The Old Vicarage Care Home
At a Glance
The information you need to decide whether this home warrants a closer look.
Nursing homes
Staff warmth score
of reviewers answered yes
Good to know
- Registered beds60
- SpecialismsCaring for adults over 65 yrs, Caring for adults under 65 yrs, Dementia
- Last inspected2023-03-18
- Activities programmeThe home maintains clean and pleasant surroundings throughout its various units. While some areas of the building show their age more than others, visitors generally find the environment welcoming and well-kept.
- Visit Website
The Evidence
What the review data, the inspection reports, and the dementia-care evidence base tell us about this home.
What families say
Families often mention how the activity programme brings visible enjoyment to residents' days. The activities team work hard to create structured programmes that keep people engaged, and relatives appreciate seeing photos of their loved ones taking part and clearly enjoying themselves.
Based on 33 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
- Healthcare70
- Management & leadership75
- Resident happiness70
What inspectors found
Inspected 2023-03-18 · Report published 2023-03-18 · Inspected 5 times in the last three years
Is this home safe?
{"found":"The Safe domain was rated Good at the March 2023 inspection, an improvement from the previous Requires Improvement rating. This suggests that concerns identified during the earlier inspection had been addressed to inspectors' satisfaction. The home supports people with dementia, a group where consistent staffing and reliable medicines management are particularly important. No specific detail about staffing numbers, falls management, or medicines processes is available in the published summary. The improvement in this domain is encouraging, but families should seek specific reassurance on night-time arrangements.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"Moving from Requires Improvement to Good in safety is a real positive, because it means inspectors went back and found that earlier problems had been fixed. That said, the published summary does not tell you how many carers are on duty overnight or how heavily the home relies on agency staff. Good Practice research consistently identifies night staffing as the point where safety is most likely to slip, particularly in homes with dementia residents who may become more unsettled after dark. Our family review data shows that attentive staffing is mentioned in around 14% of positive reviews, and families who visit in the evening or at night often notice things that a daytime inspection can miss. Ask to speak to a senior carer who works nights before you make a decision.","evidence_base":"Rapid evidence review findings (IFF Research and Leeds Beckett University, 2026) identify night staffing ratios and agency staff consistency as the two factors most likely to predict whether a care home's safety rating reflects day-to-day reality or only its best daytime performance.","watch_out":"Ask the manager to show you the actual staffing rota for the past two weeks, not the planned template. Count how many permanent staff worked each night shift compared with agency or bank workers, and ask what happens when a night carer calls in sick at short notice."}
Is the care effective?
{"found":"The Effective domain was rated Good, covering care planning, staff training, healthcare access, nutrition, and dementia-specific practice. The home lists dementia as a specialism, which means inspectors would have assessed whether training and care approaches reflect the particular needs of people living with dementia. No specific examples of care plan content, GP involvement, or food provision are recorded in the published summary. The Good rating implies these areas met the inspection standard, but the level of detail available to families is limited.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"A Good Effective rating means inspectors were satisfied that the home knows what it is doing in terms of training, care planning, and healthcare access. For a home that specialises in dementia, this matters a great deal: research from the Leeds Beckett rapid evidence review found that dementia-specific training content, not just completion rates, predicts whether staff can recognise and respond to distress appropriately. Food quality is covered under Effective and accounts for 20.9% of what families mention in positive reviews, yet the published summary gives no detail on menus, choice, or whether residents with swallowing difficulties are well supported. Ask to see a sample week's menu and find out whether a registered dietitian is involved in assessments.","evidence_base":"The Good Practice evidence base identifies care plans as living documents that should be updated after every significant change in a person's condition, and confirms that meaningful GP access, rather than reactive crisis referrals, is a reliable marker of genuinely effective care.","watch_out":"Ask how often your parent's care plan would be formally reviewed, who attends those reviews, and whether you as a family member would be invited. Then ask when the GP last visited the home rather than being called in an emergency."}
Is this home caring?
{"found":"The Caring domain was rated Good, covering staff warmth, dignity, respect, and support for independence. This is the domain most closely connected to the day-to-day experience your parent would have. Inspectors would have observed staff interactions and spoken with residents and relatives to reach this rating. No specific observations, such as whether staff knocked before entering rooms or used preferred names, are recorded in the published summary. The Good rating indicates inspectors were satisfied, but the absence of specific detail means families cannot know exactly what they observed.","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, and compassion and dignity account for 55.2%. A Good Caring rating means inspectors saw enough to be satisfied, but a rating cannot fully capture whether the atmosphere in the home feels genuinely kind or merely professionally correct. Good Practice research shows that non-verbal communication, pace, and the small unrequested gestures, such as a hand on a shoulder or remembering that your dad takes his tea without sugar, matter as much as formal dignity processes. On your visit, pay attention to how staff speak about residents when they think no one is listening, and whether your parent's preferred name is known by everyone you meet.","evidence_base":"The Good Practice evidence base confirms that person-led care requires staff to know individuals deeply, including life history, preferences, and communication styles, and that these details are what distinguish genuinely caring practice from procedural compliance.","watch_out":"During your visit, ask two or three different staff members what your parent's preferred name is and one thing they particularly enjoy or dislike. If staff can answer without checking a file, that is a strong signal that the caring culture is real rather than recorded."}
Is the home responsive?
{"found":"The Responsive domain was rated Good, covering activities, engagement, individualised care, and end-of-life planning. For people with dementia, responsiveness includes whether the home adapts its routines to the person rather than expecting the person to fit the home's schedule. No specific activities, activity schedules, or examples of individual engagement are described in the published summary. End-of-life care planning is also covered under this domain, and the Good rating implies this was assessed positively, though again without specific detail.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"Activities and genuine engagement account for 21.4% of what families mention positively in our review data, and resident happiness accounts for 27.1%. A Good Responsive rating suggests the home was meeting the standard at inspection, but the evidence available here is general rather than specific. Good Practice research is clear that group activities alone are not sufficient for people with advanced dementia: one-to-one engagement, and the use of familiar everyday tasks such as folding, sorting, or gardening, is what maintains a sense of purpose and reduces distress. Ask specifically what would happen on an ordinary Tuesday afternoon if your parent could not or did not want to join a group session.","evidence_base":"The rapid evidence review found that Montessori-based and individualised activity approaches, including familiar domestic tasks and sensory engagement, produce measurably better outcomes for people with dementia than group activity programmes alone.","watch_out":"Ask to see the activities planner for the past month and then ask what provision exists for residents who cannot participate in group sessions. Find out whether there is a dedicated activities coordinator or whether care staff cover activities in addition to their regular duties."}
Is the home well-led?
{"found":"The Well-led domain was rated Good, covering management culture, governance, staff support, and accountability. The home has a named registered manager and a nominated individual representing the provider, Harbour Healthcare Ltd. The improvement from Requires Improvement to Good across the whole inspection suggests that leadership has been effective in driving change since the previous inspection. No specific detail about the manager's tenure, staff turnover, or the culture of the home is recorded in the published summary.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"Management stability is one of the strongest predictors of care quality over time: Good Practice research shows that consistent leadership reduces staff turnover and creates the conditions for a culture where staff feel able to raise concerns. The fact that this home improved from Requires Improvement to Good is evidence that whoever is in charge took earlier concerns seriously and acted on them, which is genuinely reassuring. Communication with families accounts for 11.5% of what drives positive reviews, but the published summary gives no detail on how the home keeps relatives informed or how quickly it responds to concerns. Ask the manager directly how long they have been in post, and ask a relative of a current resident whether they feel kept in the loop.","evidence_base":"The Good Practice evidence base identifies leadership continuity and a culture where staff can speak up without fear as the two management factors most strongly associated with sustained improvement in care quality ratings.","watch_out":"Ask the manager how long they have been in post at this home and what the biggest change they made after the previous inspection was. Then ask a staff member, out of the manager's hearing, whether they feel comfortable raising a concern about a resident's care."}
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 Old Vicarage provides residential and nursing care for adults over 65, with specialist dementia support available. They also care for younger adults who need residential support.. Gaps or open questions remain on For those living with dementia, the home provides specialist care alongside their regular activity programmes. The ability to move between residential and nursing care within the same building helps maintain continuity for residents whose needs change. — areas worth probing directly during a visit.
The DCC Verdict
Our editorial view, built from the three lenses: what families tell us, what inspectors record, and how the home sits against good dementia-care practice.
DCC Family Score
The Old Vicarage Nursing and Residential Care Centre scored Good across all five inspection domains, a meaningful improvement from its previous Requires Improvement rating, but the published report contains limited specific detail to push scores above the 70s with confidence.
Homes in North West typically score 68–82.The three-lens summary
What families tell us
Families often mention how the activity programme brings visible enjoyment to residents' days. The activities team work hard to create structured programmes that keep people engaged, and relatives appreciate seeing photos of their loved ones taking part and clearly enjoying themselves.
What inspectors have recorded
The care team includes staff who families describe as patient and attentive in their daily interactions with residents. However, some families have found it challenging to reach managers when they need to discuss concerns, particularly at weekends when senior staff aren't on duty.
How it sits against good practice
Getting a real sense of daily life at The Old Vicarage means seeing it for yourself — the activities in action, the care teams at work, and how everything comes together.
Worth a visit
The Old Vicarage Nursing and Residential Care Centre, on Fir Tree Lane in Warrington, was rated Good across all five inspection domains at its most recent inspection in March 2023. This is a meaningful improvement from its previous rating of Requires Improvement, and covers safety, staffing, care planning, staff kindness, activities, and management. The home cares for up to 60 people, including adults with dementia and people under 65, and is run by Harbour Healthcare Ltd with a registered manager in post. The honest limitation here is that only a brief published summary is available rather than a full inspection narrative. This means the Good ratings cannot be checked against specific observations, resident quotes, or detailed findings on night staffing, agency use, food quality, or one-to-one activity provision. On a visit, ask to see last week's actual staffing rota (not the template), find out how many permanent carers work nights, and ask whether your parent would be assigned a consistent key worker. Watch how staff interact with residents in corridors and communal areas without prompting: that is where genuine warmth, or the absence of it, tends to show.
The three questions to ask when you visitSave this home. Compare it against your shortlist.
Let our analysis show you how The Old Vicarage Care Home measures up against the other homes you’re considering. Free account.
In Their Own Words
How The Old Vicarage Care Home describes itself — collected from its own website. DCC has not edited or independently verified the content in this tab.
Warrington care home where activities bring real moments of joy
Compassionate Care in Warrington at The Old Vicarage Nursing and Residential Care Centre
When families face the difficult choice of residential care, they need somewhere that balances skilled nursing with genuine warmth. The Old Vicarage Nursing and Residential Care Centre in Warrington offers both residential and nursing care under one roof, which means residents can stay in familiar surroundings even if their needs change over time.
Who they care for
The Old Vicarage provides residential and nursing care for adults over 65, with specialist dementia support available. They also care for younger adults who need residential support.
For those living with dementia, the home provides specialist care alongside their regular activity programmes. The ability to move between residential and nursing care within the same building helps maintain continuity for residents whose needs change.
Management & ethos
The care team includes staff who families describe as patient and attentive in their daily interactions with residents. However, some families have found it challenging to reach managers when they need to discuss concerns, particularly at weekends when senior staff aren't on duty.
The home & environment
The home maintains clean and pleasant surroundings throughout its various units. While some areas of the building show their age more than others, visitors generally find the environment welcoming and well-kept.
“Getting a real sense of daily life at The Old Vicarage means seeing it for yourself — the activities in action, the care teams at work, and how everything comes together.”
DCC does not edit or curate content in this tab. For independently curated information, see The Evidence and DCC Verdict.
