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The National Care Standards Commission has come under strong criticism from both care providers and inspectors as its first year of operation draws to a close, writes Katie Leason.

Care providers said that inspections were too bureaucratic, inconsistent, and still subject to individual inspectors’ foibles. They said that inspectors did not always distinguish between standards and regulations, and that the way services were being scored was not a true reflection of the quality of services.

In addition, providers complained about the delay in receiving their inspection reports, with some homes having to wait for seven months or more. Figures from the NCSC show that, at the end of January, only 35 per cent of inspection reports had been completed. Overall 22,203 inspections had been carried out.

Frank Ursell, chief executive officer of the Registered Nursing Home Association, said that his members viewed the NCSC as "a joke".

"They weren’t properly prepared and didn’t understand the scope of the job," he said.

Meanwhile, inspectors have also identified areas in need of improvement. The National Association of Registration and Inspection Officers makes 13 recommendations in its annual conference report, despite acknowledging the NCSC’s positive impact on the sector, particularly in relation to training.

It highlights a need to "urgently reduce the level of unnecessary and frequently repetitive bureaucracy", address the problems with IT systems, and provide better training to promote consistency.

In addition, it would like to see a better match between the standards and the regulations, and a review of the NCSC’s standard letters, which are described as poorly worded, rude and abrupt.

The report says that morale is low among inspectors who felt staff shortages had made targets unreasonable. It was suggested that, if things did not improve, there could be an exodus from registration and inspection work.

The conference report concludes: "Enthusiasm for the commission remains high, but it will dissipate if the boards and directors do not listen to the concerns of inspectors. Ways must be found to make changes to procedures and methods that are supported and preferably led by inspectors themselves."

The Care Commission in Scotland has also come under fire from care home providers and inspectors, but the Care Standards Inspectorate for Wales appears to have fared slightly better in its first year of operation.