A North Staffordshire nursing home is being placed in special measures by a care regulator – more than a year after conditions were imposed on an operator in connection with a number of failings.

The Care Quality Commission issued a notice of decision to impose conditions on Silverdale Care Homes Limited in January 2025.

Silverdale Nursing Home was assessed in May and June this year and the report has recently been published. Five days before the publication of the report last month, the service provider changed to Assist Domiciliary Care Limited.

In the latest assessment, Silverdale Nursing Home was rated inadequate overall and for being safe and well-led, while it was deemed to require improvement in being effective. It was rated good for being responsive and caring however.

The report said: "This service is being placed in special measures; the purpose of special measures is to ensure that services providing inadequate care make significant improvements.

"Special measures provide a framework within which we use our enforcement powers in response to inadequate care and provide a timeframe within which providers must improve the quality of the care they provide.

"The provider was previously in breach of regulations relating to person-centred care, safe staffing and good governance. At this inspection, some improvements were found in safe staffing, and the provider was no longer in breach of this regulation.

"However, sufficient improvement was not found in person-centred care and good governance, and breaches of these regulations remained. In addition, a new breach was identified in relation to safeguarding.

"People were not always kept safe because systems in place were not consistently effective. The provider had not made enough improvements since the last inspection, and there was limited evidence lessons had been learned when things went wrong.

"Safeguarding processes were not always followed properly, meaning incidents were not always reported or reviewed as they should have been, which put people at risk. Environmental monitoring and medicine management needed improvement to ensure risks were identified and reduced.

"Systems to monitor quality and safety of the service were not effective – there was not a clear, shared culture or vision, especially in relation to supporting people with a learning disability. Risks were not always identified, and improvements were not always made.

"However, there were some areas of good practice. Infection control procedures were in place, and staff understood people's health needs and escalated concerns when necessary.

"Although leaders had started to make some changes and responded to our feedback, these improvements were not yet fully in place or consistently maintained."

Residents said they felt safe living at the service and were supported by "kind and caring staff", the report said. It added: "They said staff treated them with respect and supported them to make choices about their daily lives and take part in activities they enjoyed.

"Relatives also spoke positively about the care provided. They described staff as patient and considerate, particularly when helping people with their mobility and with taking their medicines.

"People and relatives shared mixed views about how well the service met people's needs. Relatives told us people were supported to attend healthcare appointments, kept informed about changes, and involved in day-to-day decisions; however, some relatives felt there were not enough meaningful activities and more personalised support would improve people's experience.

"Feedback about being able to share views about the service was also mixed – some people and relatives said they were given opportunities to give feedback, including completing questionnaires. Others felt they did not have enough chances to share their views."

Silverdale Nursing Home has been approached for comment.

To read the full report, visit the website here.