Irchester nursing home praised for significant improvement

The Cottage Nursing Home in High Street was slammed in May by CQC inspectors after breaching a number of Health and Social Care Act regulations.

But after a follow-up inspection, the care home has now been praised after turning around the way it looks after people to deliver a ‘quality service’.

A new CQC report said: “During this inspection, we found that people felt safe at the service and were cared for by staff that were trained in safeguarding principles.

“Staff training had improved and we saw that staff members had received training and refresher updates, to ensure that their skills were up to date.

“People were treated with kindness and compassion by staff and had established positive and caring relationships with them.

“Improvements had been made to the leadership and management of the service.

“Staff were positive about the improvements and changes made at the service which inspired them to deliver a quality service.”

The nursing home could not be rated as ‘good’ as to do so requires consistent practice over time, so was rated as ‘requires improvement’.

But the home’s operations manager, Tim Weller, is confident of even more improvement at its next inspection.

He said: “We’re delighted that CQC inspectors acknowledge the care and dedication of the whole team at The Cottage in this very positive report.

“Recognition from the regulator has provided the morale boost needed to ensure that the home maintains and improves upon its performance.

“I’m confident that we’re on track for a ‘good’ rating at the next inspection.”

The Cottage Nursing Home Limited is registered to provide accommodation and care for up to 53 older people, ranging from physical disabilities to people living with dementia.