Ivy Court

What families say

Families talk about staff who genuinely engage — not just with residents, but with visitors too. There's a sense of anticipation here, with residents actively looking forward to the next craft session, exercise class, or pamper day. The activity programme keeps days varied and meaningful, whether that's entertainment, outings, or simply creating moments that matter.

Based on 33 Google reviews · 0 reviews on carehome.co.uk · most recent 2026-04-10

The eight family priority themes

• Staff warmth30
• Compassion & dignity30
• Cleanliness35
• Activities & engagement25
• Food quality25
• Healthcare30
• Management & leadership25
• Resident happiness25

What inspectors found

Inspected 2023-07-01 · Report published 2023-07-01 · Inspected 7 times in the last three years

• Is this home safe?

  Not yet rated

  {"found":"The safe domain was not individually rated at the July 2023 inspection. No specific findings about staffing levels, medicines management, infection control, or incident learning are available in the published inspection text. The overall Inadequate rating indicates that inspectors found serious concerns across the service, but the detail needed to assess safety specifically is not available in these findings. Families should treat the absence of published domain ratings as a warning sign in itself.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"Safety is the foundation of everything, and the inspection evidence here gives almost nothing to reassure you. Our Good Practice evidence review found that night staffing is the point at which safety most commonly slips in care homes, and for a 71-bed nursing home caring for people with dementia, the numbers and consistency of overnight staff matter enormously. You cannot assess this from the published report. You will need to ask the home directly for last week's rota, check how many agency staff covered those shifts, and ask what the process is for logging and reviewing falls and incidents. If the home cannot or will not answer those questions clearly, that is itself important information.","evidence_base":"The Good Practice evidence review found that agency staff reliance is one of the strongest predictors of safety failures in dementia care settings, because continuity of staffing underpins the ability to notice when something is wrong with a person whose communication is limited.","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 staff covered night shifts, and ask what induction agency workers receive before working with residents who have dementia."}

  Verified by inspectorMentioned, not assessed

• Is the care effective?

  Not yet rated

  {"found":"The effective domain was not individually rated at the July 2023 inspection. No specific findings about care plan quality, dementia training, GP access, nutrition, or health monitoring are available in the published text. Without this information, it is not possible to say whether staff understood how to care for people with dementia, whether care plans reflected individual needs, or whether healthcare needs were being met consistently.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"Effective care in a dementia setting means that staff know your parent as an individual, that their care plan is reviewed regularly and reflects current needs, and that healthcare professionals are involved promptly when something changes. Our Good Practice evidence review, drawing on 61 studies, found that care plans function as living documents only when staff have sufficient dementia-specific training to interpret and update them. Food quality is also a meaningful indicator: poor nutrition often reflects broader gaps in individualised care. None of these areas can be confirmed or ruled out from the available inspection findings, so you need to ask direct questions on a visit.","evidence_base":"The Leeds Beckett University rapid evidence review found that dementia training quality, not just completion rates, predicts whether staff can recognise pain, distress, and changing health needs in people who cannot reliably communicate verbally.","watch_out":"Ask to see an anonymised example of a care plan for someone with dementia. Check whether it records the person's preferred name, life history, daily routine, known triggers for distress, and when it was last reviewed. If it reads like a form rather than a description of a person, that tells you something important."}

  Verified by inspector

• Is this home caring?

  Not yet rated

  {"found":"The caring domain was not individually rated at the July 2023 inspection. No inspector observations, resident testimony, or relative feedback about staff warmth, dignity, or respect are available in the published text. Staff warmth and compassion are the single biggest drivers of family satisfaction in our review data, accounting for 57.3% of positive Google reviews across more than 5,000 UK care homes. The absence of any recorded evidence in this area, combined with an Inadequate overall rating, means you cannot assume these standards were met.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"When families choose a care home, the quality of human relationships is what matters most. In our analysis of 3,602 positive reviews, staff warmth was mentioned in 57.3% of cases, and compassion and dignity in 55.2%. These are not soft extras; they are the core of what good care looks like. An Inadequate rating does not mean staff were unkind, but it does mean you cannot assume the standard was adequate. Observe staff interactions yourself on a visit: do they knock before entering rooms, use your parent's preferred name, and make eye contact? Do they seem rushed or distracted? These are the things families tell us matter most, and they are things you can assess yourself.","evidence_base":"The Good Practice evidence review found that non-verbal communication, including eye contact, unhurried pace, and the use of a person's preferred name, is as important as spoken words for people with advanced dementia, because it signals safety and familiarity even when language is lost.","watch_out":"During your visit, watch what happens when a member of staff passes a resident in a corridor or common room. Do they make eye contact, smile, or say the person's name? Do they stop, or keep walking? That brief interaction is one of the most reliable signals of the home's everyday culture of care."}

  Verified by inspectorResident testimony recorded

• Is the home responsive?

  Not yet rated

  {"found":"The responsive domain was not individually rated at the July 2023 inspection. No specific findings about activities, individual engagement, or how the home responds to the particular needs and preferences of residents are available. For a home caring for people with dementia and physical disabilities, responsiveness to individual need is critical: group activities alone are insufficient for people who cannot participate, and everyday meaningful occupation matters as much as formal programming.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"Activities and engagement account for 21.4% of positive family reviews in our data, and resident happiness for 27.1%. But the evidence base is clear that group activities are not enough, particularly for people with moderate to advanced dementia who may not be able to join a group session. Our Good Practice review found that Montessori-inspired approaches and everyday household tasks, such as folding, watering plants, or sorting objects, can provide meaningful engagement for people who can no longer follow structured activities. None of this can be confirmed or ruled out here. Ask specifically what the home does for your parent on a day when they cannot or do not want to join a group.","evidence_base":"The Good Practice evidence review found that tailored one-to-one activities, including familiar domestic tasks, reduce agitation and improve wellbeing in people with dementia more reliably than group-based programming alone.","watch_out":"Ask the activities coordinator to describe what they would do for a resident with advanced dementia who becomes distressed in group settings. If the answer focuses only on group sessions or television, ask what one-to-one options exist and how often they happen."}

  Verified by inspector

• Is the home well-led?

  Not yet rated

  {"found":"The well-led domain was not individually rated at the July 2023 inspection. The home is operated by Aria Healthcare Group Ltd, with a registered manager and a nominated individual named in the registration details. The overall Inadequate rating strongly suggests that governance and leadership failings were a significant factor, since an Inadequate rating typically reflects systemic rather than isolated problems. Leadership stability is one of the strongest predictors of quality trajectory in care homes.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"An Inadequate rating almost always has a leadership dimension. In our Good Practice evidence review, management stability was identified as one of the clearest predictors of whether a care home improves or continues to decline. High staff turnover, weak governance, and a culture where problems are hidden rather than addressed are warning signs you can sometimes detect on a visit. Ask how long the current registered manager has been in post, what has changed since the 2023 inspection, and whether the home is now under an improvement plan. The fact that more recent inspection data (September 2024) appears to show improved domain ratings is potentially encouraging, but you should read that updated report in full before drawing conclusions.","evidence_base":"The Good Practice evidence review found that care homes where staff feel able to raise concerns without fear, and where managers are visible on the floor rather than office-based, consistently outperform those where leadership is remote or defensive.","watch_out":"Ask the registered manager directly: how long have you been in this role, what were the main failings identified in the 2023 inspection, and what specific changes have been made since then? A manager who answers with detail and transparency is a very different signal from one who gives vague reassurances."}

  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 cares for younger adults under 65 as well as older residents, supporting people with physical disabilities alongside those living with dementia. This range means they're experienced with complex needs and different stages of care.. Gaps or open questions remain on For residents with dementia, the home provides structured support within their broader care approach. Staff work to maintain engagement and dignity for people at different stages of their dementia journey. — areas worth probing directly during a visit.