The Red House Welfare & Housing Society

We carried out inspection visits on 10 and 16 June 2026. The visits were carried out by 2 inspectors, a medicines inspector, an operations manager and an expert by experience. An expert by experience is a person who has personal experience of using or caring for someone who uses this type of care service. Two CQC operations managers met with the provider (members of the board and Nominated Individual) on 10 July 2026 to discuss the actions being taken to address the significant shortfalls found that put people at risk.

At this inspection, we found significant concerns regarding the leadership, governance and oversight of the service. The provider did not have effective quality assurance systems in place. The registered manager told us they did not carry out audits. The provider also did not carry out any audits of the service to check the quality and safety of the service. Lack of oversight had resulted in the concerns identified at this inspection. There was no strategic oversight plan for the service finances or future development.

The culture within the service was poor with staff reporting bullying. Where staff had raised concerns with the management team, these had not been addressed.

The provider did not always ensure people were protected from avoidable harm. Risks to people were not consistently managed, particularly in relation to hydration, medicines management and environmental safety. People’s records showed people were not always supported to meet their fluid intake targets, placing them at risk of dehydration.

Staff had received safeguarding training but had not been supported to put their training into practice. We identified incidents which should have been recognised as a safeguarding concern and recorded/reported appropriately.

The premises had become tired and lacked investment. Areas of the service required maintenance to ensure they were safe. Poor maintenance also contributed to infection control concerns where surfaces could not be cleaned effectively.

Care plans lacked detail and were not always updated as people’s care needs changed. This meant staff were not always aware of people’s up to date and accurate needs and preferences and were not able to provide person-centred care.

Following our inspection the service has worked with the local authority and have also brought in a consultant and interim manager to support improvements.

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.