Alexandra Grange

What families say

Families visiting regularly have found staff warm and approachable, taking time to chat and engage with both residents and visitors. The home runs a programme of activities and outings that keeps residents engaged throughout the week.

Based on 12 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 & leadership72
• Resident happiness70

What inspectors found

Inspected 2023-06-21 · Report published 2023-06-21 · Inspected 3 times in the last three years

• Is this home safe?

  Good

  {"found":"The Safe domain was rated Good at the June 2023 inspection. This represents an improvement from the previous Requires Improvement rating, which suggests inspectors identified progress in how the home manages risks, staffing, medicines, or incident oversight. No specific observations, figures, or examples are recorded in the published inspection summary. The registered manager is named and in post, which supports a stable governance structure.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"A Good safety rating after a previous Requires Improvement is genuinely encouraging: it means inspectors found meaningful change rather than just surface improvements. However, the Good Practice evidence base (IFF Research, Leeds Beckett, 2026) identifies night staffing as the point where safety most commonly slips in care homes. Because the published text gives no staffing numbers or night ratios, you cannot assess this from the report alone. Our review data across 5,409 UK care homes shows that families who ask specific questions about night cover and agency use before placing a parent are more likely to report confidence in the home's safety. Treat the Good rating as a starting point, not a complete answer.","evidence_base":"The Good Practice rapid evidence review found that agency staff reliance undermines care consistency and that homes with stable permanent night teams have significantly better safety outcomes for people with dementia.","watch_out":"Ask the manager to show you the actual staffing rota for the past two weeks, not a template. Count how many permanent staff versus agency names appear on night shifts, and ask what the minimum staffing level is overnight for 54 residents."}

  Verified by inspectorMentioned, not assessed

• Is the care effective?

  Good

  {"found":"The Effective domain was rated Good at the June 2023 inspection. Alexandra Grange lists dementia care as a specialism, so inspectors would typically have reviewed care plans, dementia training records, and healthcare access. No specific detail about any of these areas is included in the published summary. The improvement from Requires Improvement suggests that whatever shortfalls were identified previously have been addressed to inspectors' satisfaction.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"For a home specialising in dementia care, the Effective rating matters particularly because it covers whether staff have the right training to support your mum or dad as dementia progresses. The Good Practice evidence review found that dementia training is only meaningful when it goes beyond basic awareness into communication techniques, de-escalation, and understanding individual behaviour. A Good rating tells you inspectors were satisfied, but it does not tell you what the training actually covers or how recently staff completed it. Food quality, which is rated by 20.9% of families in our review data as a key marker of genuine care, is also not described in the published findings. Ask to see the menu and observe a mealtime if possible.","evidence_base":"The Good Practice evidence review found that care plans function as living documents only when they are reviewed regularly with family input, and that homes which include family-reported preferences in care plans produce better outcomes for people with dementia.","watch_out":"Ask to see a sample care plan, with personal details removed, and check whether it records the person's preferred name, life history, food preferences, and how staff should respond if the person becomes distressed. Ask when care plans are typically reviewed and whether families are invited to contribute."}

  Verified by inspector

• Is this home caring?

  Good

  {"found":"The Caring domain was rated Good at the June 2023 inspection. This domain covers staff warmth, dignity, privacy, and whether people are treated as individuals. The improvement from Requires Improvement in this area is significant because Caring ratings reflect what inspectors directly observed during visits. No specific observations, staff behaviours, or resident or relative quotes are included in the published summary.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"Staff warmth is the single biggest driver of family satisfaction in our review data, mentioned by name in 57.3% of positive reviews across 5,409 UK care homes. Compassion and dignity together account for a further 55.2%. A Good Caring rating is therefore the most important domain result in this report for families choosing a dementia care home. The absence of specific observations in the published text means you need to form your own view on a visit. The Good Practice evidence review found that non-verbal communication, including whether staff make eye contact, move at the person's pace, and use touch appropriately, matters as much as verbal kindness for people with dementia.","evidence_base":"The Good Practice rapid evidence review found that person-led care requires staff to know each individual's history, preferences, and communication style, and that this knowledge is most reliably built through low staff turnover and consistent assignment of the same carers to the same residents.","watch_out":"On your visit, watch how staff address your parent's potential future neighbours in the corridor. Do they use first names or preferred names? Do they stop and make eye contact, or keep walking? These unscripted moments tell you more than a guided tour."}

  Verified by inspectorResident testimony recorded

• Is the home responsive?

  Good

  {"found":"The Responsive domain was rated Good at the June 2023 inspection. This domain covers activities, how the home responds to individual needs and preferences, and end-of-life planning. No details about the activities programme, how activities are adapted for people with different stages of dementia, or how complaints are handled are included in the published summary.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"Activities and engagement are rated as important by 21.4% of families in our review data, and resident happiness or contentment is mentioned in 27.1% of positive reviews. For people living with dementia, the evidence is clear that meaningful engagement reduces agitation and supports quality of life. The Good Practice review highlights that group activities alone are insufficient: people with advanced dementia need one-to-one engagement, and the best homes build everyday household tasks, such as folding, gardening, or simple cooking, into daily routines. A Good Responsive rating is encouraging, but the published text gives no detail about what activities actually look like at Alexandra Grange on a Tuesday afternoon.","evidence_base":"The Good Practice rapid evidence review found that Montessori-based approaches and involvement in familiar everyday tasks produce measurable improvements in wellbeing for people with dementia, and that individual engagement is more effective than group activities alone for people in later stages.","watch_out":"Ask to see the activities calendar for the past month, not a planned template. Ask specifically what happens for residents who cannot join group sessions, and whether a member of staff provides one-to-one time for those individuals."}

  Verified by inspector

• Is the home well-led?

  Good

  {"found":"The Well-led domain was rated Good at the June 2023 inspection. A named registered manager, Miss Lisa Michelle Roscoe, is recorded as in post, and Mr Keith Lowe is listed as the nominated individual for the operating organisation, Cuerden Developments Ltd. The improvement from Requires Improvement suggests inspectors found meaningful governance progress. No specific examples of leadership practice, staff culture, or audit activity are described in the published text.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"Management stability is one of the strongest predictors of care quality over time, and 23.4% of positive family reviews in our data specifically mention good management as a factor in their satisfaction. The Good Practice evidence review found that leadership stability predicts quality trajectory: homes where the manager has been in post for more than two years tend to maintain or improve their ratings. Knowing that a named manager is registered and in post is positive, but you cannot tell from this report alone how long she has been there, whether staff feel supported, or how the home handled the period when it was rated Requires Improvement. These are fair and important questions to ask directly.","evidence_base":"The Good Practice rapid evidence review found that bottom-up staff empowerment, where carers feel able to raise concerns without fear, is one of the most reliable markers of a well-led care home, and that inspection ratings improve most durably in homes where this culture is embedded.","watch_out":"Ask the manager directly: how long have you been in post, and what specific changes did you make after the previous Requires Improvement rating? A confident, specific answer is a good sign. Vague or defensive responses are worth noting."}

  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 team at Alexandra Grange cares for people over 65, with particular experience supporting residents with dementia and mental health conditions.. Gaps or open questions remain on For residents living with dementia, the home provides specialist support within its broader programme of care. Staff work with families to understand each person's individual needs and preferences. — areas worth probing directly during a visit.