THREE care homes in Kidderminster have been told they need to improve after inspections by the Care Quality Commission (CQC).

Kidderminster homes Honeybrook House and Bryden House and Cookley home Westley Court Care Home were given the lower ratings when unannounced inspections by the independent health regulator were undertaken and their reporters were published on May 29.

Honeybrook House, in Honeybrook Lane, was visited in November last year and was found to need improvement with its effectiveness and leadership.

The report said the service at the home was not consistently effective and there were some issues with some medicine records.

"The [then] manager had not acted in accordance with the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards. They had not informed us or the local authority of when some people had restrictions in place," it said.

However, the report also noted that staff were trained to support the people they cared for and were supported in their roles, the home was safe for its residents, and people's wishes and preferences were respected. It scored a 'good' rating in in the safe, caring, and responsive sections of the report.

A spokesman for the home said: "Following the CQC inspection eight months ago, we have taken several steps to improve. A new manager has been appointed and the home has made formal commitment to autistic accreditation with the Autistic Society, underlining our commitment to providing high quality care. A recent quality monitoring report from one of the service’s commissioning councils has also indicated we are providing a good standard of care and we welcome the next inspection from the CQC to confirm the improvements made."

Bryden House, in Marlpool Lane, was visited twice in March and was also found to need improvement with its effectiveness and leadership.

The report said: "When people did not have the ability to make decisions about their own care, the legal requirements that ensured decisions were made in people’s best interests were not being followed. This meant that people’s rights were not upheld."

Regarding leadership, it said that the ownership and management of the home had changed in November and although care quality was being monitored, people were unsure as to whether they would always receive consistently good quality, effective care.

However, the home rated as 'good' in the safe, caring, and responsive sections of the report, with inspectors noting that people were treated as individuals and were supported with kindness, respect and dignity and staff were patient, understanding and attentive to people’s individual needs.

A spokesman for the home said: "Bryden house was taken over in November 2014 and the home has a new management structure, which is being well-led on all levels.

"Members of the multi-disciplinary team who visit the home for various reason have given positive feedback with praise and encouragement to the staff and have stated what an improvement they have seen in the home since the taken over."

Westley Court Care Home, in Austcliffe Lane, was visited in February and was found to need improvement with its safe, effective, and leadership practices.

The report said the service was not always safe as there was not enough staff on duty during busy periods and there were some issue with infection control.

It also highlighted that people did not always receive appropriate care and residents, family, and staff did not have opportunities to be involved in the development and the running of the service.

The report said: "People did not always receive the most appropriate care because training and support was not effective."

The home was however rated as 'good' in the responsive and caring sections of the report, stating people received personalised care that was responsive to their individual needs.

Haden Bodin, operations manager, said: "We’re actively working on all of the issues and concerns raised by the inspectors and we’re moving forward with the action plan – as outlined on our website."

Out of the 56 care homes in Kidderminster, 12 homes were inspected under the new inspection rating and five required improvement. The others have yet to be inspected. Within the Wyre Forest area, 40 homes ‘require improvement’.