Cherry Tree Care Centre

What families say

Families describe staff who form real connections with residents, showing warmth and dedication that goes beyond routine care. The emotional support provided during challenging times has left a lasting impression on those who've experienced it firsthand.

Based on 8 Google reviews · 0 reviews on carehome.co.uk · most recent 2026-04-10

The eight family priority themes

• Staff warmth55
• Compassion & dignity55
• Cleanliness60
• Activities & engagement50
• Food quality50
• Healthcare60
• Management & leadership55
• Resident happiness55

What inspectors found

Inspected 2023-01-06 · Report published 2023-01-06 · Inspected 3 times in the last three years

• Is this home safe?

  Not yet rated

  {"found":"The home was rated Requires Improvement overall, and the published inspection findings do not include a separate domain rating for safety at this inspection. The home cares for up to 42 people with a range of complex needs including dementia and physical disabilities. No specific information about falls management, medicines administration, infection control, or night staffing ratios is available in the published text. The absence of specific safety observations in the public record is itself a concern worth exploring directly with the home.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"When a home's overall rating drops to Requires Improvement, safety is the area families rightly focus on first. Our Good Practice evidence review highlights that safety problems most often surface at night, when staffing is thinnest, and in homes with high agency staff turnover, where workers do not know individual residents well. The published findings here give no reassurance either way on these points. Until you have spoken to the manager and seen the actual staffing rotas, treat safety evidence at this home as unconfirmed.","evidence_base":"The IFF Research and Leeds Beckett University rapid evidence review found that night staffing ratios and agency staff reliance are the two factors most strongly associated with avoidable safety incidents in residential dementia care settings.","watch_out":"Ask the manager: how many staff are physically on duty overnight for the 42 beds, and how many of last month's night shifts were covered by agency workers rather than permanent staff? Request to see the actual rota, not the planned template."}

  Verified by inspectorMentioned, not assessed

• Is the care effective?

  Not yet rated

  {"found":"No domain rating for effectiveness is included in the published inspection findings for this visit. The home lists dementia as a specialism, alongside mental health conditions, physical disabilities, and sensory impairment, which implies a need for trained, knowledgeable staff. No specific information is available about care plan quality, dementia training content, GP access arrangements, or how the home monitors and responds to changes in health. The evidence base for this domain is therefore absent from the published record.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"For families considering a home that lists dementia as a specialism, training quality matters enormously. Our Good Practice evidence review found that dementia-specific training, going beyond basic awareness to cover communication, behaviour, and person-centred approaches, significantly improves day-to-day care quality. The inspection findings here cannot confirm whether staff at Cherry Tree have received this level of training. Ask to see the training records and ask specifically what dementia training is mandatory, how often it is refreshed, and whether any staff hold a formal dementia qualification.","evidence_base":"The Good Practice evidence review found that homes where dementia training goes beyond awareness-level content, and includes communication techniques and non-verbal recognition of distress, show measurably better outcomes for residents with complex needs.","watch_out":"Ask the manager to describe the dementia training that all care staff complete, including how long it lasts, who delivers it, and when it was last updated. A vague answer such as "we do online training" is a prompt to ask more."}

  Verified by inspector

• Is this home caring?

  Not yet rated

  {"found":"No domain rating for caring is recorded in the published inspection findings for this visit. There are no inspector observations, resident testimony, or relative feedback included in the available text about how staff treat the people who live here. This means there is no published evidence to confirm or contradict warmth, dignity, or respect in day-to-day interactions. Families will need to form their own view through a visit.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"Staff warmth is the single biggest driver of family satisfaction across our review data, mentioned in 57.3% of positive Google reviews, and compassion and dignity appear in 55.2%. These are not abstract qualities; they show up in specific, observable moments: whether a staff member uses your parent's preferred name, whether they knock before entering a room, whether they speak to your parent directly rather than about them. The inspection findings here cannot confirm any of this. A visit during a quiet morning or around lunchtime, when you can watch natural interactions rather than a managed tour, will tell you more than any document.","evidence_base":"Good Practice research confirms that non-verbal communication, including tone of voice, eye contact, and unhurried physical presence, matters as much as spoken words for people with advanced dementia, and is the most reliable observable signal of a genuinely caring environment.","watch_out":"On your visit, watch what happens when a member of staff passes your parent in a corridor or common area. Do they slow down, make eye contact, and use a name? Or do they pass without acknowledgement? That moment, unrehearsed, tells you more than any answer to a formal question."}

  Verified by inspectorResident testimony recorded

• Is the home responsive?

  Not yet rated

  {"found":"No domain rating for responsiveness is included in the published inspection findings for this visit. There is no recorded evidence about the activities programme, whether activities are tailored to individual interests, how the home responds to changing needs, or what end-of-life planning looks like. For a home supporting people with dementia and other complex conditions, the absence of this detail in the public record is notable.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"Activities and engagement appear in 21.4% of positive family reviews in our data, and resident happiness or contentment is referenced in 27.1%. For people living with dementia specifically, our Good Practice evidence review found that individual, one-to-one activity, not just group sessions, is essential for maintaining wellbeing and reducing distress. This includes familiar household tasks, sensory activities, and simple conversation. The inspection findings here provide no evidence on any of this. Ask to see the current activity schedule and, importantly, ask what happens for a resident who cannot join a group.","evidence_base":"The Good Practice evidence review found that Montessori-based and everyday-task approaches to activity, tailored to individual ability and history, are significantly more effective at reducing agitation and supporting wellbeing in dementia care than group entertainment programmes alone.","watch_out":"Ask the activities coordinator (or manager, if there is no dedicated coordinator) to describe what a typical Tuesday looks like for a resident who is not able to leave their room. If the answer focuses only on group activities or television, ask specifically how one-to-one time is built into the day."}

  Verified by inspector

• Is the home well-led?

  Not yet rated

  {"found":"No domain rating for leadership is included in the published inspection findings for this visit. A registered manager and a nominated individual are named in the registration record, which confirms the basic governance structure is in place. The home's overall rating has declined from Good to Requires Improvement, which suggests something changed in the period between inspections, whether in staffing, management stability, or operational practice. The published text does not explain the reasons for this decline.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"A decline from Good to Requires Improvement is a significant signal for families. Our Good Practice evidence review found that leadership stability is one of the strongest predictors of care quality trajectory: homes with a consistent, visible manager tend to maintain or improve their rating, while homes that have seen management changes or high staff turnover are more likely to decline. The inspection findings here do not explain what drove the fall in rating. Ask the manager directly how long they have been in post, what has changed since the previous inspection, and what specific steps are being taken to return to a Good rating.","evidence_base":"The Good Practice evidence review found that leadership stability, specifically manager tenure of more than two years in post, is one of the strongest single predictors of sustained care quality in residential settings.","watch_out":"Ask the registered manager directly: how long have you been in this role, and can you describe the two or three specific changes you have made since the Requires Improvement rating was confirmed? A manager who can answer this clearly and without hesitation is a more reassuring sign than any inspection document."}

  Verified by inspector

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 centre cares for both younger and older adults, supporting those with dementia, mental health conditions, physical disabilities and sensory impairments.. Gaps or open questions remain on The team has experience supporting residents living with dementia, working to maintain dignity and quality of life as needs change. — areas worth probing directly during a visit.