Orchard House rehabilitation centre put in special measures

The overall rating of Orchard House was downgraded from outstanding to inadequate

A care home has been put in special measures to protect its residents following a Care Quality Commission (CQC) inspection.

The overall rating of Orchard House in Harwell, Oxfordshire, was downgraded from outstanding to inadequate.

The inspection in April took place after the CQC received concerns about its safety and management.

The Active Care Group said it was "very disappointed" but had taken on board the findings and taken action.

Orchard House is a neurological rehabilitation centre helping people dealing with brain and spinal injuries, strokes, minimally conscious states, and other conditions.

Ten people living there at the time of the unannounced inspection.

'Steep decline'

The CQC served two warning notices, requiring it to improve its management and risk assessment, and make sure its residents received safe care and treatment.

Amy Jupp, CQC deputy director of operations in the south, said that "some safe practices had lapsed and people weren't protected from the risk of abuse, avoidable harm or allowed to have maximum choice and control of their lives".

She said people could not access pain relief medication at certain times because staff were not trained, and care plans were "unfinished" and "contained incorrect information".

She said the "steep decline" in standards was not good enough and called for urgent improvements.

The facility could be closed if the CQC is not satisfied enough improvements have been made.

The Active Care Group said it was "very disappointed" but had taken on board the findings and taken action

In a statement Active Care Group, which provides care services throughout the UK, said: "We took immediate action to ensure staff had the guidance and information to support the residents at the facility.

"We have taken onboard the findings of the report and have swiftly identified key areas of improvement to our service."

It said it had improved risk assessment processes, reviewed all documentation, and undertaken a "robust" programme of audit and quality improvement.

It was "committed" to making the improvements "in a timely manner", it added.

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