West Wood Care Home

Date of Inspection: 21 May 2026 to 19 June 2026.

The service is a purpose built residential care home. They provide care and support needs to younger and older people. The service supports people living with dementia, a physical disability or sensory impairment. At the time of our inspection, there were 37 people living in the service. However, they can accommodate up to 70 people.

We conducted this inspection to follow up enforcement action that was taken at the last inspection. We found the service was under new management and had significantly improved. The provider was previously in breach of the regulations relating to safe care and treatment and good governance. Improvements were found at this inspection, and the provider was no longer in breach of these regulations.

Risks to people’s safety and wellbeing had improved, they had appropriate risk assessments in place and ensured healthcare professionals were involved where required. Policies had been reviewed and amended to ensure staff supported people safely. Infection control measures had been increased to ensure the environment was a clean place for people to live in. Medicines were managed in a safe way. Staffing levels had increased to reflect the needs of people in the service.

We informed the provider the 1st floor was still not an appropriate environment for people living with dementia, they acknowledged this and confirmed they were implementing a dementia framework across their organisation. The provider had increased their governance oversight and embedded several new initiatives in the service to support staffs’ wellbeing. They ensured audits were completed accurately and reflective of the service and ensured actions were monitored and completed in a timely manner. Daily meetings were undertaken by heads of departments 7 days a week to ensure communication levels were maintained.

We received mixed feedback from healthcare professionals that visited the service, some felt there was a good working relationship while others felt there were issues and felt staffs’knowledge around dementia needed to be improved and guidance given to be embedded more within people’s care plans. We raised this with the provider, and they had plans to meet with healthcare professionals to review and resolve issues identified.

This service has been in Special Measures since 08 January 2026. The provider demonstrated improvements have been made. The service is no longer rated as inadequate overall or in any of the key questions. Therefore, this service is no longer in Special Measures.

Date of Assessment: 19 November to 16 December 2025.

This service is a residential care home providing support to older and younger people, some of whom may be living with dementia, a physical disability or sensory impairment. The service can support up to 70 people. At the time of the inspection, 30 people were living in the service.

We carried out this inspection because it had not been inspected or rated since its registration in October 2024. We had also received some concerns from people’s representatives, regarding the quality of care their loved ones were receiving.

We identified 4 breaches of the legal regulations concerning person-centred care, safe care and treatment, governance and staffing.

Risks to people’s safety and wellbeing were not always appropriately assessed or planned for. Care plans, risk assessments and daily records contained gaps and errors. These failings put people at an increased risk of harm and inappropriate care.

The provider did not always ensure safe or effective staffing. They allowed staff to work excessively long hours, which placed staff and the people they supported at risk. There were insufficient staff deployed to support and interact with people living on the first floor ‘Memory Unit’, particularly during mealtimes.

The provider did not manage medicines in a safe way. Medicines were not always given on time or as prescribed.

Parts of the environment were not clean and we identified some shortfalls in respect of appropriate facilities and technology.

People did not always receive person-centred care and support and were not always treated with respect. People were not always supported to make informed choices.

The provider’s systems for monitoring and improving the quality of the service were not effectively operated. Audits and checks did not sufficiently identify problems or risks. Where the provider had identified shortfalls, appropriate action was not taken promptly. Records were not always well maintained or accurate.

However, the provider made sure that people could access the care, support and treatment they needed when they needed it. The provider also supported people to plan for important life changes, so they could have enough time to make informed decisions about their future, including at the end of their life.

In instances where CQC has begun a process of regulatory action, we may publish this information on our website after any representations and/or appeals have been concluded, if the action has been taken forward.

We have asked the provider for an action plan in response to the concerns found at this assessment regarding staffing.

This service is being placed in special measures. The purpose of special measures is to ensure that services providing inadequate care make significant improvements. Special measures provide a framework within which we use our enforcement powers in response to inadequate care and provide a timeframe within which providers must improve the quality of the care they provide.’