A respite care home in the Tamworth area has retained an overall rating of Good following a new assessment by the Care Quality Commission.
Polesworth Group Pooley Heights, on Pooley Lane in Polesworth, provides short stays for adults with learning disabilities. The report was published on 23 September 2026 and reflects inspectors' findings at the time of the assessment.
People using the service and their relatives gave strongly positive feedback. Inspectors found that residents felt safe, were supported to make choices and received personalised care from staff who knew them well.
Medicines procedures needed closer oversight
The CQC found that staff did not consistently take or refer to a person's medication administration record when giving medicines away from the usual storage area. This was contrary to the provider's policy and created a risk of error.
The registered manager acted during the assessment by directing staff to take the record with them whenever medicines were administered elsewhere in the home.
Inspectors also found two medication-fridge temperature readings in September that were exceptionally above the maximum safe level and had not been escalated to the manager. No medicines were stored in the fridge at the time, so the CQC said no medicines had become unsafe to use.
The regulator concluded that stronger day-to-day oversight would allow issues needing immediate attention to be addressed before scheduled checks.
Action taken after near miss
A near-miss incident had occurred five days before the assessment. Although an investigation had begun, inspectors said they were not assured that interim action had been put in place quickly enough to reduce the risk of avoidable harm while the investigation continued.
The registered manager, assistant manager and provider's chief executive agreed that lessons could be learned. A risk assessment covering similar incidents was supplied to inspectors after their visit.
The report also said the registered manager had been checking staff competency in moving and handling, including hoist use, without holding a qualification above the level being assessed. Inspectors found no evidence of incidents involving hoists, and the manager said a train-the-trainer course would be arranged.
Residents describe positive stays
Alongside those concerns, the report recorded a caring and relaxed service. People told inspectors that they felt safe, could choose how to spend their time and were helped to remain independent.
Relatives said transitions into respite were well managed and that staff requested updated information before each stay. Families were also invited to reviews and opportunities to give feedback.
Inspectors found appropriate safeguarding arrangements, emergency planning and use of the Mental Capacity Act. Environmental risks were assessed, and the provider was described as receptive to feedback and learning.
The Good rating is the same as the one published for the home in January 2019. Because the reports were produced years apart and under different assessment arrangements, that comparison shows only the rating recorded on each publication date.
The full findings can be read in the Care Quality Commission report for Polesworth Group Pooley Heights.
CAREWTF alerted Local Gazette to the publication of the regulator's report. This article was independently written from the primary CQC findings.