Doncaster care home in special measures as concerns raised over staffing

Anchor House, run by Authentic Care Services Limited, cares for up to 23 people including some with dementia.

Now, after a September inspection, the Care Quality Commission (CQC) has downgraded its rating from requires improvement to inadequate and placed it in special measures.

Victoria Marsden, CQC deputy director north, adult social care, said the visit was carried out after concerns were raised at an earlier inspection.

"When we inspected Anchor House, it was concerning to see leadership had declined further which led to people not receiving the appropriate quality of care they deserve,” she said.

“Leaders failed to ensure there were enough staff on duty to meet people’s needs.”

She highlighted examples, with one person seeking access to the garden and another needing some one-to-one support, but the team was too short staffed to help.

“This also led to staff being very task-focused staff and not always interacting with people in a kind and caring way,” she added.

“It was particularly concerning to see staff having such poor communication and support with people at meal times which led to people not eating their main meal of the day.”

Inspectors raised issues around a lack of signage to help people with dementia find their way, building maintenance, medicine management, and the feedback process.

The full report will be published in coming days.

“We have told leaders where we expect to see rapid, and continued improvements and will continue to monitor the home closely to keep people safe during this time,” said Ms Marsden. “We have begun the process of taking regulatory action."