Inadequate Rating Forces Closure of Blackburn Residential Residence

A Lancashire home that cares for people with autism and Learning disabilities is to close after being told to make urgent improvements.

Blackburn was visited by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) to see if it had responded to a warning notice issued last year.

The CQC found that there were still significant deficiencies in leadership, which meant that people could not be assured of getting the right care.

A spokesman for the home said it felt „unfair“ that it had decided to close.

He said, „The market is difficult to recruit managers and support staff, but we have decided to close the home and go in a new direction.

„For 18 years I have looked after them with all my heart.“

The CQC made unannounced visits to the home in June and July. It was caring for six people at the time.

An early warning notice about safe care, treatment and good governance was issued in October.

„Higher standards“
Although the CQC found that some improvements were made over the next few months, there were still breaches of regulations.

The home’s overall rating, as well as its ratings for safe and well-led, remained „inadequate“.

Its rating for effective and responsive dropped from „requires improvement“ to „inadequate“, and care dropped from „good“ to „requires improvement“. „.

The service remains in special measures, which means it will be reviewed and re-inspected by the CQC to check that significant improvements have been made.

The CQC’s director for people with learning disabilities and autism said, „When we inspected, we were disappointed to find that the provider had not addressed all the issues we raised at our last inspection and that they were still in breach of regulations.

„We found significant failings in the leadership team and that the culture they had created did not ensure people received a high standard of care.

„We found people were not safe because there were not always enough staff to meet people’s needs and they were not always safely recruited.

People deserve a higher standard of care than what is being provided,“ she added.

„If we don’t see significant improvements we won’t hesitate to take further action, even if it leads to the closure of services.