A care home provider which failed persistently to comply with national standards regarding the employment of a registered manager has been fined £4,000 by the Care Quality Commission.
CQC issued the fixed penalty notice to Epsom Lodge Care Homes Limited after inspectors found that a registered manager was not employed - which is a legal obligation.
Inspections took place on the 8 April 2016 and the 19 September 2016 and the reports record that there was no registered manager in place.
CQC inspectors found that the home in Burgh Heath Road, Epsom, Surrey, had failed to have a registered manager from January 2016 until March 2017.
Epsom Lodge had told CQC that a manager had been employed since 1 February 2016 - although the manager’s application to register had been rejected because there were gaps in the information needed.
Subsequently CQC issued a fixed penalty notice, which the provider has accepted and paid.
Debbie Ivanova, CQC's Deputy Chief Inspector of Adult Social Care for London and the South, said:
“It is a provider’s legal duty to ensure that it has an appropriate registered manager in place for good reason."
“It was a matter of concern that between January 2016 and March 2017 Epsom Lodge did not have a registered manager, in line with legal requirements."
“We will keep Epsom Lodge under review to ensure that standards are sustained. We will not hesitate to take further action if necessary to ensure residents receive the service they are entitled to expect.”
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