Queen Elizabeth Care Centre

Queen Elizabeth Care Centre in Egham is a residential care home providing personal and nursing care for up to 74 people, accommodating individuals with physical and mental health needs, including dementia, learning disabilities, and autism. At the time of the inspection, 39 people were living across two floors of the building. The home is overseen by a newly appointed manager who has been in post for a month, and an independent company has been brought in to support ongoing improvements and quality assurance audits following previous concerns.

Regarding safety, residents and relatives generally felt secure, and safe recruitment processes along with appropriate staffing levels were in place across the floors. However, risk management needed attention, as staff did not always follow care plans requiring two workers for specific behavioral support, and a resident needing regular repositioning to prevent skin damage did not always receive the required turns. Furthermore, medicine management had inconsistencies, such as missing protocols for certain as-needed medications, untracked homely remedies, and a lack of body maps for topical creams, alongside some unclean areas in toilets and on furniture.

For effectiveness, staff received better training and supervision, and the manager actively monitored qualifications and learning needs. On the other hand, the home did not always follow legal frameworks regarding mental capacity, noting missing decision-specific assessments and best interest records for locked doors and bed rails. Initial needs assessments also relied heavily on tick-boxes without capturing enough personal choices, and some care plans lacked detailed personalization.

When it comes to being caring, staff were observed treating residents with kindness and respect, while maintaining their privacy. The permanent staff team knew individuals well, and residents reported that staff were readily available and responded quickly when call bells were used.

In terms of responsiveness, the home offered structured support for some residents, such as helping one person reduce smoking safely through education and alternatives. However, residents did not always have access to activities matching their personal hobbies and preferences, and some individuals or their relatives felt they were not sufficiently involved in their initial assessments or care planning.

Finally, concerning well-led management, the service had a new manager leading an active improvement plan and addressing past breaches. While independent quality assurance audits had been introduced and accident trends were actively analyzed to prevent future falls, these positive changes were still relatively new and not yet fully embedded for long-term sustainability.