Ms Ciara McShane:

Regarding congregated settings and community-based settings, we have found a higher level of non-compliance in settings where larger numbers are living in campus-based settings. We have found that remote governance had an impact on oversight and auditing of the maintenance and upkeep of premises and, therefore, some residents were living in environments that were sub-par and perhaps not of as high a standard as those in community-based settings. An example might be a kitchen that needs to be replaced, ingrained stains on floors and worktops, cupboards in disarray or a general level of uncleanliness, for example, equipment such as medical equipment possibly not being kept to a high standard in terms of infection prevention and control.

We found a higher level of compliance in community-based settings. For the most part, the houses were maintained to a higher standard and residents were living in a more comfortable and personalised environment. Congregated settings may not be as personalised as you would hope they would be compared with community-based centres.