A BURNLEY care home closed down eight days after being told it ‘requires improvement’ by a health watchdog.

Beach House in Padiham Road provided accommodation for six people with learning difficulties in a large terraced house.

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It was inspected by the Care Quality Commission on July 29 and 30 who found there were not enough staff available to ensure people received safe and effective care.

The home then closed on August 7 leaving Lancashire County Council to re-home the service users.

A spokesman for Lancashire County Council said: “We have been working with the CQC to ensure people are safe and well, and that their needs are being met.

“Anyone affected by the changes at Beach House was allocated a social worker who assessed their social care needs. They have now been placed in suitable alternative care facilities.”

Inspectors said medicines were not always managed appropriately, which meant there were risks they may not receive safe support.

The inspection also found that residents’ dignity and confidentiality was not always upheld and respected.

Assessment officers said robust recruitment procedures for new staff had not always been followed.

The report showed improvements were needed with management and leadership arrangements at Beach House and that the registered manager, Mrs Concillia Zindoga, was not spending enough time at the centre to provide effective leadership and direction.

Following the inspection she made the decision to close the home and an application to de-register was submitted to the CQC.

Overall the report said that the safety, effectiveness, caring, responsiveness and leadership all required improvement.

Service users and staff made positive comments about the caring attitude and approaches of support workers.

Debbie Westhead, CQC’s deputy chief inspector for adult social care in the north, said: “If we find that a service requires improvement, we will expect them to provide us with a full plan setting out how they will address the issue.

“We will share our findings with local commissioners, and we will return in due course to check that they have made the required improvements.”