elements to the various definitions of quality we share with our customers, commissioners and partners are:
- positive outcomes for our customers
- services that meet the needs of our customers, are person-centred and provide choice
- contribute to wider policy and societal aims and are strategically relevant
- services that achieve value for money, are efficient and reliable
- effective joint working