Windmill House in Wymondham rated as inadequate by CQC

Windmill House in Wymondham has been placed into special measures by the Care Quality Commission, just months after already being downgraded by the regulator.

It means it has gone from outstanding to special measures in the space of less than five years.

It comes following the inquest into the death of one of its residents, Janice Hopper, whose family has spoken of its anger at the plummeting standards.

Janice Hopper, who died after spending two weeks in Windmill House. Picture: Family submit (Image: Family submit)

Inspectors visiting the home, which has 47 residents but can care for up to 59, said people living there were not protected from harm and lived in poor conditions.

They said residents had told them they did not feel safe in the service and that the staff were not always kind to them.

Inspectors found:

• People with dementia able to access objects like razors and prescription creams because they were not stored safely
• Residents repeatedly found left with soiled bedding
• Residents being given generic care plans that do not meet their individual needs

Many of the issues highlighted were the very same ones raised during an inquest into the death of 74-year-old Mrs Hopper, who spent two weeks at the home on respite care.

The inquest, which was held in November, heard that Mrs Hopper had details of another patient in her care plan, which referred to her as a man.

Nicki Price, her daughter, said: "It is very sad that despite the many concerns raised in the coroner's inquest and the prevention of future deaths report issued last year, that Windmill House has failed to honour its promise that improvements were being made.

"As a family, we are grateful that the CQC has continued to monitor the home and protect vulnerable residents from suffering as our mum did.

"We hope that Runwood Homes will commit to significantly improving standards of care and prioritise the safety and welfare of those living there."

A spokesman for Runwood Homes said: We regret that Windmill House fell below the standards that both Runwood Homes and the CQC expect.

"Since the inspection, we have made progress in implementing an agreed action plan to make the necessary improvements in both the safe and well-led categories.

"We will continue to work closely with the CQC to ensure that the improvements continue to be made and sustained."

Windmill House care home in Wymondham. Picture: Google (Image: Google)

Immediately after Mrs Hopper's inquest, the home was downgraded from outstanding - a rating it received in 2018 - to requires improvements.

However, a follow-up visit found that living conditions had got even worse since.

Gill Hodgson-Reilly, of the CQC said: "When we inspected Windmill House, we were very disappointed to find people's safety was being affected by many of the same issues CQC warned the provider about last year.

"Leaders had failed to act and people were still being cared for in an unsafe and undignified environment by staff who didn't always know how to meet their needs.

"The home was visibly unclean and inspectors repeatedly found people left in soiled bedding, as well as a damaged toilet that was leaking onto the floor.

"We also saw people hadn't always been supported to clean their teeth and fingernails, all of which raises people's risk of infection, and doesn't allow them to live in a dignified way that most people are able to take for granted.

"We saw no evidence leaders had addressed many of these risks with staff following our inspection last year, and they reported more improvements than we found evidence for."

It comes amid growing concern about the standards of care being offered in homes across Norfolk.

Recent research has shown that three out 10 care homes in the county are rated as either requiring improvements or inadequate.