A home care provider has been heavily criticised for putting patients at “significant risk” following a “damning” inspection.

Care provider Sevacare Haringey was rated as inadequate on four out of five criteria following an inspection by the Care Quality Commission (CQC), which concluded that those receiving care were at risk as a result.

The company provides home visits to more than 550 elderly and disabled people throughout the borough, paid for by Haringey Borough Council.

The report states that inspectors found a number of breaches of legal requirements that put patients at “significant risk of receiving inappropriate or unsafe care”, with patients not being supported to manage their medicines safely and no clear record of allegations of abuse being kept.

Independent consumer watchdog Healthwatch Haringey said: “The CQC report on Sevacare is a damning reflection of the quality of the services this company provides to vulnerable people in the community.

“To have four out of the five quality criteria assessed as 'inadequate', including the safety of the service, is completely unacceptable and the commissioners of these services should also be taking action to ensure that the services are radically improved or terminate their contracts and commission an alternative provider.

“It seems that the turnover of staff and quality of staff is contributing to the poor service and this may relate in part to their level of pay.”

The report also stated that clients said visits felt rushed and that care workers did not listen to them.

In summarising its findings, the CQC’s report said: “We found overall that people using the service were at significant risk of receiving inappropriate or unsafe care.

“We are taking enforcement action against the registered persons (those with a legal responsibility to meet requirements) and will report further on this when it is completed.”

One woman, who did not wish to be named and regularly visits an elderly man receiving care from Sevacare Haringey, said: “The carers do as much as they can in the time they have, the bare necessities and whatever else they can do to help, but it isn’t the level of care an elderly person should be getting.

“They seem under an awful lot of pressure and don’t seem to have the time they need to care for people.”

The findings of the inspection carried out in December last year have been welcomed by Haringey Council, which commissions Sevacare Haringey to provide home care in the borough.

A council spokesman said: “The quality of care provided to people in Haringey is of paramount importance to the council.

“Having previously raised concerns about Sevacare to the Care Quality Commission, we are pleased that the CQC have acted proactively to take the necessary action.”

The council has now imposed an embargo on Sevacare, meaning that the provider is not able to take on any new clients, and will also give people the option to change to alternative care arrangements should they wish.

In a statement, Sevacare CEO Ravi Bains said the inspection had come soon after the firm had taken on work in a neighbouring borough.

He said: “The report follows a visit to our offices last year, during a period when we had recently agreed to support another local authority, by taking on work that had previously been provided by another organisation.

“This process was not consolidated at the time of the inspection and the report reflects this, describing many inherited circumstances and issues, which we were working hard to address at the time.

“Some five months on these circumstances no longer apply and we anticipate a revisit from CQC in the coming weeks during which we believe the hard work we have undertaken in partnership and consultation with the local authority will be recognised.”