The Royal British Legion care home Halsey House has been told it 'failed to protect vulnerable residents' after a period which included the death of one person who fell from a window.

The Care Quality Commission (CQC) gave the Cromer care home a 'requires improvement' rating after it failed in two key categories, 'safe' and 'well-led', after an unannounced inspection on September 12.

The visit followed the death in August of someone staying at Halsey House and concerns about how the care home managed the risks of falls from a height.

The report said: 'Before the recent notification of a serious incident not all the windows were restricted and the risk from an unrestricted window had not been identified. There were no regular checks or audits on window restrictors to ensure they were in place, and remained effective and safe.

'By not doing this, the service had failed to protect vulnerable residents.'

The report went on to say the care home had addressed the concerns over window safety following the person's death.

It said: 'Since the incident which led to our inspection, all windows accessible to people using the service and where they might pose a risk had been restricted and regular monthly checks were in place at the time of the inspection visit.'

The report noted other risks at the care home including a door being held open by a bolt where it should not have been because of the storage of chemicals. The CQC also noted the service was not always well-led because safe practice policies were not clearly followed. The commission described the manager, Sally Mills, as 'competent and experienced but had found the last year difficult in terms of recruitment'.

A spokesperson for The Royal British Legion said: 'Following a CQC report published in November 2018 on our Norfolk care home, Halsey House, we have put an action plan in place and are working closely with the CQC to address any concerns raised.'

A CQC spokesman told this newspaper: 'CQC is aware of the death of a person who was living at Halsey House in Cromer in August. This has been referred to the coroner and we await the outcome of any inquest.

'Following the person's death, in September, CQC inspected the service and the report relating to this inspection is available to view on our website. The service is currently rated as Requires Improvement and we continue to monitor the home.'