Northampton care homes will not be inspected during coronavirus pandemic as commissioner suspends checks

The organisation responsible for inspecting care homes and hospitals has made the decision to suspend routine checks during the coronavirus pandemic.

Care Quality Commission (CQC) completely stopped inspections earlier this month in a bid to reduce the pressure on social and care services during this unprecedented period.

The organisation, which grades care providers from ‘outstanding’ to ‘inadequate’, has suspended all inspections until further notice.

It will, however, visit care providers if it believes there is risk of harm or abuse.

A spokesman for CQC said: “We've suspended our routine inspections from March 16 onwards to reduce the pressure on health and social care services.

“We'll still monitor them using data and information, and we will still visit if we think there's a risk of harm or abuse.”

This means that any Northampton care homes, or care providers, who were due to be inspected or re-inspected, will not receive an updated rating while the pandemic continues.