HAMPSHIRE County Council is reviewing its contract with Carewatch (South Hampshire) in the wake of the damning Care Quality Commission (CQC) report.

The authority will not place any further clients in the care of the company until improvements are made, although it says it will only cancel the contract as a "last resort".

There are currently 221 residents being cared for under the county council's contract with Carewatch.

Southampton City Council's contract providing care for 212 people is with a different Carewatch team that is managed separately despite coming under the same organisation.

The Southampton team has not been assessed by the CQC since the merger in 2013, but the last report before the merger rated it as meeting requirements in all areas.

A spokesman for the county council said Carewatch was chosen for the new contract earlier this year "following an open procurement process which was run in compliance with European and UK procurement regulations. All companies who bid were evaluated against criteria which included service quality assurance".

They said the contract, which can run for a maximum of seven years with the potential for breaks after three and five years, is "under review" following the report, and that the council has "clearly communicated the required improvements to Carewatch’s senior managers".

They added: "Our preferred option will always be to work with contractors to address concerns, in the interest of continuity of care for those in receipt of services.

"No new clients will be placed with Carewatch until Hampshire County Council is assured of improved service quality.

"Cancelling the contract would be a last resort only to be taken in the event of all efforts, by the company and Hampshire County Council, to address concerns having failed to achieve the required improvements."

The council would have the ability to service notice on the contract, with the cost depending on the grounds for ending it."

Councillor Liz Fairhurst, the council's executive member for adult social care said: “Hampshire County Council is working closely with both the CQC and Carewatch (South Hampshire) to ensure that the issues identified during the inspection are being actively addressed. We will not be making arrangements to purchase any new care until we are confident that Carewatch have made satisfactory progress to improve the quality of care offered.

“We have steps in place to monitor safeguarding and service quality levels – to ensure our clients who use Carewatch continue to receive the level of care they require, and together with their relatives, are kept well informed of progress. We are confident that Carewatch (South Hampshire) understands the seriousness of the concerns raised, and the need to continue to work with us effectively to address all the issues identified during the inspection.”

A spokesman for Southampton City Council said they would carry out "further quality monitoring" in light of the report, but added: "We have not at any time been contacted by CQC in relation to this provider to express concerns with the Southampton service."

Both councils said they could not reveal the value of the contracts as they are "commercially sensitive".