A CARE home in Culcheth has been ordered to improve following an inspection by the health watchdog.

Twiss Green Lane Residential Care Home for adults with learning difficulties and mental health problems has been told to improve by the Care Quality Commission following an unannounced inspection in February.

Inspectors found a total of three breaches of health and social care regulations during their visit.

Concerns were raised over risks for some residents not being properly assessed and managed.

Staff training was not always up to date, with four out of 10 employees having not been sufficiently trained in the safeguarding of vulnerable adults.

Inspectors found that there were 'limited opportunities' for residents to give their views on the service, while action had not been taken to address the risks of a legionella outbreak.

During an extended period where there was no registered manager at Twiss Green Lane Residential Care Home, systems to monitor quality and safety were 'ineffective'.

The competency of staff to administer medication needed to be reviewed, while one resident's medication was not locked away and was 'accessible for unauthorised use'.

However staff at the care home, run by charity Warrington Community Living, were described as being ‘kind and caring’ while the premises had a ‘homely and jovial atmosphere’.

Michael Sheppard, chief executive of Warrington Community Living, said: “Twiss Green Lane is a very small, personalised service with three people currently living there.

“I am pleased that the CQC’s report recognises that they and their families are very happy with the service and that the CQC rated the service as effective, responsive and most importantly caring.

“We have recently experienced an unavoidable gap whilst we appointed a new manager following the long-term ill health and subsequent resignation of the previous manager, which was the period when the CQC inspected the home.

“This did lead to some fall in standards relating to paperwork and other normal management functions which the CQC correctly picked up on in their report, but we do not believe any of these shortfalls posed any risks to the residents and the required improvements are well in hand following the appointment of the new manager.”