Struggling care home to shut down
A TROUBLED Runcorn care home for disabled residents is to close.
The Hollies on Halton Brook Avenue was slated as ‘inadequate’ by the regulator the Care Quality Commission (CQC) in May and again in December.
Disabilities charity Scope, which manages the care bungalows, said the closure was due to ‘challenging finances’ but added that the home had fallen below expected standards.
Its demise has followed a year of damning CQC visits.
In May, inspectors reported problems including a resident choking while staff were in the kitchen and another client left on the toilet and sounding the alarm while employees dealt with another incident.
The CQC had reported a slew of problems in February last year including a client falling ● out of a wheelchair resulting in injury and abuse allegations that were not acted upon by staff for fear of reprisals.
Scope said its investigation found no evidence to support the claims.
However, the CQC found multiple legislation breaches relating to consent, treatment, nutrition, governance and staff levels.
The Hollies received a rating of ‘requires improvement’ in February overall, but was downgraded to inadequate in May.
Its closure comes just months after Harbour Close care home in Murdishaw, also run by Scope, shut because of ongoing problems.
The Hollies comprises three bungalows for up to nine clients.
Carrie Irvine, Scope’s executive director of operations, said: “The challenging finances at The Hollies mean we have made the difficult decision to close the service.
“At the same time the service had fallen below the high standards we expect.
“We will support everyone to move to a suitable, new home by the end of March.
“During this time we will support each person individually, along with their families.
“Our priority is to ensure that everyone who lives at The Hollies receives the care and support they need.”