A RESIDENTIAL care home has been deemed ‘unsafe’ following an inspection by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) which found it did not manage the risks to residents of Covid-19.

The Brambles, in Beverley Close, near Viables, provides personal care to up to six people with learning disabilities and/or autism.

At the time of the inspection in February four people were living in the home.

There was no manager registered with the CQC.

The CQC found that residents were “not always safe as the service had not fully assessed and put in place measures to reduce risks to their health, safety and wellbeing”.

This included management of their risks from Covid-19.

The home, run by B.L.I.S.S Residential Care, was graded as ‘requires improvement’ in all areas during its last inspection in November 2019. Inspectors found the service had “responded to medicine errors and sought an alternative administration method to reduce the risk of errors” since the previous inspection.

However, it said further improvements were needed, with the report saying: “We identified records were not always up to date, complete or accurate and systems to review the quality of the service did not always identify issues for improvement.

“The management team were aware of the culture in the home and were working to promote a more proactive approach within the staff team which promoted people's independence.”

It added: “At this inspection we found that some improvements had been made, however the provider had not made sufficient improvement and so was still in breach of regulations.”

Inspectors found that “appropriate policies and procedures” were in place to manage the risk from Covid-10, however it said: “these were not followed in practice”.

The watchdog said staff told them they were not wearing masks inside the home, unless providing personal care to one person, which was “not in line with the policy or national guidance”.

The service had not assessed specific risks to people from Covid-19.

The report said: “There was no evidence the provider had explored alternatives, such as visors or clear masks, where they felt wearing regular face masks would impact staff’s communication with people or increase their anxiety.”

Inspectors found a thermometer to check the temperature of those entering the home was not working properly.

“People, staff and visitors could have a high temperature without this being recognised and acted upon. This was highlighted to the manager who agreed to take action,” the report said.

The report said hand washing products were not always available when needed.

At the time of the inspection, routine testing for Covid-19 was not being done.

The report said: “We found no evidence people had been harmed, however, systems were either not in place or robust enough to demonstrate infection control was effectively managed. This placed people at risk of harm. This was a continued breach of regulation.”

At its previous inspection in 2019, the CQC found that the home had “failed to maintain accurate and complete records” which was a breach of regulations.

It found that “not enough improvements had been made at this inspection” and the provider was still in breach of regulations.

The report said: “Records were not always consistent, accurate or up to date, for example people's care plans differed between different versions with no explanation. For example, one person's care plan folder contained out of date information related to the management of their epilepsy which had changed in July 2020. An up-to-date document was seen but was not placed in their folder.”

The CQC said it is “mindful” of the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic when considering enforcement action adding: “We will continue to discharge our regulatory enforcement functions required to keep people safe and to hold providers to account where it is necessary for us to do so. We have identified continued breaches in relation to safe care and treatment and good governance at this inspection.”

It issued the service with a warning notice and asked it to provide an action plan stating what it will do to improve the standards of quality and safety.

The Brambles and B.L.I.S.S Residential Care declined to comment when contacted by the Gazette.