The Care Quality Commission
  • Care Home
  • Care home

Fernside Hall Care Home

Overall: Inadequate read more about inspection ratings

Stafford Avenue, Manor Heath, Halifax, HX3 0NR (01422) 365184

Provided and run by:
Valorum Care Limited

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

We served three warning notices on Valorum Care Limited on 2 July 2025 for failing to meet the regulations related to safe care and treatment, governance and person-centred care at Fernside Hall Care Home.

All Inspections

During an assessment under our new approach

Dates of assessment were from 28 May 2025 to 25 June 2025. The assessment was triggered in response to risk and included visits to the service on 28 May and 4 and 12 June 2025. Fernside Hall is a care home providing nursing and personal care for up to 24 people, some of whom are living with dementia. At the time of our inspection there were 22 people living at the service.

We identified breaches of regulation relating to safeguarding, safe care and treatment, person-centred care and good governance. There was a significant lack of oversight at the service and quality assurance systems and processes were ineffective. People’s care was not always person-centred, risks to people were not managed safely and people were not always protected from abuse and improper treatment. Medicines were not managed safely. Infection control procedures were not always implemented. There was a failure to identify, monitor and address shortfalls relating to the experiences of people which meant poor standards of care were widespread.

We have asked the provider for an action plan in response to some of the concerns found at this assessment. In instances where CQC have decided to take civil or criminal enforcement action against a provider, we will publish this information on our website after any representations and/or appeals have been concluded.

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.

 

16 December 2020

During an inspection looking at part of the service

Fernside Hall is a residential care home providing personal care for up to 24 older people. There were 17 people living in the home when we inspected.

We found the following examples of good practice.

The home was accessing the government testing scheme which had helped identify an outbreak quickly.

The home was clean and well ventilated.

Communal areas were arranged to facilitate social distancing.

Signage throughout the home reminded people and staff of the infection control procedures to follow to ensure their safety. Staff wore PPE appropriately.

People were supported to keep in touch with family and friends through regular phone and video calls.

14 May 2019

During a routine inspection

About the service

Fernside Hall Care Home is a residential care home providing personal and nursing care to 13 people aged 65 and over at the time of the inspection. The service can support up to 24 people. The care home accommodates people in one adapted building.

People’s experience of using this service:

People felt safe and staff understood safeguarding, and health and safety procedures. People had risk assessments although information about risks to people was not always comprehensive. There were enough staff to keep people safe, but staffing was sometimes stretched. Medicines were managed safely although staff did not always check robustly the administration guidance. Systems were in place to reduce the risk of the spread of infection. The service had been awarded the top food hygiene rating of ‘five’ which means they were found to have ‘very good’ standards.

Staff had the skills and knowledge to deliver care effectively and they received good support from colleagues and the registered manager. Systems were in place to make sure people’s health and nutritional needs were met. People lived in a pleasant environment; recent refurbishment has improved people's living experience.

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 who used the service and visitors provided positive feedback about the service and were complimentary about staff and management. Staff were confident people received high quality care and told us it was a good place to work.

People received person centred care and staff knew the people they were supporting well. Care plans usually identified how care should be delivered although there was some variation in detail. People enjoyed a range of activities within the service and the local community. Systems were in place to monitor and respond to formal complaints.

Feedback about the registered manager was consistently good. People who used the service and visitors told us they would recommend the service to others.

Quality management systems were in place although some of the issues picked up during the inspection had not been identified by the provider. The registered manager was responsive and where appropriate took swift action to address shortfalls. They were keen to develop and improve their systems and provide people with quality care.

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

Rating at last inspection

This service was registered with us on 21/05/2018 and this is the first inspection.

Why we inspected

This was a planned inspection based on inspection timescales.

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.