Clarke Willmott improves care home’s draft rating

A care home with an overall rating of good received a draft inspection report with an overall rating of inadequate. We successfully challenged the proposed new rating leading to a higher rating in the published report.

If the home had received an overall rating of inadequate this could have resulted in a dramatic impact upon occupancy, revenue and profitability. The home would also have gone into special measures.

We improved the rating through the CQC’s factual accuracy process. We showed:

the proposed rating was based upon inaccurate facts and incomplete information;
a rating based on correct and complete information would be higher; and
where there were issues the service provider was working to improve.

As well as containing a higher rating the text of the draft report was improved.

If you would like to challenge a draft rating lower than you deserve you will need to act quickly. It must usually be challenged within ten working days.

The CQC also issued a warning notice. We persuaded the CQC not to publish the notice beyond the inspection report.

If you receive a warning notice you are entitled to make representations before information relating to it is published. For example, you may say the notice contains an error, is based on inaccurate information and it would be unfair to publish it. Representations must be made within ten working days.