Hilltop Lodge -Akari Care

What families say

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

The eight family priority themes

• Staff warmth72
• Compassion & dignity72
• Cleanliness70
• Activities & engagement68
• Food quality68
• Healthcare72
• Management & leadership75
• Resident happiness70

What inspectors found

Inspected 2022-08-04 · Report published 2022-08-04 · Inspected 2 times in the last three years

• Is this home safe?

  Not yet rated

  {"found":"Hilltop Lodge was rated Good for Safety at the February 2025 inspection. The home provides nursing care for 61 residents, including people living with dementia and physical disabilities. No specific detail about falls management, medicines administration, infection control, or staffing ratios is available in the published findings. The previous overall rating was Requires Improvement, so the move to Good in this domain represents a positive direction of travel. Without further detail, it is not possible to confirm what specific improvements drove this change.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"A Good safety rating is reassuring, but for families choosing a dementia nursing home it is the detail beneath the rating that matters most. Good Practice research from the IFF Research and Leeds Beckett University review identifies night staffing as the point where safety most commonly slips, particularly in homes with a significant dementia population. With 61 beds and a specialism in both dementia and physical disabilities, you should ask specifically how many trained nurses and carers are on duty overnight. The published findings do not tell us about agency staff use, but reliance on unfamiliar agency workers is a known risk factor for inconsistent care, so this is worth probing directly.","evidence_base":"The Good Practice evidence review (IFF Research and Leeds Beckett University, 2026) found that night staffing ratios and agency staff reliance are among the strongest predictors of safety incidents in dementia care settings, yet these figures are rarely included in published inspection reports.","watch_out":"Ask the manager to show you the actual staffing rota for last week, not the planned template. Count how many permanent staff versus agency workers were on each night shift, and confirm whether a qualified nurse is present throughout the night."}

  Verified by inspectorMentioned, not assessed

• Is the care effective?

  Not yet rated

  {"found":"Hilltop Lodge was rated Good for Effective practice at the February 2025 inspection. This domain typically covers care planning, staff training, healthcare access, and nutrition. Dementia and physical disabilities are listed specialisms, which implies that training and care planning in these areas were assessed. No specific findings about care plan quality, GP access, dementia training content, or food are available in the published text. The Effective rating covers a wide range of practice and a general Good does not confirm the quality of any individual element.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"For your mum or dad, an Effective rating should mean that care plans reflect who they are as a person, not just their medical needs, and that staff know how to support someone living with dementia or a physical disability in a skilled way. Our review data shows that families rank healthcare access (20.2% weight) and food quality (20.9% weight) among the most important practical measures of whether a home is doing its job. The inspection findings do not give us specific evidence on either, so these are areas to test on your visit. Good Practice research emphasises that care plans work best when families are actively involved in reviewing them, so ask how often your parent's plan would be revisited and whether you would be invited to contribute.","evidence_base":"The Good Practice evidence review found that care plans function as living documents only when they are reviewed regularly with family input. Homes that treat care plans as administrative forms rather than practical guides tend to provide less person-centred support for people with dementia.","watch_out":"Ask the manager how often care plans are formally reviewed and request an example of how a family member was involved in a recent review. Then ask to see the menu for the current week and whether individual dietary preferences and cultural needs are recorded in the care plan."}

  Verified by inspector

• Is this home caring?

  Not yet rated

  {"found":"Hilltop Lodge was rated Good for Caring at the February 2025 inspection. This domain covers staff warmth, dignity, respect, and whether your parent's independence is supported. Staff warmth is the single highest-weighted theme in DCC family review data, appearing in 57.3% of positive reviews. No direct inspector observations, resident testimony, or family quotes are available in the published findings to confirm how this plays out in practice at Hilltop Lodge. The Good rating indicates inspectors were satisfied with what they saw, but the detail is not publicly available.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"Staff warmth is what families remember most, and our data from 3,602 positive reviews across UK care homes confirms this is the theme that comes up most often. A Good Caring rating means inspectors were broadly satisfied, but you will learn far more in 30 minutes observing the home than from any rating. Good Practice research highlights that non-verbal communication matters as much as verbal interaction for people living with dementia: whether staff make eye contact, crouch down to speak at the same level, and move without hurry are all observable signals. Compassion and dignity together account for 55.2% of family satisfaction scores in our data, so these are worth prioritising on your visit.","evidence_base":"The Good Practice evidence review found that person-centred caring requires staff to know the individual, including their life history, preferred name, and daily routines. Homes where staff can describe each resident as a person, not just a diagnosis, consistently score higher on family satisfaction measures.","watch_out":"During your visit, watch how a staff member approaches your parent's future equivalent: do they use the person's preferred name, make eye contact, and pause rather than rush? Ask the manager how staff learn about a new resident's life history and what they do if a resident becomes distressed."}

  Verified by inspectorResident testimony recorded

• Is the home responsive?

  Not yet rated

  {"found":"Hilltop Lodge was rated Good for Responsive practice at the February 2025 inspection. This domain covers whether the home tailors care to individual needs, provides meaningful activities, and supports people at the end of life. The home lists dementia as a specialism, which implies responsiveness to the specific needs of people living with dementia was assessed. No detail about the activity programme, one-to-one engagement, or end-of-life planning is available in the published findings. The Good rating suggests inspectors were satisfied, but without specifics it is not possible to confirm the range or quality of what is on offer.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"Resident happiness accounts for 27.1% of family satisfaction scores in our review data, and activities are among the most frequently mentioned factors in positive reviews. A Responsive rating should mean your parent has access to activities that suit them as an individual, not just a generic group programme. Good Practice research is clear that people with advanced dementia benefit most from one-to-one engagement and familiar everyday tasks, rather than formal group activities. With 61 beds and a mixed population including people under 65 with physical disabilities, ask how activities are differentiated and what happens for someone who cannot join a group session.","evidence_base":"The Good Practice evidence review found that Montessori-based and everyday task approaches are among the most effective for people with dementia, and that homes relying solely on group activities leave a significant proportion of residents without meaningful engagement for much of the day.","watch_out":"Ask the activities co-ordinator to show you last week's actual activity records, including one-to-one sessions, not just the planned schedule. Ask specifically what would be arranged for your parent on a day when they did not feel like joining a group."}

  Verified by inspector

• Is the home well-led?

  Not yet rated

  {"found":"Hilltop Lodge was rated Good for Well-led at the February 2025 inspection. The home is operated by Akari Care Limited, with Miss Julie Cross as the registered manager and Miss Karen Harkin as the nominated individual. Having both a registered manager and a nominated individual in post is a positive structural indicator. The previous overall rating was Requires Improvement, and the move to Good across all domains suggests meaningful improvement under current leadership. No specific detail about management visibility, staff culture, governance systems, or how the home handles complaints is available in the published findings.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"Leadership stability is one of the strongest predictors of care quality over time, according to the Good Practice evidence review. The fact that the home has moved from Requires Improvement to Good across all domains is an encouraging sign, but it is worth finding out how long Miss Julie Cross has been in post and whether the improvement was driven by her tenure. Our review data shows that communication with families (11.5% weight) is a consistent concern, and a well-led home should have clear systems for keeping you informed about changes in your parent's condition. Management accountability accounts for 23.4% of family satisfaction scores, so this is an area worth probing directly rather than assuming the Good rating covers everything you need to know.","evidence_base":"The Good Practice evidence review found that leadership continuity is a consistent predictor of quality trajectories in care homes. Homes where managers have been in post for more than two years and have empowered staff to raise concerns consistently outperform those with high management turnover.","watch_out":"Ask Miss Cross directly how long she has been registered manager at this home and what the main changes were that led to the improvement from Requires Improvement. Also ask how the home would contact you if your parent's health changed overnight, and how quickly you would expect to hear."}

  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 Hilltop Lodge cares for people living with dementia as well as those with physical disabilities. They support both younger adults under 65 and older residents.. Gaps or open questions remain on For residents living with dementia, the home provides specialist support tailored to individual needs. The team understands the importance of creating a familiar, comfortable environment. — areas worth probing directly during a visit.