'Prison-like' care home placed in special measures

Sandown House has been rated inadequate by inspectors

A care home has been rated inadequate after inspectors said residents had likened it to a prison.

Autumn House in Sandown, Isle of Wight, cares for up to 44 elderly people, many with dementia.

The Care Quality Commission (CQC) said it inspected the home in April 2024 after a whistle-blower reported concerns.

The CQC report, which has only just been published, said people were not always safe and staff failed to understand their duty to report unexplained bruising on residents.

Neil Cox from the commission said the issues were caused by "inconsistent leadership and a closed culture".

He added: "Leaders had created an environment that people said often felt like a prison.

"People were unable to go outside or even access some parts of the home like the kitchen or the dining room when they wanted to.

"People's bedroom doors locked automatically behind them and they were not provided with keys, so they were unable to access their belongings and had to ask staff to let them in.

"Staff also made other decisions for people, like their choice of food at mealtimes, with no consideration to what their preferences were."

One resident lost nearly 17kg (37lb) in 10 months with no plan to address the issue, inspectors found.

Mr Cox concluded: "The standard of care we saw being provided by Autumn House Residential Home is completely unacceptable.

"They are now in special measures which means CQC will continue to closely monitor the home to keep people safe and ensure rapid and widespread improvements are made."

The CQC apologised for taking so long to publish the report, insisting that the residents had not been put at risk by the delay.

Autumn House Care, which runs the home, has been approached for comment.