Two Whitstable care homes have been criticised by the health watchdog – with one told that its services were ‘inadequate’ in all areas.

St George Residential Care Home in West Cliff and Tralee Rest Home in Tankerton Road, were both inspected by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) in January.

The former was told it was ‘inadequate’ in all of the five areas assessed, with inspectors criticising its standards including those for safety and responses.

The unannounced inspection, which took place on 26 January and 11 February, found that residents at the home were put at risk of malnutrition and dehydration.

The CQC report says: “The arrangements that were in place to safeguard people from the risk of abuse were inadequate, as not all incidents which should be reported to the local authority and CQC had been.

“The management of nutritional and skin-integrity risks and for those living with dementia in regard to environmental risks, or those with other health conditions were inadequate. This put people at risk of serious harm.”

It adds: “The provider did not have a system to assess the number of staff needed, and there were not enough staff at all times to meet people’s needs.

“Systems were not in place to ensure that the registered manager and staff had a good understanding of whether people were eating and drinking enough, or steps taken to ensure those who could not be weighed were assessed in some other way.

“This put them at risk of malnutrition and dehydration.”

The Tralee Rest Home, which provides accommodation and personal care for up to 36 older people, was given an overall mark of ‘requires improvement’.

“The service did not meet the requirements for maintaining effective infection control procedures..." - CQC report

The home was found to be ‘good’ in two of the five categories, but ‘requires improvement’ in the others.

The report says: “The service did not meet the requirements for maintaining effective infection control procedures.

“There was a lack of liquid soap and paper towels available in communal toilets and bathrooms; and a lack of foot-operated pedal bins for paper towels.

“Staff had a friendly and caring approach to people, and it was pleasant to hear their kind words of encouragement, and to view their patience in caring for people.”

Both homes were unavailable for comment.

Kent Integrated Care Alliance comment

A spokesman for care-home representative body the Kent Integrated Care Alliance said: “It is never welcome to receive news of alleged poor quality in care.

“Most care providers in this area are heavily reliant on inadequate levels of funding brought about by the huge cuts that the local authority are facing from central government, at a time when the Care Quality Commission are stepping up their own inspection process and together with the impact and implications of the newly implemented Care Act.

“We hope that any establishments found by the commission to be lacking will take steps to quickly remedy any highlighted concerns.”