Care homes in England,
rated by the CQC.

About CQC Ratings

The Care Quality Commission (CQC) is the independent regulator of health and social care in England. They inspect care homes and rate them on five key questions: Is the service Safe, Effective, Caring, Responsive, and Well-led? The overall rating can be Outstanding, Good, Requires Improvement, or Inadequate.

This directory uses official CQC data published under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Data is refreshed monthly to ensure accuracy.

What the numbers tell us about care in England

Across the 14,811 CQC-registered care homes on this site, Outstanding ratings are rare: only 599 homes (4.0%) hold the top rating, while 10,728 (72%) are rated Good. A further 2,234 require improvement and 131 are currently rated Inadequate. Roughly 56% of homes accept dementia residents and 30% are registered to provide nursing care — the remainder offer personal care without on-site nursing, which is a meaningful distinction at the point of admission and can affect whether a resident can stay long-term if their needs increase.

Why carehome.page exists

The CQC publishes care home ratings as official data, but most commercial directories are built for providers or are locked behind paywalls. Families searching for care often find outdated third-party listings, incomplete data, or click-hungry reviews written by people with no experience of the home. This site uses official CQC data — refreshed monthly, free to search, no registration, no ads — to answer the question families actually ask: "What are all the homes in my area, and how do they compare?"

Every home on this site is CQC-registered and inspected. You can filter by location, care type, and CQC rating, then read the actual inspection report from the CQC's own website. You'll also see how many beds each home has, whether it provides nursing, and which specialisms it offers (dementia, learning disabilities, mental health, etc). Most importantly, you'll see the five domain scores — Safe, Effective, Caring, Responsive, Well-led — because the overall rating alone often misses what matters most for your situation.

The data covers England only. Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland have different regulators (Healthcare Improvement Scotland, Care Inspectorate Wales, and RQIA) and are not included. If you're searching across a region that spans England and Scotland (e.g. the Borders), you may need to search both this site and the relevant Scottish regulator's website. Care home costs vary wildly by region and funding stream; this site shows CQC data and contact details but not fees — always ask the home directly.

Frequently asked questions

How recent is the CQC rating shown on each home's page?

CQC inspection frequency varies by previous rating: Inadequate homes are typically re-inspected within six months, Requires Improvement within twelve months, and Good or Outstanding homes can go two to five years between published inspections. A home's headline rating may therefore be several years old; always check the published inspection date and, for older ratings, ask the manager whether anything material has changed (registered manager, ownership, or staff retention).

Who pays for care — and what determines the council contribution?

Anyone with capital above £23,250 (the upper threshold across England in 2025/26) is typically a "self-funder" and pays the full weekly fee. Below £14,250, the local authority funds the placement subject to a means-tested contribution from income. Between those thresholds, a sliding scale applies. Councils set their own "personal budget" rate per week — and where a home charges more than that rate, families are usually asked for a "top-up" paid by a third party. Top-up rules are a frequent source of disputes; ask both the home and the council for the figures in writing before signing.

Is a higher-rated home always the better choice?

Not always. CQC ratings are point-in-time judgements covering the whole service; an Outstanding home with a long waiting list may serve your relative less well than a Good home a mile away with a vacancy, a continuity of care record, and a registered manager who has been in post for years. The five domain scores (Safe, Effective, Caring, Responsive, Well-led) often tell a more useful story than the headline. A home rated Good overall but Outstanding on "Caring" is a meaningfully different setting from one rated Good overall but Requires Improvement on "Safe".

How do I shortlist a home?

Start with the postcode and care type, then narrow by recency of inspection and the domain scores that matter most for your situation (e.g. dementia residents — Effective and Responsive; nursing residents — Safe). Visit at least three homes in person, ideally at lunchtime and at a quieter weekend slot. Ask to see the most recent "you said, we did" notice, recent meal menus, and the activity calendar. The care home visit checklist on this site covers the questions worth asking on the day.

Practical considerations when choosing a care home

Beyond the CQC rating, several practical factors shape the day-to-day experience. Staffing continuity matters more than most families realize: a home with high staff turnover often has poorer outcomes for residents regardless of its headline rating. Ask whether the registered manager has been in post for at least two years and what the typical tenure is for care staff. Homes with experienced staff are better at noticing subtle changes in resident health and maintaining consistent care routines, which is especially important for people with dementia or complex medical needs.

Location and accessibility affect both immediate placement and long-term wellbeing. A home five miles closer to family members receives more visitors, which correlates with better mental health and faster identification of problems. Check whether the home is on a bus route if your relative is younger and more mobile. For older adults, proximity to the GP surgery and hospital matters for coordinating care after discharge or medical appointments. Some homes are remote by design; this can suit people seeking quieter environments but isolates those who value frequent family contact.

Funding mismatches are a common source of problems later. Council-funded placements often come with "top-up" fees when a home's charges exceed the council's personal budget. These are supposed to be optional (no one should be forced to pay), but disputes arise frequently. Before admission, get the council's assessment and the home's charges in writing, and ask the manager directly what happens if top-ups aren't paid — ideally have this in writing too. For nursing placements, check whether continuing healthcare (CHC) funding has been considered; if a person has substantial nursing needs, they may be eligible for fully-funded NHS continuing care, which changes the financial picture entirely.

Transitions matter. Homes vary dramatically in how they settle new residents. Some pair newcomers with a named key worker and allow an extended settling-in period with reduced activities; others assume people will integrate quickly. For people with dementia, anxiety disorders, or autism, a poor transition can cause weeks of distress. Ask homes how they approach settling in and whether they'll allow a family member to visit frequently in the first month. Some homes also manage discharge poorly — if someone needs to leave due to worsening health or poor fit, the process should involve the family and the local authority, not be precipitous.

Care plan reviews are legally required but often feel perfunctory. Good homes review care plans every month in the first three months, then quarterly, with the resident and family involved. Poor homes conduct them on paper without input. Ask the manager how often plans are reviewed, who attends, and what happens when needs change mid-year. Check whether the home has noticed and acted on your relative's changing needs in the past — this is a leading indicator of whether reviews are meaningful or tick-box exercises.

Understanding CQC domain scores — and why they matter more than the headline rating

A care home's overall rating (Outstanding, Good, Requires Improvement, Inadequate) is a single number, but the five domain scores tell you what actually works and what doesn't. Two homes rated "Good" can be very different: one might be Good across all five domains, while another might be Outstanding on Caring but Requires Improvement on Safe. For someone with complex needs, the second home is worse despite the same headline rating.

Safe: This covers infection control, medicines management, pressure ulcer prevention, and safeguarding procedures. It's especially important for nursing homes and for older adults. An Outstanding score here suggests robust systems and staff training; a Requires Improvement score suggests medication errors or safeguarding concerns have been identified.

Effective: This assesses whether the home actually improves or maintains people's health and wellbeing. Homes strong here have good relationships with GPs and hospitals, manage pressure ulcers actively, coordinate therapy, and prevent unnecessary hospital admissions. For dementia and rehabilitation, this is often the most important domain.

Caring: This evaluates whether staff treat residents with kindness, respect, and involve families. A home can be Safe and Effective but lack warmth; the Caring domain captures whether staff seem to know and like the residents. It's worth visiting at mealtimes to observe this directly.

Responsive: Does the home adapt to people's needs, or do people adapt to the home's routines? Homes strong here offer flexible mealtimes, flexible activities, and quick response to requests. For younger residents or those with strong preferences, this matters a lot.

Well-led: This reflects management quality, staff morale, and whether the home is improving. A home with strong leadership usually has lower staff turnover, better documentation, and a clearer sense of direction. Poor leadership often correlates with staff turnover, missed safeguarding concerns, and slow response to CQC action points.

Regional differences and funding variations

Care home availability and costs vary dramatically by region. Bristol and other large cities have many homes but higher costs and longer waiting lists; rural areas may have fewer options but sometimes shorter waits and lower fees. Councils also set different personal budgets: a home costing £650 per week might be fully funded in one council area but trigger a £150-per-week top-up somewhere else. Before narrowing your search geographically, understand the council's budget and waiting times — you may find a better home a few postcodes away with the same funding and much shorter wait. Commissioning teams at local authorities can help; ask them which homes they regularly place people with your relative's care needs — this is often a better starting point than Google.

CQC inspection timelines and what they reveal about care quality

CQC inspection frequency is not random — it's risk-based. Homes rated Inadequate face reinspection within 6 months; those rated Requires Improvement within 12 months; Good or Outstanding homes may not be inspected for 2–5 years. This means an Outstanding rating from 2021 may no longer reflect current conditions if the manager has since left, staffing has changed, or the provider has taken on additional homes. Always check the inspection date on each home's page — if it's older than 18 months, ask the manager directly whether significant changes have occurred: staff turnover, ownership changes, or new care routes. Homes that proactively ask for reinspection (some do, voluntarily) often score higher, because the inspection process itself drives improvement. Conversely, homes with very old ratings may be "coasting" — they're not bad enough to trigger early reinspection but also not actively improving.

Hidden signals: when homes publish inspection reports before the CQC

Some homes receive inspection reports and immediately publish them on their own website, while others wait for the CQC to formally release them. Homes that publish early are often proud of their results and transparent with families; homes that delay publishing are often managing concerns or poor scores. When comparing two similar homes, the one that willingly shares its report early usually signals stronger management confidence. Similarly, homes that proactively respond to CQC findings (publishing detailed action plans, inviting follow-up visits) tend to demonstrate better governance than those that release only the minimum required information. You won't find this signal on rating pages alone — it requires visiting a few homes' websites to observe the difference.

The care home market is changing: what's happening in 2025 and beyond

Several trends are reshaping care home availability and costs across England. First, consolidation: small independent providers are being bought by large chains, which sometimes improves standards but often increases costs and reduces local flexibility. Second, closures: some older, smaller homes (especially those with 8–15 beds) are closing because they can't compete on wages with NHS trusts and larger chains — this is reducing choice in many postcodes. Third, specialist provision is growing: homes are increasingly positioning around dementia, learning disabilities, or mental health, rather than generic residential care. If your relative needs general residential care without specialty support, you may have fewer options than you did five years ago. Finally, nursing care is increasingly difficult to staff; many nursing home beds are closed because recruitment and retention have collapsed. If your relative needs ongoing nursing care, start your search early — waiting lists are longer and options fewer. Understanding these trends helps explain why "average" positions matter: even Good-rated homes are harder to access now than they were pre-pandemic.