Bosses at a “luxury” care home which received a poor hygiene rating have apologised and insist “safety and wellbeing” are their top priorities.

Halden Heights Care Community in High Halden, near Ashford, was given a one-star score – the second lowest possible – after council inspectors carried out a routine visit in January.

They found ham and cheese in the fridge which was past their use-by dates, as well as germs on old chopping boards.

In their report, the investigator noted the home cares for 83 “vulnerable” elderly people.

But Erika Aldrige, operations manager at the facility, which charges residents up to £1,750 a week, promises things have improved, and the same mistakes will not be repeated.

She told KentOnline: “There's a full apology from us. If we have let standards slip, then we are really disappointed in ourselves that we've allowed that to happen.

“It was not acceptable.

“We have now identified the issues, rectified them and [are] moving forward.

“We'll be looking for a five on our reinspection.

“We are very confident now that we're running a very safe and well-managed kitchen and it is absolutely our intent that this would never, ever occur again.”

Halden Heights describes itself as a “high-end” home, with the website stating: “We offer exceptional standards of nursing care, comfort and luxury.

“The nursing home is spacious, purpose-built and offers a high-quality environment with a good degree of privacy spread over three floors.”

But the inspector criticised the home for having food past its use-by date in the fridge.

“Your opening and closing checks would have picked this up, had they been done properly,” they wrote.

The care home team says that all food is now properly labelled, and staff have been reminded to check expiration dates regularly.

The report references a previous visit in September last year, where Enterobacteriaceae – which contains Salmonella and E-coli – and Bacillus cereus were found on chopping boards.

Both these germs carry the risk of food poisoning if not killed with heat or disinfectant, and it was thought the boards were scored and damaged, leading to the build-up of dirt.

Worryingly, the inspector in January found that the care home was still using the same chopping boards.

They wrote: “Please dispose of the old chopping boards and make sure new ones are put in place.”

Ms Aldridge said: “They weren’t replaced, as we had a change in chefs and I think there was a changeover of duties and responsibilities.

“That was something that should have happened a lot quicker than it did.

“But as soon as we were aware we addressed it and we've put in brand new equipment which is being used daily now.”

As well as this, it was found that the dishwasher had a build-up of debris and limescale and was “in need of a deep clean”.

A new one has been installed and is now up and running.

Bosses unsuccessfully tried to appeal the poor ruling, which means “major improvement is necessary”.

The home, rated “good” by the Care Quality Commission, is run by Eleanor Health Care Group.

A spokesman for the group added: “First and foremost, we want to acknowledge the concerns raised by the recent rating and assure the community that the well-being and safety of our residents are our top priorities.

“We take the findings of the environmental health inspection seriously and are incredibly disappointed by this outcome.

“Since opening, the home has consistently received the maximum rating of 5 for all visits, and we are confident that this will be achieved once again, at the next visit.

“Our team has taken immediate actions to rectify the disappointing performance on the day, and we can confidently confirm that all actions have been completed, and best practice re-embedded back into our environmental health routines.”