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Health and well-being
Care home standards and how to complain
Care homes are regulated by the Commission for Social Care Inspection (CSCI), which is responsible for monitoring the standards of most private, voluntary and local council care services.
Meeting National Minimum Standards
The CSCI inspects all registered care homes to make sure they meet National Minimum Standards, which are set by the Department of Health. The CSCI only registers care homes if they meet these standards.
National Minimum Standards set acceptable levels of things like:
- health and safety
- access to facilities
- access to education and employment
- quality of furnishings and fittings
- personal care
Public information about standards of care
The CSCI also inspects local council social services departments and rates each council on the services it provides. The results of the CSCI inspections are published in a report that is available to the public.
You can search for care homes on the CSCI website. You can search for care homes with (and without) nursing care and for care homes that provide care for people with specific needs such as:
- learning disabilities
- physical disabilities
- sensory impairments
- dementia
- mental disorders
The CSCI also deals with complaints about care service providers.
Problems with your care home
Most people have a positive experience of care homes but sometimes problems can come up and you may want to make a complaint.
You could ask a friend or relative, a voluntary organisation like the Citizens Advice Bureau or a charity to help you make your complaint. Complaining can help improve the quality of care home services.
You can clear up many problems by having an informal chat to a member of staff or the manager of the care home.
Formal complaints
If you're not satisfied that the matter has been cleared up after an informal chat, you may want to make a formal complaint to your care home.
All registered care service providers must have a complaints procedure, which should have been clearly explained to you when you moved in. It must set out how service users or those acting on their behalf can complain about the service.
Complaints to the Commission for Social Care Inspection
You can complain to the Commission for Social Care Inspection (CSCI) if you're not satisfied with the result of your formal complaint to your care home. You can also complain directly to the CSCI from the start.
You don't have to tell your care home that you have complained to the CSCI, but a full investigation might be difficult without them knowing. The CSCI will write to you and let you know what they will do about your complaint.
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