The Care Quality Commission
  • Care Home
  • Care home

Carolyne House

Overall: Good read more about inspection ratings

Waterson Road, Chadwell St Mary, Essex, RM16 4LD (01375) 843756

Provided and run by:
Runwood Homes Limited

Important: The provider of this service changed. See old profile

All Inspections

During an assessment under our new approach

Date of assessment 2 October to 13 October 2025.

Carolyne House provides accommodation for up to 53 people living with dementia and those who require nursing and palliative care. CQC regulates both the premises, and the care provided, and both were looked at during this inspection. At the time of the inspection there were 52 people living at the service. Accommodation is provided over 2 floors and people have access to communal areas.

The assessment was completed to follow up on the last assessment to see if improvements had been made. This assessment was unannounced.

We found the service had made improvements. Care and treatment was planned and delivered in a way which was intended to ensure people's safety and welfare. There were enough staff to meet people’s needs. People were cared for safely by staff who had been recruited and employed after appropriate checks had been completed. Staff received the correct training and supervision to support people safely. People were supported to take their medicines safely by staff who had the correct skills to support them.

People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible and in their best interests; the policies and systems in the service supported this practice.

The registered manager had good oversight of the service, they had encouraged a culture of learning and development. There were systems in place to monitor and review care and people’s experience at the service.

7 February 2020

During a routine inspection

About the service

Carolyne House is a care home providing personal and nursing care to 52 people at the time of inspection. The service can support up to 52 people. Carolyne House accommodates people across two separate floors. Each floor provides care and support to people with different needs, including residential, nursing care and some people living with dementia.

People’s experience of using this service and what we found

There were not always enough staff adequately deployed or on duty to meet people's needs in a timely way. People consistently told us there was not enough staff. Staff were not able to spend meaningful time with people. Following our feedback, the provider increased staffing levels. Procedures had been followed to ensure staff were recruited safely. Risk assessments were carried out and overall these were managed well. Staff understood how to protect people from the risk of abuse and how to report any concerns.

Medicines management required improvement. Overall people received their medicines as prescribed, however we identified some concerns in relation to the medicine room being very untidy and cluttered, oxygen storage was not following best practice and a lack of recording in relation to topical creams being applied. We made a recommendation in relation to the storage of oxygen.

Staff training was up to date and staff felt supported by the management team. People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible and in their best interests; the policies and systems in the service supported this practice.

People and relatives told us staff were caring and respectful and we saw examples of this throughout the day.People told us there was not enough to do. Whilst the wellbeing lead was enthusiastic about their role their capacity to provide meaningful activity and respond to people who remained in their room or were cared or in bed was limited. Following the inspection, the provider increased the hours of the wellbeing lead from 25 to 40.

The management team regularly completed a variety of checks and audits of the service; however, the audits had not been effective in identifying the concerns we found during the inspection. The management team responded immediately to the feedback to make improvements

For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk

The last rating for this service was good (21 September 2017).

Why we inspected

This was a planned inspection based on the previous rating.

We have found evidence the provider needs to make improvement. Please see the safe, responsive and well led sections of this full report.

Follow up

We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service until we return to visit as per our re-inspection programme. If we receive any concerning information we may inspect sooner.

23 August 2017

During a routine inspection

Carolyne House provides personal care and nursing accommodation for up to 52 people. The home is managed on two levels with the ground floor offering nursing care and the first floor offering accommodation and support to people in older age who may be or may not be living with dementia. The service has access to both floors via a passenger lift.

The manager at the service had been in post for five months and was going through the registration process with the CQC. They had completed all the relevant documentation and were waiting for the CQC registration team to contact them with a date for their fit person interview. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. Like registered providers, they are ‘registered persons.’ Registered persons have legal responsibility for meeting the requirements in the Health and Social Care Act 2008 and associated Regulations about how the service is run.

At the last inspection the service was rated as Good.

The service was safe. Staff showed a good knowledge of safeguarding procedures and were clear about the actions they would take to protect people. People were kept safe and risk assessments had been completed to show how people were supported with everyday risks. Recruitment checks had been carried out before staff started work to ensure that they were suitable to work in a care setting. There were sufficient numbers of staff on duty and this was regularly monitored and reviewed. People’s medication was well managed and people received their medication as prescribed.

The service was effective. New staff completed an induction and staff were offered on going training to help ensure they had the skills and knowledge required for their role as a care worker. They also received regular support and told us they felt well supported by management.

People were supported to be able to eat and drink sufficient amounts to meet their needs. They told us that the food was good and said that they were able to choose alternatives if they were not happy with the choices offered on the menus. People were supported to maintain good healthcare and had access to a range of healthcare providers such as their GP, dentists, chiropodists and opticians. The service kept clear records about all healthcare visits.

The service was caring. People were treated with dignity and respect and staff provided care in a kind, caring and sensitive manner. Meetings had been held for the people living at the service, relatives and for the staff. People felt listened to and that their views and opinions had been sought and the service had made appropriate improvements.

The service was responsive. Detailed assessments had been carried out and care plans were developed around people’s needs and preferences. The service had a clear complaints procedure in place which was clearly displayed. This provided information on the process and the timespan for response.

The service was well-led. Staff, relatives and those living at the service spoke positively about the new manager and they felt the service was well managed. There were systems in place to regularly assess the quality of the service and that people were kept safe.

1 December 2015

During an inspection looking at part of the service

We carried out an unannounced comprehensive inspection of this service on 6 May 2015. A breach of legal requirements was found as people who used the service were not protected by safe medication procedures and there were issues around the safe administration and recording of people’s medication. We also had concerns with regard to the service’s quality assurance systems as these had not been consistently effective and staff morale was low.

After the comprehensive inspection, the provider wrote to us to say what they would do to meet legal requirements in relation to the breach and also improvements they were to make with their quality assurance. We undertook a focused inspection on 1 December 2015 to check that they had followed their plan and to confirm that they now met legal requirements.

This report only covers our findings in relation to these requirements. You can read the report of our last comprehensive inspection by selecting the ‘all reports’ link for Carolyne House on our website at www.cqc.org.uk

Carolyne House is one of a number of services owned by Runwood Homes Ltd. The service provides care and nursing accommodation for up to 51 people who may need assistance with personal care and may have care needs associated with living with dementia.

The service does not have a registered manager, but the manager in post at the service has completed an application and started the registration process with the Care Quality Commission (CQC). A registered manager is a person who has registered with the CQC to manager the service. Like registered providers, they are ‘registered persons’. Registered persons have legal responsibility for meeting the requirements in the Health and Social Care Act 2008 and associated Regulations about how the service is run.

At our focused inspection on 1 December 2015, we found that since our last inspection, systems had been put in place to support medication administration and it was now safe and effective for people. Improvements had also been put in place with regard to quality assurance and staff morale had improved at the service.

6 May 2015

During a routine inspection

The inspection took place on the 06 May 2015.

Carolyn House is one of a number of services owned by Runwood Homes Limited. The service provides care, nursing and accommodation for up to 51 people who need assistance with personal care and may have care needs associated with living with dementia. On the day of our inspection the service had three vacancies.

The service had a registered manager in post. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manager the service. Like registered providers, they are ‘registered persons’. Registered persons have legal responsibility for meeting the requirements in the Health and Social Care Act 2008 and associated Regulations about how the service is run.

People’s medication was not consistently well managed and people did not always receive their medication as prescribed.

In general the service had an effective quality assurance system, however some of the concerns regarding medication management had not been fully addressed.

Meetings had been held for the people living at the service and for the staff. People felt listened to and that their views and opinions had been sought and the service had made appropriate improvements.

Staff had been offered training to help ensure they had the skills and knowledge required for their role as a care worker. But we had concerns about the provider’s newly introduced system for recording and evidencing delivered training to staff, as this did not reflect all the training staff had received.

Staff showed a good knowledge of safeguarding procedures and were clear about the actions they would take to protect people. People were kept safe and risk assessments had been completed to show how people were supported with every day risks. Recruitment checks had been carried out before staff started work to ensure that they were suitable to work in a care setting. There were sufficient numbers of staff on duty.

People were supported to be able to eat and drink sufficient amounts to meet their needs. They told us that the food was good and said that they were able to choose alternatives if they were not happy with the choices offered on the menus. People were supported to maintain good healthcare. People had access to a range of healthcare providers such as their GP, dentists, chiropodists and opticians. The service kept clear records about all healthcare visits.

People had agreed to their care and had been asked how they would like this to be provided. They were treated with dignity and respect and staff provided care in a kind, caring and sensitive manner. Detailed assessments had been carried out and care plans were developed around the individual’s needs and preferences.

The Care Quality Commission monitors the operation of the Mental Capacity Act (MCA) 2005 and Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS) and are required to report on what we find. The MCA sets out what must be done to make sure the human rights of people who may lack mental capacity to make decisions are protected. The DoLS are a code of practice to supplement the main MCA code of practice. The registered manager had a good understanding of MCA and DoLS and appropriate documentation had been completed. Mental capacity assessments had been carried out where people were not able to make decisions for themselves.

People knew how to complain. The service had a clear complaints procedure in place which was clearly displayed. This provided information on the process and the timespan for response. We saw that complaints had been recorded and any lessons learned from them had been actioned.

We found a breach of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014. You can see what action we have told the provider to take at the back of the full version of this report.

29/04/2014

During a routine inspection

Carolyne House provides nursing and personal care for up to 51 people. The home also provides end of life and palliative care. At the time of our inspection there were 51 people living in the home. There is a registered manager at the service.

People who lived in the home and their relatives told us they felt safe in the home and we saw there were systems and processes in place to protect people from the risk of harm.

Staff were knowledgeable about the needs of people living in the home and they provided effective care and support that met people’s individual needs.

The Care Quality Commission is required by law to monitor the operation of the Mental Capacity Act (MCA) 2005 Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS) and to report on what we find. DoLS are a code of practice to supplement the main MCA 2005 code of practice. We looked at whether the service was applying DoLS appropriately and found they were meeting the requirements of the code.

Relatives told us that there was effective communication and staff consulted with them and kept them informed about their family member’s needs.

People living in the home and their relatives told us that staff were obliging, helpful and caring. There were sufficient staff to support people and their care needs were met promptly.

The home was well led by a competent manager. People living in the home and relatives were confident that they could raise any concerns and that these would be dealt with appropriately.

15 May 2013

During a routine inspection

People we spoke with were happy with the care they received at Carolyne House. They stated they had been involved in organising their care and received the care they needed. Relatives spoken with added that they had been provided with sufficient information about the home and that an assessment had been completed to ensure the home could meet their relatives care needs.

Staff were observed speaking with people with dignity and respect and involving them in their care. People appeared relaxed and staff were viewed helping them to make choices on how they wanted their care provided. Staff were observed interacting with people and there was a homely atmosphere.

People and relatives spoken with were complimentary about the care they received at Carolyne House. Feedback included 'They look after you well,' 'You only have to call and they will come and help,' 'It is like a hotel' and 'The staff are very good, even the young ones and the boys.' Others who were unable to verbally communicate were observed with staff and they appeared relaxed in their company.

People told us they knew how to raise any concerns. Relatives spoken with stated that they found the manager to be approachable and felt they could take any concerns they may have to her. Staff spoken with also added that they felt that they could raise any concerns they may have with the manager.