Weston-super-Mare care home told to improve after inadequate rating

Sherwood Lodge in Weston-super-Mare has received an inadequate rating from the Care Quality Commission

A care home that provides services for people with mental health issues has been rated as inadequate by inspectors.

Sherwood Lodge in Weston-super-Mare has lost its "good" rating and been told by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) to make a number of improvements.

In its report, the CQC said some safeguarding incidents had not been reported as required and "the environment was not fit for purpose".

Sherwood Lodge rejected the report, stating it was "fundamentally flawed".

The home is an independent mental health facility that provides NHS-funded community rehabilitative care and treatment, and care for adults with mental health disorders.

'Much to do'

Its previous good overall rating followed an inspection in May 2018, but CQC inspectors downgraded the home to inadequate after an unannounced inspection last May and June.

Karen Bennett-Wilson, the CQC's head of inspection, said the home had provided an action plan and while they were assured patients were not at immediate risk of harm, there was "still much for the provider to do".

"We were concerned to find that the leadership team didn't have a clear understanding of what was required to deliver good quality, contemporary community rehabilitation services, alongside providing care for people who may be detained under the Mental Health Act," she said.

"The environment wasn't fit for purpose, and it was difficult to see how staff - despite their best efforts - could provide rehabilitative care in it."

'Misrepresentation'

Ms Bennett-Wilson said many bedrooms were small, with some compromising patients' privacy and dignity.

Safeguarding reports were also not being fully investigated, she added.

The health regulator also found patients did not have easy access to professional teams; some care plans were out of date and equipment was not well-maintained, with broken furniture and other damaged items found throughout the premises.

A spokesperson for Sherwood Lodge said the report was "fundamentally and fatally flawed, based on a misrepresentation and mischaracterisation of our service as a 'hospital', which it is not and never has been.

"This has meant our residential nursing service has been judged against a set of criteria that should never apply to us."

"Beyond this, the CQC's report includes many so called findings that in no way reflect what was witnessed during the inspection visits," they added.

Sherwood Lodge said it will "continue to challenge" the report "in the strongest way possible".