Healthwatch Enter and View: Shining a light on local care service

Healthwatch Luton has been carrying out Enter and View Visits throughout January and February, to better understand the quality of care and ensure the voices of the people using these services are heard. These visits focused specifically on small residential and day care settings supporting adults with learning disabilities, autism and other support needs.

Enter and View visits, carried out under powers set out in the Health and Social Care Act 2008, give trained representatives the opportunity to step inside services, observe care in action, and speak directly with residents, patients, staff, and visitors.

However, these visits are about more than observation, they are driven by a clear purpose. Healthwatch focuses on key priorities such as improving people’s experiences of care, understanding how services are performing on the ground, and making sure local voices are heard where it matters most.

The programme of visits is shaped by what people in the community are saying, alongside wider local priorities and areas where services may benefit from a closer look. This means each visit is targeted, relevant, and rooted in real experiences. these particular visits, were part of Healthwatch Luton's wider work to hear from underrepresented groups using local community based care settings. 

During visits, representatives look at everything from how welcoming a service feels, to how staff interact with people and how well individual needs are being met. What they find is then brought together into a report, highlighting what’s working well and where things could be even better.

By sharing these insights with providers and decision-makers, Healthwatch helps to drive positive change — making sure services continue to learn, improve, and put people at the heart of care.

Read our recent Enter and View reports here: News and reports | Healthwatch Luton