A Wiltshire care home has been branded “not always safe” for the second time this year despite no longer being in special measures.

Avebury House Care Centre in Canal Way, Devizes, had been in special measures since an “inadequate” CQC report was published in March.

But the results of a follow-up inspection in July have now been released and the home, run by Coate Water Care Company Ltd, has improved its rating to “requires improvement.”

As the service demonstrated improvements and was no longer rated “inadequate” in any area, it is no longer in special measures or at risk of closure.

However, despite the improved score, Avebury House was deemed to need improvement in a number of key areas, including the safety, efficiency, responsiveness and leadership of the service.

During the investigation, residents told inspectors that they felt safe but several issues which put people at an “increased risk” of being harmed were identified.

One resident had suffered seven recorded falls in one month but despite being identified as at risk there was no process in place to best support this person.

Fire doors had recently been identified as not compliant and, while the home was in the process of replacing these, they remained “unsafe” during the inspection.

While there was no evidence that people had been harmed, inspectors claimed the home’s “systems were either not in place or robust enough to demonstrate safety was effectively managed.”

They did add that the service responded immediately both during and after the inspection to put “robust measures” in place.

Inspectors did rate Avebury House as “good” when judging how caring the home was.

Staff were described as “kind and caring”, and offered support that both tenants and their relatives were happy with.

Coate Water Care did not respond to a request for comment.

Following the previous inspection, they told this paper they welcomed the findings and were “working hard to address the areas that were identified as inadequate.”

This included taking immediate action to make “significant changes”.

At the time a spokesperson added: “Resident safety is our top priority. We are committed to taking the appropriate steps to ensure our staff can provide the best possible service for residents.

“Like many social care services, our home has experienced increasing pressure following the pandemic, which led to an increased need for our services, alongside staff sickness and additional as well as refresher training.”