Norfolk residential home rated inadequate by CQC and placed in special measures
Norfolk care home is under close monitoring for improvement, following a recent inspection
Leiston Old Abbey Residential Home in Norfolk has been rated inadequate by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) and is now under special measures.
The 'special measures' mean rigorous monitoring to ensure residents' safety while the home makes necessary improvements.
The decision follows a recent inspection and shows a significant downgrade for the residential care home, which caters for up to 40 older adults, including those with dementia and learning disabilities.
The inspection, completed in April, marked a decline from previous good ratings, with the service assessed as inadequate overall along with safety and leadership.
The CQC reported that their 'right support, right care, right culture guidance' was not met at the care home. This guidance aims to ensure respect, dignity, and community access for autistic people and those with learning disabilities.
The report said: " The service supports people with a learning disability, and we found it wasn’t in line with CQC's right support, right care, right culture guidance. People weren’t always supported to live full and meaningful lives based on their individual interests, goals and choices."
As a result, Leiston Old Abbey received two warning notices and must submit an action plan.
Hazel Roberts, CQC Deputy Director of Adult Social Care in the East of England, expressed concern over the deteriorating care standards.
She cited outdated care plans, inadequate personal care support, and poor call bell response times among several issues.
Hazel also expressed concerns over residents safety: "People weren’t always kept safe. Care plans contained contradictory and out-of-date information, meaning staff didn’t always have accurate information to support people safely,
For example, one person's records stated conflicting information about whether they could walk."
"One person told us they had waited up to 45 minutes at night for their call bell to be answered" The report said.
Inspectors also noted risks of isolation due to a lack of social activities and insufficient training among staff.
"People were at risk of boredom and isolation. There were no activities coordinator and no daily programme of activities in place:
Daily records showed some people went several days without any recorded social interaction. People told us they were bored and had little to do."
However, individual staff members were recognised for their compassionate care, and the service is engaging in loneliness research with support from local authority commissioners.
CQC's findings have been shared with the management, and the home will be closely monitored to ensure essential improvements are made.
Leiston Old Abbey have been contacted for a response.