Updated 9 September 2024
The Oaks Care Home is registered to provide accommodation, personal and nursing care for up to 61 people who may have a physical disability, living with dementia, or requiring end of life care. At the time of our assessment 53 people lived at the service. This assessment was prompted in part due to concerns we received in relation to safeguarding and leadership of the service. We found 6 breaches of the legal regulations in relation to dignity and respect, safe care and treatment, safeguarding, premises and equipment, safe and effective staffing and governance. In the dementia nursing area we were not assured there was enough equipment available for people to access the limited communal space whenever they wished. Additionally, communal space across the service was not being utilised to ensure people could access a communal lounge or dining space easily. People and relatives told us there were not enough staff as people had to wait for support. Risks to people’s care and support was not always mitigated as monitoring charts were not completed in line with guidance. People’s dignity was not always respected as they were taken to communal areas in their beds. We were not assured the provider was reporting safeguarding concerns appropriately. The provider did not have effective systems in place to ensure governance systems were robust or were able to identify the concerns found during this assessment. This service is being placed in special measures. The purpose of special measures is to ensure that services providing inadequate care make significant improvements. Special measures provides a framework within which we use our enforcement powers in response to inadequate care and provide a timeframe within which providers must improve the quality of the care they provide. During the assessment we were informed of recent changes to the senior team with a new clinical lead appointed and plans to recruit a new manager.