From Culture to Practice: Real-Life Examples of Identity-Based Support

August 7, 2025

📝 Blog 5 of 7 in the series.

Browse all 7 blogs using the numbered links at the bottom of each post.

It’s easy for care and support plans to focus on routines — what time someone gets up, what help they need with medication, and when they go out. But if those plans ignore a person’s culture, beliefs, values, and identity, they fall short of truly person-centred planning.

This applies across client groups — older people, people with learning disabilities, autistic individuals, those with mental health conditions, and people with physical disabilities. In tender responses, commissioners expect to see this level of cultural depth, whether you’re writing for learning disability services or domiciliary care providers.

🎭 Culture isn’t an “extra” — it’s core to identity

A person’s culture might include:

Religious practices or beliefs
Dietary preferences or restrictions
Language preferences
Dress and personal presentation
Attitudes to health, care, ageing or death
Social norms and expectations around family, gender, or privacy

These are not fringe details — they are often central to how someone lives their life. Failing to recognise or respect this can lead to distress, loss of dignity, and even breakdown of placements.

🌍 A particular challenge in diverse communities

In cities like London, Birmingham, or Manchester, services may support people from dozens of cultural backgrounds. That means:

Staff are trained in cultural competence — and supported to reflect on their own biases
Assessments and reviews explore cultural and identity needs in depth
Plans are regularly updated to reflect changes in someone’s beliefs or priorities
Family input helps ensure cultural context is understood and respected

Sometimes people may not want to openly discuss aspects of their culture or identity. Staff need to create safe spaces, ask thoughtful questions, and be open to learning. For home care teams, describe how coordinators and field staff capture and act on this detail in practice — you can reference your approach in more depth via your home care bid writing model.

📋 What should be in a culturally responsive care & support plan?

While everyone’s needs are different, consider including:

Preferred language and communication style (including interpreters or Easy Read)
Food and meal preparation preferences (e.g., halal/kosher/vegetarian; fasting periods)
Personal care preferences (e.g., gender of staff, modesty, privacy)
Religious or spiritual practices (times, locations, transport, items needed)
Important festivals, dates, and community events
Family/community roles and expectations (who should be consulted, how decisions are made)

Plans should avoid tokenism — they must reflect real discussions and choices. For example, don’t just tick a box for “prefers halal food” — explain how this is sourced, stored, prepared, and reviewed.

🔍 Practical examples that demonstrate thoughtful support

Supporting a Jewish person to observe Shabbat with candles and kosher food, with meal prep planned before sunset
Ensuring a trans person’s preferred name and pronouns are consistently used by all staff and reflected in documentation
Providing private space and reminders for daily prayers as part of a Muslim person’s routine
Proactively ordering hair/skin products that align with someone’s cultural needs and preferences
Matching staff (where possible) by language or cultural understanding for key visits or reviews

These aren’t “extras” — they’re essential to dignity, inclusion, and identity. Commissioners are reassured when tender answers show how these adaptations are planned, delivered, and reviewed — not just listed.

🧩 Include the person’s voice

Adaptations should never be assumptions. Involve people directly by:

Asking what matters most in their daily life
Involving family or cultural/community leaders where appropriate
Using accessible formats to support understanding and choice

This demonstrates an inclusive, respectful, person-led approach in practice and in evidence.

📑 Strengthen your tenders and inspections

When writing about care and support planning in tenders or preparing for inspection, highlight:

How you assess and capture cultural identity and needs
How staff are trained to deliver culturally responsive care
Examples of how care plans have been adapted in practice
How you involve families or communities appropriately

Precision and clarity matter. Having a second pair of eyes on final drafts helps you avoid generic phrasing and tighten the evidence — see our bid proofreading for social care providers.

Explore all 7 blogs in this series on cultural and identity needs in person-centred care:

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