CQC report explained · a nursing home
What the CQC found at Westley Court 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, December 2023
Rated Requires Improvement; inspectors found kind care, but safety, medicines and management needed significant improvement.
Inspectors visited on 11 October, 23 October and 2 November 2023. They spoke with people, relatives and staff, and checked care and medicines records, staff files, training records, handovers and management records.
They found people were generally treated kindly and felt safe. However, risks were not always managed properly. Staff did not always follow professional advice, some diet information was contradictory, medicines were not always given as prescribed, and some safety and infection control checks were incomplete.
The home had staffing vacancies and activities were limited at times. Care records were detailed but sometimes out of date or inconsistent. A new management team had begun making changes, but quality checks were not yet reliable enough to find all the problems.
The overall rating fell from Good at the previous inspection, published in March 2019, to Requires Improvement. Caring remained Good, while Safe, Effective, Responsive and Well-led were rated Requires Improvement.
Kind and respectful care
People and relatives spoke positively about the care. Inspectors observed staff supporting people in a kind and respectful way.
“People living at the home and relatives told us they were happy with the care provided.” from the report
Health professional support
People could access several health professionals, including regular GP and nurse practitioner visits. Staff arranged medical help promptly when one person became unwell.
“People were supported to access a variety of health professionals.” from the report
Relevant staff training
Staff had training in mandatory areas and in conditions affecting people at the home, including epilepsy, Parkinson's disease and stroke.
“Staff had completed training in mandatory areas such as moving and handling, safeguarding and fire training” from the report
Actions started after feedback
The home acted during the inspection to provide modified diets, arrange extra training, remove equipment from corridors and replace unsafe window restrictors.
“The provider took action following our feedback to ensure people were safe.” from the report
Risks and care instructions
seriousStaff did not always follow professional advice or current care plans. Conflicting diet instructions increased the risk of choking, and repositioning records were not always completed.
“This left the person at increased risk of choking.” from the report
Medicines management
seriousA steroid cream was given for longer than prescribed. Instructions for applying medicinal creams were not always accurate or consistent.
“We found this cream had been given for longer than was prescribed.” from the report
Fire and premises safety
seriousEquipment had been stored in corridors and blocked fire exits. Some window restrictors did not meet safety requirements, although the home addressed these issues during the inspection.
“We saw equipment being stored in corridors which was blocking fire exits.” from the report
Staffing and agency checks
needs fixingThe provider was recruiting to several vacancies. Some people and relatives reported waiting a long time for help, and agency staff profiles were incomplete or out of date.
“This meant the manager did not have the relevant information to assess the suitability of agency staff to work into the home.” from the report
Limited activities
needs fixingThere was limited activity and social stimulation during the first inspection day. The home said a full-time activity co-ordinator would start after the inspection.
“During our first day of inspection we observed most people spent time in their bedrooms.” from the report
Weak quality checks
seriousAudits and communication systems were not consistently used before the new management team arrived. Completed audits had not found all the problems identified by inspectors.
“Audits which had been completed had not identified some of the shortfalls found at inspection.” from the report
- 01What has been done to make sure each person's diet instructions match across their care plan, kitchen records and staff guidance?
- 02How do you now check that medicines, including creams, are given for the correct length of time and recorded accurately?
- 03How are repositioning checks and other risk-monitoring records reviewed to make sure they are completed as planned?
- 04How many staff vacancies remain, and how do you check the suitability and up-to-date records of agency staff?
- 05What changes have been made to audits, daily communication meetings and activities since the inspection?
This inspection looked at all five quality questions and followed concerns about nursing care needs, medicines management and staffing; it also included infection prevention and control checks. This explanation was written from the published report of 5 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.
What inspectors found, March 2021
Inspected but not rated; inspectors found good infection-control practice, but three staff were not wearing face coverings correctly.
This was an announced, targeted inspection on 3 March 2021. It followed concerns about infection prevention and control, and focused only on those measures.
Inspectors were assured about visitor safety, social distancing, admissions, testing, hygiene, outbreak planning, clinical waste, laundry and the infection-control policy. The home also used daily and weekly infection-control audits.
Inspectors were only somewhat assured that personal protective equipment was being used safely. They saw three staff members without face coverings in line with the latest guidance. The registered manager dealt with this immediately.
The home was inspected but not rated. This means the report does not give an overall quality rating or a full rating for the five areas of care.
Visitor safety checks
Visitors were checked for COVID-19 symptoms and had their temperatures recorded. Separate entrances were used for visitors to different floors.
“On arrival visitors were screened for symptoms of COVID-19 and their temperatures recorded.” from the report
Infection-control audits
The home carried out a weekly infection-control audit and added a daily audit.
“In addition to a weekly audit of infection prevention and control, the provider also had a supplementary daily audit completed.” from the report
Keeping in touch
Tablets helped people stay in contact with relatives and friends by video call. Individual assessments were completed for some home visits.
“Computer tablets were being used to support people to keep in touch with their relatives and friends via video calls.” from the report
Cleaning shared equipment
Covers for shared computer keyboards had been introduced so they could be cleaned between use.
“Plastic computer key board covers had been purchased following a review of infection control working practices.” from the report
Face-covering practice
needs fixingThree staff members were seen not wearing their face coverings in line with the latest guidance. The registered manager addressed this immediately.
“Three staff members were witnessed not wearing their face coverings in line with latest guidance.” from the report
- 01How do you now check that all staff wear face coverings correctly and consistently?
- 02What did the daily and weekly infection-control audits find after this inspection?
- 03How are visitors screened and kept separate when visiting people on different floors?
- 04How do you assess and manage home visits, including visits for people receiving end-of-life care?
- 05How are shared computer keyboards and other shared equipment cleaned between uses?
This was a targeted inspection of infection prevention and control, so it did not rate the wider areas of care. This explanation was written from the published report of 18 March 2021 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 Westley Court Care Home
4 rated inspections over 9 years: the service has held its Requires improvement rating throughout.
- December 2023Requires improvementcurrent ratingSafe: Requires improvementEffective: Requires improvementCaring: GoodResponsive: Requires improvementWell-led: Requires improvement
- March 2021Inspected but not ratedSafe: Inspected but not rated
- March 2019Goodstayed GoodSafe: GoodEffective: GoodCaring: GoodResponsive: OutstandingWell-led: Good
- June 2016GoodSafe: GoodEffective: GoodCaring: GoodResponsive: GoodWell-led: Good
- November 2015Inspected but not ratedSafe: Requires improvement
- May 2015Requires improvementSafe: Requires improvementEffective: Requires improvementCaring: GoodResponsive: GoodWell-led: Requires improvement
- May 2013
Report published without a new overall rating.
- October 2012
Registered with the Care Quality Commission on 3 October 2012.
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.
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