Skip to content
The Care Home DirectoryEvery care home in England

CQC report explained · a nursing home

What the CQC found at Waterside Care Home

Requires improvementpublished 8 April 2025, 18 months ago

Rated Requires improvement: inspectors found the home was not performing as well as it should and told it what to change.

The latest report, explained

What inspectors found, May 2018

Waterside Care Home was rated Good; inspectors found kind, safe care, with some work still needed on falls, staffing feedback and legal applications.

The inspection was unannounced and took place on 28 March 2018. Inspectors spoke with people living at the home, visitors and staff. They observed care and reviewed care records, medicines records, staff files, complaints, incidents, surveys and audits.

The home was rated Good in all five areas: Safe, Effective, Caring, Responsive and Well-led. People generally felt safe and well cared for. Staff were trained, treated people respectfully, supported their choices and helped them access healthcare, food, activities and family relationships.

The inspection followed serious injuries after falls. Inspectors found that risks had been assessed and actions had been taken to reduce further falls. Some people felt there were not always enough staff, and the home still needed to complete some applications under the rules for people who may lack capacity to make decisions.

This was the first rating inspection under the new provider. A new manager had returned to the home and had started an improvement plan. The report says the manager and provider had acted on areas they had identified, including staff supervision and legal applications.

What inspectors praised
  • Understanding risks

    Staff understood people's individual risks and how to reduce them. Falls were recorded, reviewed and used to identify further actions.

    “People were supported by staff who were aware of the risks to them and how to manage those risks.” from the report
  • Kind and respectful care

    People described the care as kind and caring. Inspectors saw staff treating people with dignity and responding to their choices.

    “We saw that staff took their time to support people and observed a number of caring interactions between staff and people living at the home.” from the report
  • Activities and relationships

    People were supported to join activities that matched their interests and to maintain friendships and family contact.

    “People were supported to take part in a variety of activities that were of interest to them.” from the report
  • Food and healthcare support

    The home offered choices at mealtimes, drinks and snacks, and worked with healthcare professionals to support people's health and nutrition.

    “We saw people were supported to maintain good health.” from the report
  • Improvement systems

    The manager used audits and an improvement plan to identify issues and track actions. Staff and relatives were kept informed about changes.

    “We saw there were a variety of audits in place to assess the quality of the service provided.” from the report
What inspectors were concerned about
  • Falls had caused serious injuries

    serious

    The inspection followed two incidents in which people fell and sustained fractures. Inspectors found that the home had taken appropriate action and had reduced the risks, but this remains an important issue for families to ask about.

    “The inspection was prompted in part by notification of an incident following which a person using the service sustained a serious injury.” from the report
  • Mixed views about staffing

    needs fixing

    Some people said staff were busy and felt there could be more staff, although inspectors generally saw people receiving timely responses. Ask how staffing levels are decided and checked.

    “Not enough staff, I try not to use the call button too much” from the report
  • Some legal applications still needed

    needs fixing

    The manager had identified that some applications under the rules for people who may lack capacity were still needed. The report says the manager was working through these applications.

    “some applications with regard to DoLs needed to be put in place.” from the report
  • Baths and showers

    minor

    One person said there had been problems having baths or showers during a boiler problem. The boiler had been fixed, and the manager said they would look into the specific concerns.

    “There hasn't been a lot of baths/showers, there has been with a problem with the boiler” from the report
Questions to ask them, based on this report
  1. 01What changes have been made to prevent falls, and how are individual falls risks reviewed now?
  2. 02How many staff are expected on each unit at different times, and how do you check that this is enough for people's needs?
  3. 03Have all required applications under the Mental Capacity Act and Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards now been completed?
  4. 04How often do staff receive formal supervision, and has this improved since the inspection?
  5. 05Are there any current problems with baths, showers or the boiler?

This was an unannounced inspection covering all five quality areas and was the first rating inspection under the new provider. This explanation was written from the published report of 12 May 2018 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 Waterside Care Home

Each visit the CQC has published, newest first, back to the day the home was registered.

  1. May 2018Goodcurrent rating
    Safe: GoodEffective: GoodCaring: GoodResponsive: GoodWell-led: Good

    Read what inspectors found at Waterside Care Home →

  2. January 2017

    Registered with the Care Quality Commission on 31 January 2017.

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.

Next steps

Weigh the report against the rest

Care at home

At least 100 live-in carers within about an hour of Sandwell

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 £950 to £1,190 a week. 87 can care for a couple. 9 years' experience on average.

“God doesn't make people like her anymore!”
Orkadi L., about Fernanda L.
“Knowing Mum was in Corina's care made an enormous difference to us and we knew she was in safe hands.”
Katherine J., about Sibonisiwe N.
See live-in carers near SandwellProfiles, rates and reviews are free to look at.

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.