Allwell Care Company in Ipswich rated inadequate and placed in special measures by Care Quality Commission after inspectors find issues with safety and leadership

An Ipswich care provider has been rated inadequate and placed in special measures following a watchdog inspection.

Allwell Care Company, a service that provides personal care for people in their own homes in the Ipswich, Shotley, Chelmondiston and Capel St Mary areas, was inspected by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) on January 25, January 30 and February 3.

Inspectors had previously highlighted failings at the service and carried out the latest visit to check they were maintaining an action plan that had been set out and to see if they now met legal requirements.

However, this was not the case and the overall rating has now dropped to inadequate, placing the company in special measures.

During the three visits, inspectors found the service failed to ensure that staff were available to meet people's needs in a timely way, meaning some individuals were not assisted out of bed until as late as 11.45am.

Inspectors said 28 per cent of calls were short with staff delivering less than half the time planned, while some staff were logged at two homes at the same time and only 64 per cent of calls were delivered on time.

While the CQC found no evidence that service users had been harmed, the provider did not follow safe recruitment processes and did not obtain full employment history before taking on staff.

Amongst other safety issues, the watchdog said risks to people's wellbeing were not always identified or acted upon, people did not always receive their medication on time, care plans were contradictory and not all members of staff had been trained to administer prescribed medicines safely.

Improvement was also deemed necessary in the effectiveness of the service, with training for staff gaps in training in areas such as the Mental Capacity Act and Learning Disabilities highlighted.

One person told inspectors staff were 'not skilled enough' for the job, and there was a lack of consistency amongst staff.

Support was provided with meal preparation as outlined in assessments, but some care plans lacked detail on how staff should support people to maintain a balanced diet.

When it came to leadership, the CQC found there was not a registered manager in post at the time of inspection, although they were being supported by the local authority, and poor records management and a lack of robust risk management were identified.

While some family members spoke positively about certain members of staff, and described them as helpful, the majority of relatives were unsatisfied with the service.

The service will now be under review and will be re-inspected within six months to check for improvements.

If the provider has not made improvements there is still a rating of inadequate for any key question or overall rating, the CQC could begin the process of preventing the service from operating.

Allwell Care Company has been contacted for comment.