Tottenham care home placed in special measures by watchdog

Residents at a care home for people with autism and learning disabilities were left for long periods without mental stimulation or engagement, inspectors have found.

The home, at 80 Meridian Walk in Tottenham, has been rated ‘inadequate’ and placed in special measures after the watchdog Care Quality Commission (CQC) warned it was falling “way below the standards of what people should be able to expect”.

It comes after a “significant drop” in the quality of care at the home, which was rated ‘good’ following a previous CQC inspection in 2018.

In the latest report published on 31st August, following an inspection carried out in July, CQC identified multiple breaches of care regulations. It said residents were left for long periods with “minimal stimulation and engagement” and there was “limited evidence that people were supported to explore their interests”. Inspectors found people were “rarely supported to leave the house” and did not have the opportunity to become involved in their local community.

The watchdog criticised the home over a lack of respect shown by staff, who “repeatedly spoke about people while they and their housemates were in the room”. It said staff did not always talk to people while supporting them with activities such as eating and they moved people or performed care tasks without explaining what they were going to do first.

Communal areas, the kitchen and bathrooms were described as being in a “poor state of repair”. Further problems identified in the report include a failure to identify and reduce risks, a failure to manage medicines safely and a failure to adhere to good infection prevention and control practice.

Ambient Support, which runs the home, has accepted the findings and vowed to make improvements.

The home, which cares for six people, will be kept under review by the watchdog. If it has not improved sufficiently within six months, the CQC could decide to stop Ambient Support from running the home.

James Frewin, CQC’s head of adult social care inspection, said: “There has been a significant drop in the quality of care being provided at 80 Meridian Walk, which falls way below the standards of what people should be able to expect.

“People weren’t supported to be as independent as possible, and staff weren’t ambitious for those in their care. We saw staff giving someone just one chance to feed themselves before taking over.

“A culture of low aspiration had been allowed to develop in this home, with minimal stimulation and engagement for the people who lived there. Activities were extremely limited, and people were rarely supported to leave the house.

“Strong, person-centred values were not embedded at the service, and care was routinely task-based and didn’t consider people’s individual needs.”

Davina Sellick, director of sales, marketing and communications at Ambient Support, said the company “fully accepts the findings of the report and has already begun to implement an action plan to address the issues raised”.

She added: “We are working toward a new management structure at the service and liaising closely with the local authority and the CQC to address the shortcomings this report highlighted. Families and carers have been contacted, and we will continue to openly communicate with them, so they are fully aware of the changes that we are making.

“The wellbeing, safety and care of the people that use Ambient Support services are its number one priority. The charity and its staff teams are fully committed to the continuous improvement of all its services.”