Eve Belle
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ResidentialDementia
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CQC report explained · a residential care home, run by Radacare Company
Grovelands Lodge
21 Grovelands Road, Wickford, SS12 9DG
Requires improvementpublished 4 August 2025, 12 months ago
Rated Requires improvement: inspectors found the service was not performing as well as it should and told it what to change.
The latest report, explained
What inspectors found, December 2023
Rated Requires Improvement; inspectors found kind, consistent care, but risks and management oversight were not robust enough.
The inspection was unannounced and took place on 6 November 2023. One inspector spoke with all four people living in the home, staff, family members and professionals. They also checked care, medicines, recruitment and quality records.
People generally said they were happy, safe and well cared for. Staff were described as kind and respectful. People received their medicines, food and healthcare support, and were helped to stay independent and maintain relationships.
However, some risk assessments and care records were not detailed or easy to follow. Personal emergency evacuation plans were missing, and night-time fire drills had not been completed. Policies were out of date and the provider's checks on quality and safety were not strong enough.
The overall rating changed from Good at the previous inspection, published in 2017, to Requires Improvement. The home breached regulations about safe care and treatment and good governance. CQC will ask for an action plan and continue to monitor progress.
What inspectors praised
Kind and respectful care
People and families spoke positively about the care. Inspectors saw warm, respectful relationships between staff and people.
“We observed warm interactions between staff and people, chatting and laughing.” from the report
Consistent staffing
The provider said there were enough staff, and people were supported by familiar staff rather than agency workers. Recruitment checks were in place.
“This meant people were supported consistently by the same staff.” from the report
Medicines managed safely
Staff were trained and checked as competent to give medicines. Records were checked daily and monthly, and no medicine errors had been found.
“There had not been any medicine errors.” from the report
Choice and independence
People helped with meals, followed their own interests and took part in activities inside the home and in the community.
“People were supported to maintain relationships, follow their interests and take part in activities relevant to them.” from the report
What inspectors were concerned about
Fire and risk planning
seriousRisk information was not always detailed or easy to find. Personal emergency evacuation plans were missing, and there had been no night-time fire drills.
“There were no personal emergency evacuation plans in place to identify what support people may need in the event of a fire.” from the report
Weak management checks
seriousThe provider did not have strong enough systems to monitor quality, safety and care records. This was a breach of regulation 17.
“The provider did not have sufficient oversight of quality assurance systems to support the effective running of the service.” from the report
Care plans not always person-centred
needs fixingSome plans did not clearly describe people's wishes, needs and risks. This could make it harder for new staff to provide the right support.
“Care plans lacked a person-centred focus and an over reliance on staff knowledge of how people preferred to be supported.” from the report
End of life wishes not discussed
needs fixingPeople's preferences for end of life care had not been discussed. No one was receiving end of life care at the time.
“People's wishes and preferences about how they would want to be cared for at the end of their life had not been discussed with them.” from the report
Questions to ask them, based on this report
- 01Have personal emergency evacuation plans now been completed for every person, and when was the last fire drill carried out at night?
- 02How have risk assessments for choking, personal care and other health needs been rewritten and made easy for staff to find?
- 03Which care plans have been updated to describe each person's wishes, preferences and risks in their own terms?
- 04Have the home's policies and quality checks been updated, and how is the provider checking that improvements are completed?
- 05How will people's wishes about end of life care be discussed and recorded?
This unannounced inspection looked at all five CQC questions, including care, the premises, medicines, staffing, records and management systems. This explanation was written from the published report of 21 December 2023 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.
The story over the years
Every inspection of Grovelands Lodge
3 rated inspections over 8 years: the service has slipped, from Good to Requires improvement.
- December 2023Requires improvementcurrent ratingSafe: Requires improvementEffective: GoodCaring: GoodResponsive: GoodWell-led: Requires improvement
- November 2020Inspected but not ratedSafe: Inspected but not rated
- October 2017Goodstayed GoodSafe: GoodEffective: GoodCaring: GoodResponsive: GoodWell-led: Good
- August 2015GoodSafe: GoodEffective: GoodCaring: GoodResponsive: GoodWell-led: Good
- July 2013
Report published without a new overall rating.
- January 2013
Report published without a new overall rating.
- June 2011
Report published without a new overall rating.
- January 2011
Registered with the Care Quality Commission on 14 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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