The Old Vicarage Residential Home
At a Glance
The information you need to decide whether this home warrants a closer look.
Residential homes
Staff warmth score
of reviewers answered yes
Good to know
- Registered beds37
- SpecialismsDementia, Physical disabilities, Sensory impairment
- Last inspected2018-06-15
- Activities programmeThe home takes pride in keeping the place spotless and well-maintained. Families mention how clean everything looks when they visit, which helps create a pleasant environment for residents.
The Evidence
What the review data, the inspection reports, and the dementia-care evidence base tell us about this home.
What families say
Based on 5 Google reviews · 0 reviews on carehome.co.uk · most recent 2026-04-10
The eight family priority themes
- Staff warmth72
- Compassion & dignity72
- Cleanliness70
- Activities & engagement65
- Food quality65
- Healthcare68
- Management & leadership73
- Resident happiness70
What inspectors found
Inspected 2018-06-15 · Report published 2018-06-15 · Inspected 2 times in the last three years
Is this home safe?
{"found":"The Safe domain was rated Good at the April 2018 inspection, representing an improvement from the previous rating. The published report does not include specific detail about staffing numbers, night cover, medicines management, falls recording, or infection control practices. A monitoring review in July 2023 found no evidence of concerns sufficient to trigger a reassessment. The home is registered for 37 beds and caters for people with dementia and physical disabilities, both of which carry particular safety considerations.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"A Good rating for safety is reassuring, especially given that the home previously required improvement in this area. However, the inspection report gives no specific numbers for night staffing, and Good Practice research consistently identifies night-time staffing as the point where safety is most likely to slip in smaller residential homes. For a 37-bed home supporting people with dementia, you would reasonably expect at least two staff on duty overnight, and knowing how often agency staff cover those shifts matters enormously for continuity. The 2023 monitoring review adds a small degree of reassurance that no serious incidents have been flagged since 2018, but it is not a substitute for a full re-inspection.","evidence_base":"The IFF Research and Leeds Beckett rapid evidence review (2026) found that agency staff reliance is one of the strongest predictors of inconsistent safety in care homes, particularly on night shifts, because unfamiliar staff are less likely to notice subtle changes in a resident's condition.","watch_out":"Ask the manager to show you the actual staffing rota for the past two weeks, not a template. Count how many shifts were covered by permanent staff versus agency staff, and ask specifically how many carers are on duty between 10pm and 7am."}
Is the care effective?
{"found":"The Effective domain was rated Good at the April 2018 inspection. The published report provides no specific information about care plan content, how dementia training is delivered, GP access arrangements, or how food and nutrition are managed. Dementia, physical disabilities, and sensory impairment are listed as specialisms, which implies some level of specialist knowledge among staff, but this is not described in the available findings.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"For families considering this home for a parent with dementia, the specialism listing is a prompt to ask probing questions rather than a guarantee of specialist practice. Good Practice research identifies care plans as living documents that should be reviewed at least monthly for someone with advancing dementia, and family involvement in those reviews is strongly associated with better outcomes. Food quality is the third most frequently mentioned theme in our family review data (20.9% of positive reviews), yet the inspection gives no detail about menus, choice, or how the home manages conditions like dysphagia. These are straightforward things to ask about and observe on a visit.","evidence_base":"The Leeds Beckett rapid evidence review (2026) found that dementia-specific training for all care staff, including kitchen and domestic staff, is associated with better person-centred care, but training quality varies widely and a specialism listing does not confirm training content or frequency.","watch_out":"Ask to see the dementia training record for current staff: what the training covers, when it was last completed, and whether it applies to all staff including night carers and domestic workers. Then ask when your parent's care plan would next be reviewed and whether you would be invited to take part."}
Is this home caring?
{"found":"The Caring domain was rated Good at the April 2018 inspection. The published report contains no specific inspector observations about how staff speak to residents, whether residents are addressed by preferred names, how privacy is maintained, or how staff respond when someone becomes distressed. Staff warmth and compassion are the two highest-weighted themes in family satisfaction data, yet the inspection text provides no direct evidence on either.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"Staff warmth is the single biggest driver of positive family reviews in our data, mentioned in 57.3% of positive submissions, and compassion and dignity come a close second at 55.2%. These are not abstract qualities: they show up in whether a staff member knocks before entering a room, uses your mum's preferred name, or sits with her rather than talking over her. The inspection confirmed a Good rating for Caring, which is meaningful, but without specific observations or resident testimony in the published text you genuinely cannot know what daily interactions look like from this report alone. A visit is the only way to assess this.","evidence_base":"Good Practice research identifies non-verbal communication as equally important as verbal communication for people with advanced dementia. Unhurried body language, eye-level engagement, and a calm tone of voice are observable on a visit even if your parent cannot tell you how they feel.","watch_out":"During your visit, spend 15 minutes sitting in a communal area without announcing what you are looking for. Notice whether staff make eye contact with residents as they pass, whether they crouch down to speak to someone seated, and whether interactions feel unhurried or task-driven."}
Is the home responsive?
{"found":"The Responsive domain was rated Good at the April 2018 inspection. The published report contains no specific information about the activities programme, how one-to-one engagement is provided for residents who cannot join group activities, how individual preferences are recorded, or how end-of-life care is planned. The home lists dementia and physical disabilities as specialisms, both of which require tailored, responsive approaches.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"Activities and resident happiness together account for a significant share of what families tell us matters most (21.4% and 27.1% of positive reviews respectively). Good Practice research is clear that group activities alone are insufficient for people with moderate to advanced dementia: one-to-one engagement, including simple everyday tasks like folding, sorting, or tending plants, has stronger evidence for wellbeing than organised group sessions. The inspection gives no detail about what the home actually offers. Ask to see the activity records for the past month and specifically ask what happens for a resident who can no longer join a group.","evidence_base":"The IFF Research rapid evidence review (2026) found that Montessori-based and everyday-task approaches to activity, rather than entertainment-led group programmes, produce stronger wellbeing outcomes for people with dementia, particularly those at more advanced stages.","watch_out":"Ask the activities co-ordinator (or manager, if there is no dedicated co-ordinator) to show you the activity records for last month and point out three examples of one-to-one engagement with residents who do not regularly join groups. If records are sparse or the question draws a blank, treat that as a significant concern."}
Is the home well-led?
{"found":"The Well-led domain was rated Good at the April 2018 inspection, improving from a previous Requires Improvement rating. A named registered manager (Mrs Daria Koeller) and a nominated individual (Mrs Sehnaz Bi Butt) are recorded. The published report provides no specific detail about management visibility, how staff are supported, how complaints are handled, or how the home learns from incidents. The 2023 monitoring review found no evidence requiring a rating change.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"The improvement from Requires Improvement to Good in Well-led is the most encouraging finding in this inspection, because leadership quality is a strong predictor of how every other aspect of care develops over time. Good Practice research links stable, visible leadership to better staff retention, which in turn is strongly associated with better outcomes for people with dementia. However, the inspection is now more than six years old, and management tenure can change. Before you commit to this home, find out whether Mrs Koeller is still the registered manager, how long she has been in post, and how staff describe the culture when management is not in the room. Communication with families (mentioned in 11.5% of positive reviews) is also entirely unassessed in the available text.","evidence_base":"The Leeds Beckett rapid evidence review (2026) found that leadership stability is one of the strongest predictors of quality trajectory in care homes: homes where the registered manager has been in post for more than two years consistently outperform those with recent leadership changes across all care domains.","watch_out":"Ask the manager directly how long she has been in her current role, and ask one or two care staff (separately, not in front of management) whether they feel comfortable raising concerns. Staff who hesitate or look to management before answering are telling you something important."}
Source: CQC inspection report →
What the evidence base says
Against the DCC Good Practice in Dementia Care standards, this home’s evidence aligns most strongly on The home specialises in dementia care, supporting residents through the different stages of their condition.. Gaps or open questions remain on Staff work with residents living with dementia to maintain their daily routines and provide appropriate support. The home accepts residents at various stages of dementia. — areas worth probing directly during a visit.
The DCC Verdict
Our editorial view, built from the three lenses: what families tell us, what inspectors record, and how the home sits against good dementia-care practice.
DCC Family Score
The home improved from Requires Improvement to Good across all five domains at its last inspection in April 2018, which is a meaningful step forward. However, the published report contains very little specific detail, so scores reflect the Good rating rather than strong direct evidence, and families should treat this as a starting point for their own visits and questions.
Homes in South West typically score 68–82.Worth a visit
The Old Vicarage Residential Home, in Frampton-on-Severn, was rated Good across all five inspection domains at its last inspection in April 2018, having improved from a previous Requires Improvement rating. A desk-based monitoring review in July 2023 found no evidence requiring a change to that rating. The home is registered for 37 beds and lists dementia, physical disabilities, and sensory impairment as specialisms. A registered manager is named, and a formal leadership structure is in place. The most important thing to know before visiting is that the published inspection report is now more than six years old and contains very little specific detail about day-to-day life in the home. The Good rating is a positive sign, particularly given the improvement from the previous rating, but it tells you almost nothing about what staff are like, what the environment looks like for someone with dementia, or how families are kept informed. When you visit, ask to see last week's staffing rota (counting permanent staff against agency names, especially on nights), ask how care plans are reviewed and whether families are invited to take part, and spend time in a communal area to observe how staff speak to and move around residents.
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In Their Own Words
How The Old Vicarage Residential Home describes itself — collected from its own website. DCC has not edited or independently verified the content in this tab.
Caring for residents with dementia in peaceful Frampton-on-Severn
The Old Vicarage Residential Home – Your Trusted residential home
The Old Vicarage Residential Home in Frampton-on-Severn provides specialist dementia care in a well-maintained setting. Families visiting have noticed the home keeps everything clean and tidy, with enough staff around to look after residents properly. The home focuses on supporting people living with dementia through their daily routines.
Who they care for
The home specialises in dementia care, supporting residents through the different stages of their condition.
Staff work with residents living with dementia to maintain their daily routines and provide appropriate support. The home accepts residents at various stages of dementia.
Management & ethos
There seems to be enough staff on duty to meet residents' needs. Family members have observed staff providing appropriate care for residents with dementia.
The home & environment
The home takes pride in keeping the place spotless and well-maintained. Families mention how clean everything looks when they visit, which helps create a pleasant environment for residents.
“If you're considering dementia care options in the Frampton-on-Severn area, it might be worth arranging a visit to see if The Old Vicarage could be the right fit.”
DCC does not edit or curate content in this tab. For independently curated information, see The Evidence and DCC Verdict.
