Worthing Care Home Fined for Failing to Protect Elderly Resident

Offington Park Care Home in Worthing has been fined nearly £25,000 following the death of 75-year-old John Bowles, who suffered a traumatic head injury after multiple falls.

The care home, operated by Claremont Care Services, appeared in Brighton Magistrates Court over the incident.

John Bowles began his stay at Offington Park in December 2019, following his discharge from hospital with a known risk of falls. Between then and February 8, 2020, he experienced nine falls, four of which resulted in head injuries. Despite guidelines from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) recommending urgent hospital referral for patients on anti-coagulants like John, staff only called emergency services once following a fall.

On February 9, 2020, John had another fall resulting in a head injury, which staff observed but did not treat urgently. Later that day, he was found unresponsive and pronounced dead at the hospital.

A court determined that Claremont Care Services failed to protect him from avoidable harm, leading to the substantial fine. The Care Quality Commission (CQC) emphasised that carers’ decisions repeatedly violated NICE guidelines.