A WIDNES care home has been ordered improve by a Government health watchdog after an inspection revealed concerns over safety and leadership.

Ferndale Court on St Michael’s Road in Ditton has been rated as requiring improvement by the Care Quality Commission.

Inspectors found various breaches in regulations and said that the home, owned by HC-One Ltd, failed to ensure that effective systems were in place to assess, monitor and improve the quality of the service.

A large number of residents were not up and dressed at lunchtime when inspectors visited the home.

In a report an inspector said: “At 12.55pm we observed that 16 people were still in bed and it was not clear why this was.

“Likewise, we noted a person asked a member of the inspection team at 10.10am if they could summon the assistance of a member of staff on their behalf as they needed to access a toilet.

“We immediately spoke with a member of staff however it took 30 minutes before a member of staff returned to help the person.”

This was in breach of a regulation in that sufficient numbers of suitably qualified, competent, skilled and experienced persons were not being deployed effectively.

Inspectors also found no registered manager at the home which cares for 50 people including 13 residents with dementia.

A peripatetic manager has been in charge since July and before that the home has had a big turnover of senior management.

The report said: “We noted there had been at least five managers in the last three years.”

Inspectors expressed concern over the management of medicines.

They discovered that four medicines had been administered differently to the prescribed directions for three residents.

A number of rooms had no numbers on the doors.

Inspectors said: “The absence of this information may place people at risk in the event of an emergency.”

The report concluded: “We observed that the needs of people using the service were not always being appropriately met.”

Residents told inspectors: “If I press the call bell it all depends on how many staff as to how quick they come. I don’t feel there are enough staff.”

A spokesperson for the home said: “The health, safety, and wellbeing of everyone we look after are our highest priorities.

“We take all feedback from the CQC very seriously and we have taken a number of steps to address the concerns raised during its inspection in September and since then we have implemented a robust action plan.

"We have reviewed the staffing levels in the home and increased the training provided.

“We have also made improvements in and our procedures for monitoring care plans and records.

“The home is being fully supported by the wider regional team and we are continuing to work with the relevant authorities during this time.

“We look forward to welcoming the CQC back to the home in the near future to show them the progress that we are making.”