CQC report explained · a residential care home
What the CQC found at Trafalgar Care Home
Rated Requires improvement: inspectors found the home was not performing as well as it should and told it what to change.
What inspectors found, March 2023
Rated Good; inspectors found safe, kind care and stronger management, improving from Requires Improvement.
This was an unannounced inspection on 2 March 2023. One inspector and an Expert by Experience observed care, spoke with people, relatives, staff and health professionals, and checked care, medicines, recruitment and management records.
The home was rated Good overall. Safe and Well-led were both rated Good. Inspectors found enough safely recruited staff, kind care, good infection control, safe medicines practice and systems that monitored risks and drove improvements.
The last rating, published in April 2022, was Requires Improvement. The overall rating changed to Good after this inspection. The home provides residential care without nursing care from its own staff. Nursing care is provided by the community nursing service.
Staffing and recruitment
Inspectors found enough staff to meet people's needs and safe recruitment checks were in place. People did not have to wait for support.
“There were sufficient staff to meet people's needs. People did not wait for support when they requested it and staff were available in communal areas.” from the report
Kind and safe care
People and relatives said they felt safe and that staff were kind. Inspectors saw people relaxed and seeking interaction with staff.
“People told us they felt safe in the home and that the staff were kind.” from the report
Medicines
Medicines were given as prescribed by trained staff whose competence had been checked. Guidance was available for medicines given when needed.
“People received their medicines safely from staff who had received specific training to carry out the task and whose competency to undertake this task had been assessed.” from the report
Management and improvement
The home had established audits and monitoring systems. These had helped improve safety and included oversight of people's weights and support needs.
“There were robust governance systems in place. These included regular audits and observation to ensure ongoing improvement.” from the report
Listening to residents
A residents' committee helped influence meals, activities and the home environment. Requests made through the committee were acted on.
“A resident's committee had been formed and they provided ongoing input into decision making processes such as the meal provision in the home and activities.” from the report
Inspectors raised no specific concerns in this report.
- 01How would you support my relative if they need nursing care, given that nursing care is provided by the community nursing service?
- 02How do you monitor people's weights and identify when they need extra support with eating and drinking?
- 03How do you make sure medicines given when needed are appropriate and recorded correctly?
- 04What steps do you take to prevent delays when a person needs a referral to another health professional?
- 05How can residents and relatives raise requests or influence meals, activities and other aspects of life in the home?
This was an unannounced inspection focused on Safe and Well-led; the report says ratings for key questions not inspected were carried forward from the last inspection. This explanation was written from the published report of 31 March 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.
What inspectors found, April 2022
Rated Requires Improvement; inspectors found kind care and better safety, but some risk checks and oversight systems were not yet reliable.
This was an unannounced follow-up inspection over four visits from 28 February to 10 March 2022. Two inspectors observed care, spoke with people, staff, managers and professionals, and checked care, training and management records.
People said staff were kind, helpful and attentive. Inspectors found improvements in staffing, fire safety, infection control, safeguarding and medicines. Some risks were corrected straight away, including an incorrect mattress setting, unsafe positioning after eating and unclear medicine instructions.
The home was rated Requires Improvement overall, with Safe and Well-led also rated Requires Improvement. The other three areas were not inspected in this visit, so their previous ratings were used for the overall rating.
The previous inspection had rated the home Inadequate and found breaches of regulations. The report says the home was no longer in breach and had left Special Measures, but its improvement systems still needed to become fully established.
Improved staffing
Inspectors found enough staff to meet people's needs. Agency use had reduced, and new staff had been safely recruited and inducted.
“There were sufficient staff to meet people's needs.” from the report
Better fire safety
The home had assessed stairwell risks and made physical changes. The Fire Service found that the improvement work had been completed satisfactorily.
“This work had been carried out satisfactorily.” from the report
Infection control
Inspectors were assured that the home used protective equipment safely, supported safe visiting and had arrangements to prevent and manage outbreaks.
“We were assured that the provider was using PPE effectively and safely.” from the report
Open improvement culture
Managers and staff were described as supportive and open. The team acted quickly when inspectors identified issues and recorded some actions in the improvement plan.
“The staff and management were clear about the journey of improvement they were on.” from the report
Risk checks were not always reliable
seriousInspectors found several safety issues during the visit, including an incorrect mattress setting and unsafe positioning after eating. These were fixed immediately, but they show that checks were not consistently preventing problems.
“We identified some situations where risk management was not adequate.” from the report
Management checks needed to improve
needs fixingThe home had audits and monitoring systems, but they had not yet been fully developed or embedded. The inspection found issues that the home's own checks had missed.
“These processes were not yet fully developed and embedded.” from the report
Gaps in care records
needs fixingRecords about risk management had improved but still contained gaps. This made it harder to confirm what care and support people had received.
“Records made by care staff related to risk management were improved however, we noted that gaps were still evident that made it difficult to review the care and support people had received.” from the report
No registered manager
needs fixingThe home did not have a manager registered with CQC at the time of the inspection. The manager was preparing to register, but this had been delayed by an administrative error.
“The service did not have a manager registered with the Care Quality Commission.” from the report
- 01How do you now check that each person's pressure-relieving equipment is set correctly and that staff follow safe positioning guidance after meals?
- 02How do you check that medicines which must be given before food are recorded and administered at the correct time?
- 03What audits are now in place, and how do you make sure they identify problems before an inspection does?
- 04How are gaps in care records monitored and corrected?
- 05Has the manager now registered with CQC, and what is the current plan for activities and other improvements?
This was a focused follow-up inspection of Safe and Well-led, including infection control; the Effective, Caring and Responsive ratings were carried forward from the previous inspection. This explanation was written from the published report of 20 April 2022 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 Trafalgar Care Home
6 rated inspections over 6 years: the service has held its Good rating throughout.
- March 2023Goodcurrent ratingup from Requires improvementSafe: GoodEffective: GoodCaring: GoodResponsive: GoodWell-led: Good
- April 2022Requires improvementup from InadequateSafe: Requires improvementWell-led: Requires improvement
- October 2021Inadequatedown from GoodSafe: InadequateWell-led: Inadequate
- May 2021GoodSafe: Inspected but not rated
- April 2021Inspected but not ratedSafe: Inspected but not rated
- June 2019Goodstayed GoodSafe: GoodWell-led: Good
- December 2016GoodSafe: GoodEffective: GoodCaring: GoodResponsive: GoodWell-led: Good
- December 2013
Report published without a new overall rating.
- January 2013
Report published without a new overall rating.
- November 2011
Registered with the Care Quality Commission on 22 November 2011.
Ratings and report dates from the Care Quality Commission, Open Government Licence v3.0. A home can also be visited without a new rating being published, so the timeline shows published inspections.
Weigh the report against the rest
Fees, photos and reviews from families
How to read CQC ratings and reports
What to check when you visit
15 live-in carers within about an hour of Dorset
These are self-employed carers on PrimeCarers, the introductory agency that runs this directory. Each has a profile with their own rates and reviews from families, and you choose who to talk to.
Most charge £1,040 to £1,280 a week. 11 can care for a couple. 10 years' experience on average.
“Even when things get a bit chaotic (as they sometimes do!), you’ve handled it with patience and a sense of humour — which is gold.”
“Nina was patient, focussed on my aunt's physical well-being, and unfazed by what at the time was a new and uncertain situation”
Every carer has had an enhanced DBS check in the last 18 months, ID and right-to-work checks and an online interview. Their skills and training are for you to check with them. Carers set their own rates, and who is free changes week to week.