Cornwall care home rated 'inadequate' by watchdog

The Care Quality Commission (CQC) report said staff were not correctly trained, and were often "left to their own devices."

A Cornwall care home has been rated 'inadequate' and placed under special measures to protect residents.

The report by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) said staff at Carrick, in Truro, were not correctly trained, and often "left to their own devices."

Carrick provides personal care to autistic people and people with a learning disability.

A spokesperson for Modus Care Limited, which runs the home, said they were disappointed with the rating.

'Totally unacceptable'

Modus Care Limited took over the home in November 2022.

The home had originally been placed in special measures in May 2022 when under the management of the previous company, Spectrum.

The latest inspection said little had changed and the care was rated "inadequate" in terms of being "safe and well-led".

The report also said it "requires improvement for being caring, effective and responsive".

Stefan Kallee, CQC's deputy director for people with a learning disability and autistic people, said they "expect health and social care providers to guarantee autistic people and people with a learning disability the choices, dignity, independence and good access to local communities that most people take for granted".

He said: "When we inspected Carrick, we were disappointed to find the culture did not ensure this high-quality care."

"Modus must put people at the heart of this service and take steps to address this culture, rather than allow it to become normalised."

Following the report, inspectors said they highlighted the areas which needed "to see rapid improvement" and that "if sufficient progress has not been made, we will not hesitate to take further action to ensure people's safety and well-being".

'Huge amount to fix'

A spokesperson for Modus said: "We knew when we took over the services from the previous provider that there was a huge amount to fix to get the care quality up to our standards.

"Whilst there has been progress, this service has proven more challenging than all of the others that we have taken on.

"We will continue to work with our colleagues and the CQC to ensure that the service delivers the high quality of person-centred care to the same high standards as in our other services."