'Dirty' care home stopped from taking residents

A "dirty" care home with "sticky floors and a foul smell" has been stopped from taking in new residents by a council.

The Care Quality Commission (CQC) rated Park House care home in Birkenhead as inadequate and said "rapid and widespread improvements" were needed.

Residents were not respected and "lazy staff" even called them by their room numbers and a mysterious green liquid was found in a cup which anyone could access, inspectors found during a visit in September and October last year.

Park House Care Home has been approached by the Local Democracy Reporting Service for comment.

The inspection was the first since Lentulus Properties Limited took over the care home on Park Road South, which cares for up to 111 people, in January 2024, operating under the name Springcare Care Homes.

The inspector found seven regulations breaches, issued three warning notices to the service, and Wirral Council's Infobank website said new placements by the local authority had been suspended to the home since October.

Unreported safeguarding issues around unexplained bruising, out of date milk, dirty communal areas, low morale and a poor culture were also reported to or found by the CQC.

Karen Knapton, deputy director of operations in the North for the CQC, said it was concerned about the "widespread deterioration" of the service.

She said there was not always enough staff and the workforce "didn't always respect people's privacy, dignity, and independence" with some staff even referring to people by their room number rather than their names, adding this was "unacceptable".

She said inspectors found kitchenette areas, fridges, bathrooms, and equipment "dirty".

"Staff had left a cup of green liquid, which they couldn't identify, in reach of anyone using the service.

"This is just one example of safety risks that leaders weren't managing in the service."

Ms Knapton added: "We have told the service where we expect to see rapid and widespread improvements and we will return to check on their progress."

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