CQC report explained · a residential care home, run by Lifeways Community Care
202 Weston Road
202 Weston Road, Meir, Stoke-on-Trent, ST3 6EE
Rated Good: inspectors found the service performing well and meeting their expectations.
What inspectors found, April 2024
202 Weston Road was rated Inadequate and placed in special measures after inspectors found serious safety, care and leadership failures.
Inspectors visited without notice on 25 and 30 January 2024. They spoke with relatives, staff and professionals, observed care, and checked care, medicine, staff and management records.
The home was not always safe. Risks were not properly managed, medicine records were incomplete, some staff lacked the skills needed, and infection control and the building needed attention. People were not always supported in line with their care plans or the Mental Capacity Act.
The home was also not well led. There was no registered manager in post, quality checks had not led to improvement, and people were not always treated in an empowering or person-centred way. The ratings were Inadequate for Safe and Well-led, and Requires Improvement for Effective.
The overall rating fell from Good at the previous inspection, published in October 2019. The home is in special measures, and the provider must send an action plan while the CQC and local authority monitor progress.
Food and drink
Inspectors found that people were supported to eat and drink enough. Food preferences and how people liked to eat were recorded.
“People were supported to eat and drink enough to maintain a balanced diet.” from the report
Safe recruitment
The provider completed checks before employing staff, which helped assess whether they were suitable to work at the home.
“People were supported by staff who were safely recruited to work at the home.” from the report
Visitors
People could receive visitors without restrictions during the inspection.
“People were able to receive visitors without restrictions in line with best practice guidance.” from the report
Some immediate action
After inspectors raised concerns, the provider put protocols in place for as-required medicines and completed further building and safety checks.
“Following our first day of inspection we requested the provider took action to ensure the required protocols were in place” from the report
Unmanaged risks
seriousSome health and behaviour-related risks did not have clear, up-to-date guidance. An incident occurred after staff did not follow the protocol for a specific health need.
“This placed the person at risk of harm.” from the report
Medicine safety
seriousMedicine administration records had missing signatures. There were no protocols for some as-required medicines, and a broken thermometer was not replaced.
“People's medicine administration records (MAR) contained missing signatures, which meant we could not be assured people had received their medicines as prescribed.” from the report
Premises and infection control
seriousMould, rust, strong smells and incomplete cleaning schedules were found. One bathroom was out of use, and the layout did not always meet people's needs.
“People were not always protected from the risk of infection as staff were not consistently following safe infection prevention and control practices.” from the report
Staff skills and treatment
seriousSome staff said they lacked suitable training, especially for behaviours they found difficult to manage. Inspectors heard shouting and saw people being told to be quiet.
“Staff approach to supporting people during incidents was not effective.” from the report
Limited activities and independence
seriousThere was little evidence of meaningful activities or support to develop people's independence. Inspectors saw people sitting for long periods while staff talked elsewhere.
“There was no record of the progress or completion of this goal.” from the report
Weak leadership
seriousThere was no registered manager in post and oversight was not robust. Audits identified problems but did not consistently lead to action or learning.
“The provider did not have an effective management structure.” from the report
- 01What immediate changes have been made to risk assessments and staff guidance for each person's health and behaviour needs?
- 02How are medicine signatures, as-required medicine protocols and medicine storage temperatures now checked?
- 03What training and supervision have staff received to support people safely during incidents?
- 04Who is managing the home now, and how is the provider checking that improvements are being maintained?
- 05What regular activities and support for independence are now available for each person?
This was a focused inspection of Safe, Effective and Well-led only; Caring and Responsive were not inspected and the report says ratings for uninspected questions carried over from the previous inspection. This explanation was written from the published report of 4 April 2024 by an AI system and checked against the report text: every quoted line appears in the report. It is a guide to the report, not a substitute for it. Read the full report on cqc.org.uk.
Every inspection of 202 Weston Road
4 rated inspections over 8 years: the service has slipped, from Good to Inadequate.
- April 2024Inadequatecurrent ratingSafe: InadequateEffective: Requires improvementCaring: GoodResponsive: GoodWell-led: Inadequate
- February 2022Inspected but not ratedSafe: Inspected but not rated
- October 2019Goodup from Requires improvementSafe: GoodEffective: GoodWell-led: Good
- September 2018Requires improvementdown from GoodSafe: Requires improvementEffective: GoodCaring: GoodResponsive: GoodWell-led: Requires improvement
- February 2016GoodSafe: GoodEffective: GoodCaring: GoodResponsive: GoodWell-led: Good
- June 2013
Report published without a new overall rating.
- December 2012
Report published without a new overall rating.
- August 2011
Report published without a new overall rating.
- January 2011
Registered with the Care Quality Commission on 27 January 2011.
Ratings and report dates from the Care Quality Commission. A service can also be visited without a new rating being published, so the timeline shows published inspections, not every contact the CQC has had with the service.
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Other services run by Lifeways Orchard Care Limited
1 other service on the CQC register. A pattern across a group tells you more than one report.