Home Close 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 beds72
- SpecialismsCaring for adults over 65 yrs, Dementia
- Last inspected2020-02-05
The Evidence
What the review data, the inspection reports, and the dementia-care evidence base tell us about this home.
What families say
The way staff approach their work seems to make a real difference here. Families describe team members who bring genuine patience and warmth to their daily care. People talk about seeing their relatives regain a sense of dignity they'd lost elsewhere, particularly those who'd struggled in hospital settings.
The eight family priority themes
- Staff warmth72
- Compassion & dignity72
- Cleanliness70
- Activities & engagement65
- Food quality65
- Healthcare70
- Management & leadership72
- Resident happiness70
What inspectors found
Inspected 2020-02-05
Is this home safe?
Is the care effective?
The effective domain was rated Good at the February 2021 inspection. The published text does not describe how care plans are constructed, how frequently they are reviewed, what dementia training staff receive, how GP access is arranged, or how food quality and dietary needs are managed. The home holds a nursing registration, which means it is equipped in principle to manage complex health needs. No concerns were recorded, but no supporting evidence is available in the published text to explain what Good looks like here in practice.Is this home caring?
The caring domain was rated Good at the February 2021 inspection. No specific inspector observations, resident quotes, or family testimonies appear in the published text to illustrate what this looks like in practice at Home Close. A Good rating for caring indicates inspectors did not find cause for concern, but the absence of observed detail means there is nothing in the published record to confirm how staff interact with residents day to day, how privacy is protected, or how individual preferences are respected.Is the home responsive?
The responsive domain was rated Good at the February 2021 inspection. The published text does not describe the activities programme, how individual preferences and life histories are recorded and used, how the home supports people who cannot join group activities, or how complaints are handled. A dementia specialism suggests the home is designed to meet these needs, but no specific evidence of how it does so is available from the published findings.Is the home well-led?
The well-led domain was rated Good at the February 2021 inspection. A registered manager, Mrs Ioana Pop, and a nominated individual, Mrs Helen Gidlow, are named in the published record. The published text does not describe manager visibility on the floor, how staff are supported to raise concerns, what governance processes are in place, or how the home has responded to the significant operational pressures of the period since the inspection. The rating indicates no concerns were identified, but the evidence base behind it is not visible in the published text.
Source: CQC inspection report →
What the evidence base says
Home Close provides specialist care for people over 65, with particular expertise in supporting those living with dementia. The team's approach to dementia care appears to help residents who've found other settings challenging. Families describe seeing their relatives settle in ways they hadn't managed elsewhere, suggesting the staff understand how to create the right environment for people with dementia. All 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
Home Close holds a Good rating across all five inspection domains, which is a positive baseline, but the published inspection text contains very little specific detail about day-to-day life for your parent. Scores reflect the Good rating rather than rich, observed evidence, so the true picture requires a visit and direct questions to the home.
Homes in East typically score 68–82.The three-lens summary
What families tell us
The way staff approach their work seems to make a real difference here. Families describe team members who bring genuine patience and warmth to their daily care. People talk about seeing their relatives regain a sense of dignity they'd lost elsewhere, particularly those who'd struggled in hospital settings.
What inspectors have recorded
What comes through in family experiences is how staff support extends beyond just the person they're caring for. During those incredibly tough final weeks, families found the team understood their needs too. The care approach seems well-suited to residents with dementia, with several families noting real improvements in their relatives' wellbeing.
How it sits against good practice
For families navigating these decisions, hearing from others who've walked this path can help you know what questions to ask when you visit.
Worth a visit
Home Close in Fulbourn was rated Good across all five inspection domains at its last full inspection in February 2021, and a monitoring review in July 2023 found no evidence to change that rating. The home is a 72-bed nursing home run by Healthcare Homes Group Limited, registered to care for adults over 65 including people living with dementia. A named registered manager and a nominated individual are recorded as being in post. These are positive structural markers, but the published inspection text is unusually brief and contains almost no specific observations about day-to-day life inside the home. Because the available published material is so limited, a Good rating alone cannot answer the questions that matter most to you as a family. You should plan a visit, ideally at a mealtime, and ask the home to show you last week's actual staffing rota (counting permanent versus agency names, especially on nights), the activities record for the dementia unit, and how staff would communicate with you if your parent had a difficult day. The inspection is now over four years old, which means you are relying heavily on the 2023 monitoring note rather than a fresh, detailed assessment. Treat the Good rating as a starting point, not a final answer.
The three questions to ask when you visitSave this home. Compare it against your shortlist.
Let our analysis show you how Home Close Care Home measures up against the other homes you’re considering. Free account.
In Their Own Words
How Home Close Care Home describes itself — collected from its own website. DCC has not edited or independently verified the content in this tab.
Where dignity matters most in life's difficult moments
Dedicated nursing home Support in Fulbourn
When families face tough decisions about care, they're looking for somewhere that understands what really matters. Home Close in Fulbourn offers specialist dementia support in a peaceful village setting. Families who've been through some of life's hardest times here speak about finding exactly what they needed when it mattered most.
Who they care for
Home Close provides specialist care for people over 65, with particular expertise in supporting those living with dementia.
The team's approach to dementia care appears to help residents who've found other settings challenging. Families describe seeing their relatives settle in ways they hadn't managed elsewhere, suggesting the staff understand how to create the right environment for people with dementia.
“For families navigating these decisions, hearing from others who've walked this path can help you know what questions to ask when you visit.”
DCC does not edit or curate content in this tab. For independently curated information, see The Evidence and DCC Verdict.
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
Home Close holds a Good rating across all five inspection domains, which is a positive baseline, but the published inspection text contains very little specific detail about day-to-day life for your parent. Scores reflect the Good rating rather than rich, observed evidence, so the true picture requires a visit and direct questions to the home.
Homes in East typically score 68–82.The three-lens summary
What families tell us
The way staff approach their work seems to make a real difference here. Families describe team members who bring genuine patience and warmth to their daily care. People talk about seeing their relatives regain a sense of dignity they'd lost elsewhere, particularly those who'd struggled in hospital settings.
What inspectors have recorded
What comes through in family experiences is how staff support extends beyond just the person they're caring for. During those incredibly tough final weeks, families found the team understood their needs too. The care approach seems well-suited to residents with dementia, with several families noting real improvements in their relatives' wellbeing.
How it sits against good practice
For families navigating these decisions, hearing from others who've walked this path can help you know what questions to ask when you visit.
Worth a visit
Home Close in Fulbourn was rated Good across all five inspection domains at its last full inspection in February 2021, and a monitoring review in July 2023 found no evidence to change that rating. The home is a 72-bed nursing home run by Healthcare Homes Group Limited, registered to care for adults over 65 including people living with dementia. A named registered manager and a nominated individual are recorded as being in post. These are positive structural markers, but the published inspection text is unusually brief and contains almost no specific observations about day-to-day life inside the home. Because the available published material is so limited, a Good rating alone cannot answer the questions that matter most to you as a family. You should plan a visit, ideally at a mealtime, and ask the home to show you last week's actual staffing rota (counting permanent versus agency names, especially on nights), the activities record for the dementia unit, and how staff would communicate with you if your parent had a difficult day. The inspection is now over four years old, which means you are relying heavily on the 2023 monitoring note rather than a fresh, detailed assessment. Treat the Good rating as a starting point, not a final answer.
The three questions to ask when you visitSave this home. Compare it against your shortlist.
Let our analysis show you how Home Close Care Home measures up against the other homes you’re considering. Free account.
In Their Own Words
How Home Close Care Home describes itself — collected from its own website. DCC has not edited or independently verified the content in this tab.
Where dignity matters most in life's difficult moments
Dedicated nursing home Support in Fulbourn
When families face tough decisions about care, they're looking for somewhere that understands what really matters. Home Close in Fulbourn offers specialist dementia support in a peaceful village setting. Families who've been through some of life's hardest times here speak about finding exactly what they needed when it mattered most.
Who they care for
Home Close provides specialist care for people over 65, with particular expertise in supporting those living with dementia.
The team's approach to dementia care appears to help residents who've found other settings challenging. Families describe seeing their relatives settle in ways they hadn't managed elsewhere, suggesting the staff understand how to create the right environment for people with dementia.
Management & ethos
What comes through in family experiences is how staff support extends beyond just the person they're caring for. During those incredibly tough final weeks, families found the team understood their needs too. The care approach seems well-suited to residents with dementia, with several families noting real improvements in their relatives' wellbeing.
“For families navigating these decisions, hearing from others who've walked this path can help you know what questions to ask when you visit.”
DCC does not edit or curate content in this tab. For independently curated information, see The Evidence and DCC Verdict.
