The Care Quality Commission (CQC) has rated Charnwood Care Home in Carlton, Nottingham as inadequate, placed it in special measures, and issued a warning notice to protect people following an inspection in July and August.
Charnwood Care Home, run by Divine Rock Care Limited, provides personal and nursing care to people, including some living with dementia. The service can support up to 88 people. At the time of the inspection, there were 37 people living in the home.
This inspection was prompted by serious concerns raised with the CQC by the local authority and the Integrated Care Board (ICB) regarding medication, staffing, and poor management.
During the inspection, these concerns were substantiated, and the CQC found four breaches of regulation, including issues relating to safe care and treatment, safeguarding, consent, and management.
As well as the home being rated inadequate overall, its ratings for being effective, caring, responsive, and well-led were also inadequate. It has been rated as requiring improvement for being safe. This was the first inspection since the service was registered.
Following the inspection, the CQC issued the service with two warning notices to focus its attention on making significant improvements in areas such as effective management, safe care, staffing, staff training, and record-keeping. The CQC has also told the service to provide action plans explaining how improvements will be made in a timely manner.
The care home has also been placed in special measures, meaning it will be kept under review and closely monitored to ensure people are kept safe while improvements are made.
Steven Paisley, CQC Deputy Director of Operations in the Midlands, said:
“When we inspected Charnwood Care Home, it was concerning to see a lack of strong leadership and a culture that didn’t encourage high-quality care. This meant people living at the home weren’t receiving safe, dignified, or person-centred care.
“We found leaders hadn’t put effective processes in place to ensure staff were properly trained and adequate staffing levels were in place. When we spoke to staff, they told us this was frustrating, as untrained staff would provide care, but this often wasn’t done properly, which could put people at risk of harm and created extra work for the more experienced staff.
“People weren’t always safe from abuse. One person told us staff were rough when caring for them, which had caused bruising. Staff had recorded this bruising two months ago; however, no action was taken to refer it to the safeguarding team. Another person explained that a staff member had hit them twice. We reported this to the management team to investigate, but when we returned two days later, little action had been taken. This put people at serious risk of abuse and must be addressed as a priority.
“Additionally, people’s wellbeing was at risk during hot weather, as there was no plan in place to protect them. For example, when we were at the home, the temperature in the building was over 30 degrees Celsius. Staff explained that ice lollies had been offered to residents in one building but not in another, or to people with diabetes. This meant people were exposed to the risk of harm from dehydration and other health issues.
“We have told Charnwood Care Home where we expect to see rapid and widespread improvements and will continue to monitor them closely to keep people safe while this happens. We will return to check on their progress and won’t hesitate to take further action if people are not receiving the care they have a right to expect.”
Inspectors found:
- Safety risks to people were not managed well.
- Staff did not have clear written guidance or training on how to support people safely.
- The home and garden environment were not safe for people.
- Staff did not keep clear records of the care provided to people.
- Staff did not always work effectively together or with external health and social care professionals.
- People did not consistently receive kind and caring support.
- There was limited access to activities inside and outside the care home.
- Management had not acted effectively on concerns raised by the CQC.
However:
- The home was clean, and staff had access to personal protective equipment to prevent the spread of infection.
- Medicines were managed safely.
