Care home rated inadequate after inspection

A care home in Cornwall has been rated as inadequate and had urgent conditions put on its registration, a watchdog has said.

Ocean Hill Lodge Residential Care Home in Newquay provides accommodation and personal care for up to 18 people.

The Care Quality Commission (CQC) said an inspection was carried out in November 2024 after concerns were received from the local authority about its management.

Inspectors found "inconsistent management" had meant people "weren't receiving the level of care they had a right to expect", the CQC said. Ocean Hill has been contacted for a comment.

Catherine Campbell, CQC deputy director of operations in the south, said: "Leaders had very little oversight of people's care and had failed to respond when things went wrong.

"Leaders didn't have robust systems in place to keep people safe and they hadn't addressed issues."

She added: "During our onsite inspection, the deputy manager was away and the remaining registered manager wasn't based locally, had limited knowledge of the home, and didn't understand the needs of the people living there.

"We found the registered manager was very reliant on more experienced staff to address shortcomings, such as developing people's care plans, risk assessments, and ordering medicines.

"This put unnecessary pressure on staff to carry out tasks outside of their roles and impacted on the care they could provide."

Cornwall Council said it was working with the home and supporting residents and their families while new management was put in place and "significant improvements" were made.

It added: "Staff in the home have been working alongside our quality assurance team and social work teams, who have been a regular presence to make sure residents are being well cared for."

Anyone with concerns has been urged to contact the council.

Follow BBC Cornwall on X, Facebook and Instagram. Send your story ideas to [email protected].