Fleetwood Hall, Southport, is rated as Inadequate by CQC

The Care Quality Commission (CQC) has told Fleetwood Hall in Southport, Merseyside that it must make improvements or face enforcement action.

During an unannounced inspection in January, inspectors found that the home was failing to provide care which was safe, effective, caring, responsive or well led.

A full report of this inspection has been published on the CQC website at: www.cqc.org.uk/location/1-118825208.

Under CQC’s new programme of inspections, all adult social care services are being given a rating to help people choose care. Overall, Fleetwood Hall has been rated as Inadequate.

The report identifies a number of areas in which improvements were required. For example:

• The home did not have suitable arrangements in place for obtaining the consent of people to the care and treatment provided for them.
• Care and treatment was not planned and delivered in a way that ensured people's safety and welfare.
• People were not protected from the risk of infection because they were not being cared for in a clean, hygienic environment.
• Staffing levels on the home’s unit for people living with dementia were inadequate to ensure people’s safety was maintained at all times.
• Staff were not always provided with sufficient training and supervision.
• Staff did not always treat people living in the home with dignity and respect, and restrictions were placed on people which did not take into account individual capacity.

Following the inspection, the provider, Newco Southport Limited, has agreed to a voluntary suspension on new admissions to the home until the issues identified have been addressed.

Debbie Westhead, CQC’s Deputy Chief Inspector of Adult Social Care in the North, said:

“Our inspection of Fleetwood Hall found that the people living there did not consistently receive the service they should expect, safe, effective, caring, responsive to their needs and well led.

“It is simply not acceptable that there were insufficient staff available to support the people living in the home. For people who rely on others for support it is important that they receive compassionate care, from that staff understand their specific needs, and that the place in which they live is clean and well cared for.

“At our recent inspection we identified serious concerns and expect the provider to take urgent action to fix the problems we saw. The manager has acknowledged that improvements are required and has started to make improvements in a number of areas and we are monitoring their progress closely

"We will follow up on the action we have required the provider to take and should the required improvements not have been made we will take further action”

Ends

For further information please contact CQC Regional Engagement Manager Kirstin Hannaford on 0191 233 3629. Alternatively, the CQC press office can be contacted on 0207 448 9401 or out of hours on 07789 876508.