A Rickmansworth care home for adults with additional needs has been placed in special measures after "widespread and significant shortfalls in leadership" were found.

CareTech Community Services Limited in High Street was rated 'inadequate' after Care Quality Commission inspections in July and August, which were triggered by reports of someone using the service being seriously injured.

The service, which cares for 12 adults, was found to be "not well led", with staff “not always protecting and respecting people’s privacy and dignity”.

It was also found that the home was “in need of modernisation” and the decorations “did not always meet people’s needs”.

Residents were noted as having “ineffective support” and were limited with the activities they did, as they told the CQC “they would like to attend more events” but this “was not a priority”.

One relative told the inspector: “Soulless and limited activities happen especially at the weekend.”

The inspectors found four bathrooms with maintenance issues, which included a broken door seal, meaning the residents were unable to take baths in that room.

The report states: “There was no effective governance system in place to monitor the quality of the service provided to people. The provider was not learning from incidents and accidents which placed people at risk of harm.”

A spokesperson for CareTech Community Services Limited said: “We are working closely with the CQC and the county council to address the issues identified and we have put a robust action plan in place.

“The service is supported by an experienced senior management team and significant improvements have already been made.”

The service is now in special measures, which means it will be kept under close review by CQC to keep people safe and re-inspected to check sufficient improvements have been made.  

This is the first time the home has been inspected since August 2018, with it’s previous rating being 'good'.

Stefan Kallee, CQC deputy director for people with a learning disability and autistic people, said: “Following our inspection, we reported our findings to the provider so they know where we expect to see rapid improvement. If sufficient progress is not made, we will not hesitate to take further action to ensure people’s safety and well-being.”