Hartlepool care homes praised as 'good' following Care Quality Commission ratings

Hartlepool Borough Council bosses have reported inspection ratings from the Care Quality Commission (CQC) for 14 of the 15 older people’s care homes in the town are “good”.

The one exception is Merlin Manor, in Merlin Way, which has not yet been inspected due to only opening in August 2022.

Council chiefs expect that to receive a visit later this year.

Councillor Sue Little, speaking at the latest meeting of the local authority adult and community based services committee, said she was pleased to see all the inspected homes had received positive ratings.

She added she had visited the newly opened Merlin Manor and described it as “lovely”, praising the size of the rooms available.

Jill Harrison, council director of adult and community based services, noted a number of the homes have had “very recent inspections or are in the process of being inspected” so updated ratings will be provided in the coming months.

She added: “The informal feedback we’ve had is those ratings remain positive, but obviously we need to wait for the final reports.”

Across the 15 older people’s care homes in Hartlepool, a maximum of 748 beds are available if all sites were operating at full capacity.

Council reports state there were 24 vacancies in the care homes for older people across the town as of the end of December, the lowest figure recorded in the two years data was provided for.

This is substantially down on the 98 vacancies recorded in December 2020.