Care home fined £500,000 for failings which led to woman’s death in fire

A care home operator has been fined £500,000 for failings which led to a 54-year-old woman dying in a fire in Glasgow.

HC-One Limited, who ran Arcadia Gardens care home in the Bridgeton area of the city when the fire broke out, pled guilty to a breach of health and safety at work committed in March 2017, the Crown Office said.

Prosecutors said that on March 25 that year the fire started in resident Carol Hughes’ room and, although she was rescued by firefighters, she died later in hospital from her injuries.

A lighter and e-cigarette were found on her bed following the fire, along with a second lighter on the floor close to the bed.

Ms Hughes had been a smoker and, from early March 2017, had started spending longer periods in her bed, Glasgow Sheriff Court was told.

A Care Inspectorate expert said this change in Ms Hughes’s circumstances should have prompted a review of her care plan and risk assessments.

However, it was established a review was not carried out and appropriate control measures were not put in place as a result.

If risks had been identified they could have been mitigated by appropriate monitoring and ensuring that Ms Hughes was supervised while she smoked, the court heard.

An investigation of the fire detection system also found wrong information was recorded on the location of Ms Hughes’s room which resulted in a delay to staff’s response to the fire.

HC-One Limited pled guilty at Glasgow Sheriff Court on Thursday and was fined £500,000 with a victim surcharge of £37,500.

HC-One said that lessons have been learned since the incident and it has undertaken extensive reviews of its fire management protocols and safety systems across its homes.

Debbie Carroll, who leads on health and safety investigations for the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS), said: “The death of Carol Hughes could have been prevented if HC-One Limited had suitably and sufficiently assessed the risks to her health and safety by having access to smoking materials whilst bed-bound.

“Their failure to maintain the fire alarm detection system, ensuring it could accurately identify the location of the activation, led to delay in getting to the fire.

“This prosecution serves to highlight the need for all care homes to protect their residents and remind them they will be held accountable if they fail to do so.”

A spokesperson for HC-One Scotland, said: “First and foremost, we extend our deepest condolences and sincere apologies to the family of Ms Hughes. The safety of those in our care is our absolute priority, and we were deeply shocked and saddened by the tragedy that occurred in 2017.

“It was important to us that lessons were learned from this tragic incident, and we have undertaken extensive reviews of our fire management protocols and safety systems across our homes. We have also since enhanced our care planning processes and coaching for our teams.

“We are clear that this incident should never have happened, and we hope that today’s decision can bring a sense of closure to Ms Hughes’ family.”