Gifford House Care Home

What families say

Families describe feeling welcome when they visit, finding staff approachable for everyday questions and updates. Some carers stand out for their willingness to help families stay connected, with reports of staff helping arrange video calls and regular contact.

Based on 16 Google reviews · 0 reviews on carehome.co.uk · most recent 2026-04-10

The eight family priority themes

• Staff warmth70
• Compassion & dignity70
• Cleanliness70
• Activities & engagement60
• Food quality55
• Healthcare65
• Management & leadership48
• Resident happiness68

What inspectors found

Inspected 2023-11-11 · Report published 2023-11-11 · Inspected 4 times in the last three years

• Is this home safe?

  Good

  {"found":"The Safe domain was rated Good at the September 2023 inspection, an improvement from the home's previous rating. This covers staffing levels, medicines management, infection control, and how the home responds to accidents and incidents. The published inspection text does not include specific detail about staffing ratios, night cover, or agency use. A Good rating in Safe indicates inspectors did not find significant gaps in these areas, but the absence of published detail means the picture is incomplete.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"A Good rating for safety will give you some reassurance, but the inspection findings available do not tell us the specifics: how many staff are on at night, how often agency workers cover shifts, or how the home logs and learns from falls. These details matter enormously for a 102-bed home where your parent may have dementia or a physical disability. Good Practice research consistently identifies night staffing as the point where safety most often slips in nursing homes, and agency reliance undermines the consistency of care that people with dementia need. Do not rely on the rating alone here. Ask for the numbers.","evidence_base":"The IFF Research and Leeds Beckett University rapid evidence review found that night staffing ratios are one of the most consistent predictors of safety incidents in care homes, and that homes with high agency use show measurably less consistency in responding to residents' needs.","watch_out":"Ask the manager to show you the actual staffing rota for last week, not the template. Count how many permanent staff versus agency staff covered nights, and ask what the minimum staffing level is for nights across the full 102 beds."}

  Verified by inspectorMentioned, not assessed

• Is the care effective?

  Good

  {"found":"The Effective domain was rated Good, covering training, care planning, healthcare access, nutrition, and hydration. The home specialises in dementia care, which means inspectors would have looked at whether staff have appropriate training to support people living with dementia. No specific detail about care plan content, GP access frequency, or food quality is included in the published summary. A Good rating indicates inspectors found the home broadly meeting standards in these areas.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"Effectiveness covers some of the things families care most about: whether staff genuinely know your parent as a person, whether their care plan reflects their real preferences rather than a standard template, and whether they can see a GP promptly when something changes. Food quality is mentioned in 20.9% of positive family reviews in our data, and Good Practice evidence shows that mealtimes are a key marker of genuine person-centred care. The published findings do not tell us what inspectors actually observed. Ask to see a sample care plan on your visit, and ask how frequently they are reviewed and updated.","evidence_base":"The Good Practice evidence review found that care plans functioning as living documents, updated after any significant change in health or behaviour, are strongly associated with better outcomes for people with dementia. Homes where care plans are reviewed less than monthly show higher rates of unmet need.","watch_out":"Ask to see how a care plan is structured for someone with dementia and ask when it was last updated. Then ask what happens to the care plan when your parent has a fall, a hospital admission, or a change in behaviour."}

  Verified by inspector

• Is this home caring?

  Good

  {"found":"The Caring domain was rated Good, which covers staff warmth, dignity, respect, and how well staff support residents' independence. This is one of the most significant ratings for families choosing a home. The published inspection text does not include specific observations of staff interactions, named examples of dignity being upheld, or direct quotes from residents or relatives. A Good rating indicates the inspectors did not find cause for concern in this area.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"Staff warmth is the single biggest driver of family satisfaction in our review data, mentioned in 57.3% of positive reviews, and compassion and dignity follow closely at 55.2%. A Good Caring rating is encouraging, but the lack of specific published detail means you cannot rely on it alone. The things to look for on a visit are not what staff say but what they do: do they knock before entering a room, do they use your parent's preferred name, do they sit at eye level when speaking to someone, do they move without hurrying. Good Practice research shows that non-verbal communication matters as much as verbal interaction for people with advanced dementia.","evidence_base":"The Good Practice evidence review found that for people with moderate to advanced dementia, staff non-verbal behaviours, including eye contact, unhurried movement, and physical proximity, are more strongly associated with resident wellbeing than verbal communication alone.","watch_out":"When you visit, watch how staff interact in the corridors and communal areas when they do not know you are observing them. Notice whether staff use residents' preferred names and whether they pause and make eye contact before speaking."}

  Verified by inspectorResident testimony recorded

• Is the home responsive?

  Good

  {"found":"The Responsive domain was rated Good, covering activities, individual engagement, and how well the home responds to complaints and individual preferences. The home's specialisms include dementia and sensory impairment, which means responsiveness to individual need is particularly important. No specific activities are described in the published text, and there is no detail about whether the home provides one-to-one engagement for people who cannot join group activities. A Good rating indicates inspectors found broadly satisfactory provision.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"Activities are mentioned in 21.4% of positive family reviews in our data, but the published findings do not tell us what is actually on offer at Gifford House. For someone with dementia, group activities are often not enough. Good Practice research shows that tailored one-to-one engagement, including everyday tasks like folding, sorting, or simple gardening, can significantly reduce agitation and improve wellbeing. Ask the activities coordinator to describe a typical day for your parent, including what would happen on a day when they could not join a group.","evidence_base":"The Good Practice evidence review identified Montessori-based approaches and individually tailored occupation, including familiar household tasks, as having strong evidence for reducing distress and improving engagement in people with dementia, particularly those who are no longer able to participate in structured group activities.","watch_out":"Ask the activities coordinator to walk you through what a typical Tuesday looks like for a resident who has dementia and is not able to join group sessions. Ask how often one-to-one time is built into the rota and who specifically provides it."}

  Verified by inspector

• Is the home well-led?

  Requires improvement

  {"found":"The Well-led domain was rated Requires Improvement at the September 2023 inspection, meaning this was the one area where inspectors found things that needed to be addressed. The home is run by AMS Care Limited, with a registered manager and a nominated individual named in the inspection record. The published text does not describe what specific concerns were identified under Well-led, what actions were required, or what the home's response has been. The overall rating improved from Requires Improvement to Good despite the Well-led rating remaining at Requires Improvement.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"A Requires Improvement in Well-led is the finding that should prompt the most questions on your visit. Good Practice evidence and our review data both show that leadership stability is one of the strongest predictors of whether a home maintains quality over time. A home where the manager is visible, where staff feel they can speak up, and where problems are acted on rather than minimised is consistently associated with better outcomes. The published findings do not tell us what was found lacking in leadership at Gifford House. Ask the manager directly what the inspectors found and what has been done since.","evidence_base":"The Good Practice evidence review found that leadership stability and a culture where staff can raise concerns without fear are among the strongest predictors of sustained care quality. Homes with frequent management turnover or where staff feel unable to speak up show measurably worse outcomes across all domains over a two-year period.","watch_out":"Ask the manager how long they have been in post, what specific concerns the Well-led rating identified, and whether they can show you the improvement plan submitted to the regulator in response. Also ask staff directly, when the manager is not present, whether they feel comfortable raising concerns."}

  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 home provides care for residents over 65 with various needs, including physical disabilities and sensory impairments. They also offer specialist dementia care.. Gaps or open questions remain on For residents living with dementia, the home's design includes features to support orientation and wellbeing. The staff team has experience caring for people at different stages of their dementia journey. — areas worth probing directly during a visit.