Swimbridge House Nursing Home

What families say

Families describe how residents can bring their own furniture and photographs to create truly personal spaces. The organised activities programme keeps days interesting — whether that's enjoying visiting entertainment, spending time with therapy animals, or joining outings to local attractions.

Based on 5 Google reviews · 0 reviews on carehome.co.uk · most recent 2026-04-10

The eight family priority themes

• Staff warmth72
• Compassion & dignity72
• Cleanliness70
• Activities & engagement60
• Food quality60
• Healthcare70
• Management & leadership75
• Resident happiness70

What inspectors found

Inspected 2019-01-29 · Report published 2019-01-29 · Inspected 3 times in the last three years

• Is this home safe?

  Good

  {"found":"The Safe domain was rated Good at the January 2019 inspection. The published report does not include specific observations about staffing levels, medicines management, falls recording, or infection control practices. The home is registered as a nursing home, meaning qualified nurses should be available around the clock, but the inspection text does not confirm staffing ratios for day or night shifts. No significant safety concerns were flagged by the regulator when information was reviewed again in July 2023.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"A Good rating for safety means inspectors did not find the kinds of serious gaps that would prompt urgent action. However, the Good Practice evidence from the IFF Research and Leeds Beckett rapid review is clear that night staffing is where safety most often slips in care homes, and this inspection text tells you nothing about overnight cover. Our family review data shows that attentiveness of staff is mentioned in 14% of positive reviews, which means families notice when staff are present and responsive. Until you can ask about night staffing numbers and see a recent rota, you are working with limited information on this point.","evidence_base":"The Good Practice evidence base (IFF Research and Leeds Beckett, 2026) identifies night staffing ratios and reliance on agency staff as two of the most significant and frequently underreported safety risk factors in dementia care homes.","watch_out":"Ask the manager to show you the actual staffing rota for the last two weeks, not a template. Count how many permanent staff were on duty overnight, and ask how sickness cover is arranged on nights."}

  Verified by inspectorMentioned, not assessed

• Is the care effective?

  Good

  {"found":"The Effective domain was rated Good at the January 2019 inspection. The published report provides no specific detail about care plan quality, GP access arrangements, dementia training content, or food provision. The home is registered to care for people living with dementia, which requires appropriate training and care planning, but the inspection text does not describe what this looks like in practice. No concerns were identified when the regulator reviewed available data in July 2023.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"Knowing that a home is rated Good for effectiveness is reassuring, but the Good Practice evidence base is clear that care plans should be living documents, updated regularly and shaped by family input, not completed once at admission. Food quality appears in 20.9% of positive family reviews as a significant marker of genuine care, yet this inspection tells you nothing about menus or mealtime experience. If your parent has dementia, ask specifically what dementia training every member of the care team has completed, not just what is scheduled.","evidence_base":"The Good Practice evidence base highlights that regular, structured dementia-specific training for all care staff, including agency and bank workers, is strongly associated with better outcomes for people living with dementia, particularly in reducing distress and improving quality of life.","watch_out":"Ask the manager how often care plans are reviewed, who is involved in the review, and how families are consulted. Then ask to see an example of how a plan was updated after a resident's needs changed."}

  Verified by inspector

• Is this home caring?

  Good

  {"found":"The Caring domain was rated Good at the January 2019 inspection. The published report does not include specific inspector observations about how staff spoke with residents, whether residents were addressed by their preferred names, or how privacy and dignity were maintained during personal care. The rating indicates inspectors were satisfied with what they found, but the absence of detail means it is not possible to describe exactly what good care looked like in this home at that time.","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 close behind at 55.2%. A Good rating for caring is meaningful, but given the age of this inspection and the lack of specific observations in the published text, you should treat a visit to the home as your primary source of evidence. Watch how staff speak to people in communal areas when they think no one is paying attention. Are they unhurried? Do they use names? Do they respond to someone who seems unsettled? These small moments are your best signal.","evidence_base":"The Good Practice evidence base notes that non-verbal communication, tone of voice, eye contact, and physical presence, matters as much as words for people living with dementia, and that person-led care requires staff to know individual histories and preferences rather than following a generic routine.","watch_out":"During your visit, find a moment to sit in a communal area for ten minutes without staff knowing you are specifically observing. Notice whether staff sit down when speaking to residents, whether they use names, and whether anyone who appears distressed is acknowledged quickly."}

  Verified by inspectorResident testimony recorded

• Is the home responsive?

  Good

  {"found":"The Responsive domain was rated Good at the January 2019 inspection. The published report contains no specific information about the activities programme, how the home meets individual preferences, or how it supports people with advanced dementia to remain engaged. There is no mention of complaint handling, end-of-life care planning, or how the home adapts to changing needs. The Good rating indicates inspectors found adequate evidence of responsiveness, but no detail is available in the published text.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"Activities and engagement appear in 21.4% of positive family reviews, and resident happiness is referenced in 27.1%. The Good Practice evidence base is particularly clear that group activities alone are not sufficient for people with advanced dementia, who need tailored one-to-one engagement, sometimes using Montessori-based approaches or familiar household tasks to support a sense of purpose and continuity. This inspection tells you nothing about whether the home provides this level of individual engagement, so you need to ask directly.","evidence_base":"The Good Practice evidence base identifies individually tailored, non-group activities as a key differentiator in dementia care quality. Homes that rely solely on scheduled group sessions often leave people with advanced dementia disengaged for extended periods.","watch_out":"Ask the activities coordinator to describe a typical day for a resident who cannot join group sessions because of advanced dementia. Ask how many hours of one-to-one time that person would receive each week, and by whom."}

  Verified by inspector

• Is the home well-led?

  Good

  {"found":"The Well-led domain was rated Good at the January 2019 inspection. A named registered manager, Mrs Martine Rosemary Butler, is recorded as being in post, and a nominated individual is also registered. The home improved from Requires Improvement to Good across all five domains, which suggests the leadership team responded constructively to earlier concerns. The published report does not describe the manager's visibility, how staff are supported, or how the home learns from incidents. No concerns were identified during the July 2023 data review.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"The improvement from Requires Improvement to Good is the most positive signal in this inspection record, because it tells you the leadership team identified problems and fixed them rather than defending the status quo. Management and leadership quality appears in 23.4% of positive family reviews. The Good Practice evidence base notes that leadership stability is one of the strongest predictors of sustained quality, so it is worth asking how long the current manager has been in post and whether there have been significant staffing changes recently.","evidence_base":"The Good Practice evidence base identifies leadership stability and a culture in which staff can raise concerns without fear as the two strongest predictors of sustained care quality. Homes with high management turnover tend to show declining quality within 12 to 18 months.","watch_out":"Ask the manager directly how long they have been in post, what prompted the improvement from the previous rating, and how they handle concerns raised by care staff or families. A manager who answers these questions specifically and without defensiveness is a good sign."}

  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 specialises in caring for adults over 65 and has particular experience supporting people living with dementia.. Gaps or open questions remain on For residents with dementia, the combination of familiar belongings in personal rooms and a structured programme of activities helps create reassuring routines. The nursing team understands the importance of maintaining dignity while providing the practical support that becomes necessary as conditions progress. — areas worth probing directly during a visit.