Scarborough care home put into special measures

Gladstone House looks after people with mental health issues or learning disabilities

Author: Kathy GreenPublished 16th Dec 2022

A Scarborough care home that looks after people with mental health issues or learning disabilities has been rated inadequate by inspectors.

The CQC's put Gladstone House in special measures.

An inspection in October found:

• Staff had been recruited without following safe recruitment procedures, they were also not provided with the relevant training to meet people’s needs. Staff were not trained in mental health or learning disabilities, long-term conditions, diabetes or stoma care.

• Concerns had not been raised to safeguard people from potential harm or abuse. This included poor medicines management, insufficient care plans and inadequate risk assessments.

• The environment and equipment did not meet the needs of people using the service and therefore, people’s dignity and confidentiality were not always respected. Personal discussions took place openly and personal information was displayed in communal areas.

• The provider had a complaints policy in place. However, there were no records of any previous complaints that people, and relatives told us they had raised with the manager.

• People were not supported to make their own choices around their individual preferences, for example, all the residents had to eat in the dining room. Also, people were not involved in decisions about their care planning. However, choice was offered to people on how they would like to spend their time.

Debbie Ivanova, CQC’s director for people with a learning disability and autistic people, said:

“When we visited Gladstone House, we were disappointed to find care standards had deteriorated since our last inspection, and leaders failed to have a grasp of the issues facing the service. However, during our inspection, it was encouraging that leaders took immediate action and started to address some of the issues we identified.

“We found people didn’t always receive good quality care, support or treatment as staff weren’t adequately trained to meet people’s needs. They weren’t supported to have maximum choice, control and independence of their own lives, and weren’t encouraged to achieve their aspirations and goals."

We have contacted Gladstone house for comment.

Hear all the latest news from across the UK on the hour, every hour, on Greatest Hits Radio on DAB, smartspeaker, at greatesthitsradio.co.uk, and on the Rayo app.