Felixstowe nursing home admits failings after man falls from window

A nursing home manager has admitted failing to keep residents safe after a man died falling from a window.

William Willmott died when he fell from Highcliffe House Nursing Home in Felixstowe, Suffolk, on 14 July 2016.

Alison Quilter-Cudworth, 58, and the home pleaded guilty to breaching the Health and Social Care Act.

District Judge Celia Dawson said: "Any sentence imposed will not compensate for the loss of Mr Willmott."

The case was heard at East Suffolk Magistrates' Court.

Quilter-Cudworth, of The Trotters, Alderton, and Highcliffe House Ltd will be sentenced at the same court on 25 January 2018.

They admitted to failing to provide self care and treatment resulting in a significant risk of exposure to avoidable harm to service users, including William Willmott.

Emergency services were called to Highcliffe House Nursing Home in Cobbold Road at 06:10 BST.

He was pronounced dead at the scene.

In its latest inspection by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) in April 2017, Highcliffe House Nursing Home was rated as "requires improvement".

Following an urgent inspection on 15 July 2016, the CQC said it found the home had made "no attempt to carry out any environmental risk assessments and no individual assessments in relation to people with access to windows without appropriate window restrictors in place".

In its report on April 2017, it said environmental risk assessments had been updated to include regular safety checks of window restrictors, exposed pipework, bedrails and slip, trips and falls hazards.