A CARE home in Buckinghamshire was reinspected following previous concerns about its quality of care. 

Cheriton Care Home looking after 15 people older people in Amersham run by Cheriton (Amersham) Ltd was inspected by the Care Quality Commission in January.

The new inspection comes around six months after its previous ‘inadequate’ rating put the service in special measures, meaning it had six months to improve to continue operating.

Following the January inspection, the care home was rated ‘requires improvement’ overall – one rating better than its previous score.

However, the effectiveness category had improved from previous ‘inadequate’ to ‘good’.

Level of safety, caring, responsiveness and how well-led the service is received a ‘requires improvement’ score. 

A relative told the CQC inspectors: “I’m very happy that he is safe. The (staff) do a fantastic job.”

However, the watchdog found all areas of risk were not identified and mitigated.

The report said: “Cleaning schedules were in place; however domestic staff were not regularly provided on shift which meant the service was not clean and hygienic. The flooring in some people's bedrooms had food debris on them, sinks were not clean, and furniture was dusty. The wall in one person's bedroom was badly stained with food/drinks splatter and looked unhygienic. The communal area floors had debris on them, the toilets and bath were stained, skirting boards were dusty and marked.”

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The provider had made other improvements to the environment, and further improvements were planned, the CQC said.

The cook received “no assistance”, meaning care staff had to collect and serve meals. This meant people eating in the lounge were not “consistently supervised,” the report noted.

Staff were not suitable deployed, which is a breach of health and social care regulations.

Shift records showed two staff members were providing care to 15 people “some who had moving and handling needs,” the inspector found.

Staff had told during a meeting in October 2022 how lack of staff was putting pressure on them.

A staff member commented during the inspection: "We are short staffed, which makes the shift hard, when only two staff are providing care."

The CQC observed people did not receive much verbal or aural stimulation, and there was little engagement between staff and people using the service. 

A person at the care home said: "You [the inspector] are the first person that I have spoken to like this for a long time, and I really appreciate it. Loneliness is horrible. I am out of sight and out of mind." 

A staff member felt the new registered manager and the provider were trying to improve, the report said.

They commented: "I think they are trying. Some of the problems are fundamental. Everybody here works hard. You get very little recognition for it. It hurts morale."

Director of Cheriton (Amersham) Ltd Nik Nayar said: “We are thrilled that all of the hard work put in by staff and management has resulted in a better CQC rating and we look forward to continuing to make improvements to the lives of our residents at Cheriton.”