Staff 'heartbroken' as Nottingham care home closes after poor inspections

Carers say they have been left "heartbroken" by the closure of a Nottingham care home after a series of poor inspections. Alexandra Lodge, situated in Lucknow Drive, Mapperley Park, was shut on Thursday, May 9, a former worker said.

The Care Quality Commission (CQC), which last assessed the home in February, said it cancelled its registration on May 10, meaning it cannot legally operate. Staff at the home, which cared for two residents, said they had been left "heartbroken".

"It was a good, proper genuine, loving care home, we are all upset," said Dianne Jones, who worked at the home as a carer and cook for 14 years. "I absolutely loved my job. I'm not going back into caring again, that's a fact.

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"The residents' families were upset, they got on so well." The 63-year-old said there had been a gradual decline in the number of residents over the years.

"It was marvellous [in its peak], we had fantastic Christmas parties for the residents, we took them to Skeggy on the coach."

Mark Feast, whose 90-year-old mum, June, was a resident at the home for almost a year, said she enjoyed her time there. "It was a lovely little place, safe and everything," said the 65-year-old.

"My mum liked it there, she said what a lovely place it was to live." A recent assessment by the CQC, published on May 15, criticised Alexandra Lodge for its safety, effectiveness and management.

It said safety risks to residents were not always managed well and raised issues around cleanliness and fire safety. But the regulator said residents and their relatives "spoke positively about the service".

The service's registration was previously suspended in June last year after being put into special measures. The home reopened in February this year.

Ms Jones said the CQC's treatment of the care home had been harsh, and said that was the reason why its manager, Mercy Amartiokor Cofie-Cudjoe, had closed the service. "She said she had had enough, she'd done everything she possibly could, everything [the CQC] asked," she said.

"All of a sudden nothing was right. We just wanted a wage and a nice little job that we all loved."

Mr Feast, from Arnold, added: "I remember the day it closed, I could see it coming. It seemed to be picked on for no reason. It's been very unfair what's happened."

He said his mum did not suffer a single fall while at Alexandra Lodge, but went on to fall 12 times at the care home she was moved to when Alexandra Lodge's license was first suspended.

"It's places like that that need investigating," he said. A spokesperson for the CQC said: "The CQC cancelled the registration of this home on 10 May 2024. This means they are no longer registered and cannot legally operate without CQC registration."