Who they care for

The Rowans provides specialist support for people with dementia, mental health conditions, physical disabilities, and sensory impairments. The home cares for both younger adults under 65 and older adults.

DCC does not edit or curate content in this tab. For independently curated information, see The Evidence and DCC Verdict.

Who they care for

• {"_thumbnail_id":"376734","county":"Greater Manchester","_county":"field_6984c81707f16","postcode":"WN2 5TE","_postcode":"field_6984c857ad520","headline":"Nursing home in Wigan: True Peace of Mind","_headline":"field_6984c8d0ad52b","description":"The Rowans Care Home is a care home near Wigan in the North West. Where specialist care meets genuine warmth in Wigan","_description":"field_6984c901ad530","gmb_name":"The Rowans Care Home","_gmb_name":"field_6984c92ead532","gmb_address":"\ue0c8\n399 Bickershaw Ln, Bickershaw, Wigan WN2 5TE","_gmb_address":"field_6984c936ad533","gmb_phone":"01942 316840","_gmb_phone":"field_6984c97aad537","gmb_star_rating":"5.0","_gmb_star_rating":"field_6984c98cad539","copy_headline":"Where specialist care meets genuine warmth in Wigan","_copy_headline":"field_6984c9b4ad53c","stage":"3.0","_stage":"field_6984c9bcad53d","gmb_business":"Retirement home","_gmb_business":"field_69a771cc07ed9","copy_intro":"The Rowans Care Home in Wigan brings together experienced staff and thoughtful support for people with complex needs. This care home has caught the attention of national award panels for their work with dementia, while families speak warmly about the welcome they receive. Set in the heart of Wigan, The Rowans focuses on creating a supportive environment for residents with various care needs.","_copy_intro":"field_69a7744107eda","copy_management":"The care team at The Rowans appears particularly responsive to residents' needs, with families noting how staff stay engaged and attentive. There's mention of the home working closely with local healthcare teams when managing complex cases.","_copy_management":"field_69a7746a07edd","copy_specialisms":"The Rowans provides specialist support for people with dementia, mental health conditions, physical disabilities, and sensory impairments. The home cares for both younger adults under 65 and older adults.","_copy_specialisms":"field_69a7747507ede","copy_closing":"If you're looking for specialist care in Wigan, particularly for complex needs, The Rowans could be worth exploring further.","_copy_closing":"field_69a7749607ee0","address_1":"339 Bickershaw Lane","_address_1":"field_6984c77407f13","address_2":"Bickershaw","_address_2":"field_6984c77f07f14","town_city":"Wigan","_town_city":"field_6984c78607f15","local_authority":"Wigan","_local_authority":"field_6984c86cad522","cqc_report_date":"2025-07-04T10:49:09Z","_cqc_report_date":"field_6984c87aad523","service_type":"Nursing home","_service_type":"field_6984c89fad527","cqc_link":"https:\/\/www.cqc.org.uk\/location\/1-17709796445","_cqc_link":"field_6984c886ad524","sitelink":"https:\/\/eqcare.org\/care-home\/the-rowans\/","_sitelink":"field_6984c8a6ad528","service_provider":"EQ Care Group Limited","_service_provider":"field_6984c8adad529","regional_location":"North West","_regional_location":"field_6984c8bbad52a","gmb_image":"https:\/\/lh3.googleusercontent.com\/p\/AF1QipNw5TMONxTA6F-_3fjjdHmp_8n8iD65vppsrh7V","_gmb_image":"field_6984c8f2ad52e","gmb_link":"https:\/\/www.google.com\/maps\/place\/The+Rowans+Care+Home\/@53.5151432,-2.5744204,17z\/data=!3m1!4b1!4m6!3m5!1s0x487b070017362d0f:0x1f7efd618e65b977!8m2!3d53.5151432!4d-2.5744204!16s%2Fg%2F11vs2yy1d4","_gmb_link":"field_6984c913ad531","dementia":"1.0","_dementia":"field_6984c93dad534","cqc_rating":"Outstanding","_cqc_rating":"field_6984c948ad535","cqc_score":"1.0","_cqc_score":"field_6984c96bad536","star_rating_count":"11.0","_star_rating_count":"field_6984c9aaad53b","copy_what_people_say":"Families describe feeling genuinely welcomed when they visit, with staff taking time to engage with both residents and their relatives. The team's approachable nature seems to help put people at ease during what can be difficult transitions.","_copy_what_people_say":"field_69a7744a07edb","copy_dementia_":"The home's dementia care has been recognised at national level, reaching finalist status in awards for complex dementia support. This suggests the team is developing thoughtful approaches to supporting people through more challenging aspects of living with dementia.","_copy_dementia_":"field_69a7748807edf","postcode_relationship":"12437","_postcode_relationship":"field_69bb02cad9442","latitude":"53.515033","_latitude":"field_69875b180a63e","longitude":"-2.57563","_longitude":"field_69875b210a63f","gmb_email":"","_gmb_email":"field_6984c985ad538","copy_facilities":"","_copy_facilities":"field_69a7745807edc","review_data":"[Sj C] 5\u2605 \ue838 \ue838 \ue838 \ue838 \ue838: Amazing home and team – finalists in two national awards for the support they give to people with complex dementia enabled joint working with local teams! | [Anslem Okhiria] 5\u2605 \ue838 \ue838 \ue838 \ue838 \ue838: Beautiful home and amazing team \ud83e\udd70 \u2026 | [Mia C] 5\u2605 \ue838 \ue838 \ue838 \ue838 \ue838: Lovely staff and home in general, always feel welcome | [sally lee] 5\u2605 \ue838 \ue838 \ue838 \ue838 \ue838: What a fabulous career lot of staff at the care home, I would recommend it for your loved ones | [Karon Wallace] 5\u2605 \ue838 \ue838 \ue838 \ue838 \ue838: Great company fantastic team nothing too much trouble x","_review_data":"field_69ca61fad6d61","specialisms":"6","_specialisms":"field_6984c896ad526","specialisms_0_specialism_name":"Sensory impairments","_specialisms_0_specialism_name":"field_69873d768bae1","specialisms_1_specialism_name":"Caring for adults under 65 yrs","_specialisms_1_specialism_name":"field_69873d768bae1","specialisms_2_specialism_name":"Dementia","_specialisms_2_specialism_name":"field_69873d768bae1","specialisms_3_specialism_name":"Mental health conditions","_specialisms_3_specialism_name":"field_69873d768bae1","specialisms_4_specialism_name":"Caring for adults over 65 yrs","_specialisms_4_specialism_name":"field_69873d768bae1","specialisms_5_specialism_name":"Physical disabilities","_specialisms_5_specialism_name":"field_69873d768bae1","features":"3","_features":"field_6984c9c6ad53e","features_0_featurename":"Professional\/Skilled","_features_0_featurename":"field_69873d298bae0","features_1_featurename":"Dementia-Specific Care","_features_1_featurename":"field_69873d298bae0","features_2_featurename":"Management\/Leadership","_features_2_featurename":"field_69873d298bae0","_dcc_cqc_beds":"66","_dcc_cqc_rating_safe":"","_dcc_cqc_rating_effective":"","_dcc_cqc_rating_caring":"","_dcc_cqc_rating_responsive":"","_dcc_cqc_rating_well_led":"","_dcc_cqc_report_date":"","_dcc_cqc_previous_rating":"","_dcc_cqc_trajectory":"","_dcc_cqc_enforcement":"none","_dcc_cqc_api_updated":"2026-06-09 17:58:29","_dcc_web_scan_blocked":"0","_dcc_web_dementia_activities":"0","_dcc_web_staff_training":"0","_dcc_web_fees_info":"0","_dcc_web_activities_programme":"0","_dcc_web_staff_profiles":"0","_dcc_web_photo_gallery":"1","_dcc_web_cqc_link":"1","_dcc_web_dementia_mention_reviews":"1","_dcc_web_scan_updated":"2026-06-09 17:58:30","_dcc_score_p1":"55","_dcc_score_p2":"50","_dcc_score_p3":"64","_dcc_score_p4":"86","_dcc_score_p5":"40","_dcc_composite_score":"58.7","_dcc_score_band":"good","_dcc_score_updated":"2026-06-09 17:58:30","cqcbc_location_id":"1-17709796445","cqcbc_provider_id":"1-15033792884","cqcbc_provider_name":"The Rowans Care Home","cqcbc_brand_name":"","cqcbc_local_authority":"Wigan","cqcbc_address_line1":"339 Bickershaw Lane","cqcbc_town_city":"Wigan","cqcbc_county":"","cqcbc_region":"North West","cqcbc_postcode":"WN2 5TE","cqcbc_latitude":"","cqcbc_longitude":"","cqcbc_phone":"01942316740","cqcbc_website":"www.bracebridgecare.org","cqcbc_registration_status":"Registered","cqcbc_registration_date":"2023-10-05","cqcbc_dormancy":"N","cqcbc_number_of_beds":"66","cqcbc_service_type":"Nursing homes","cqcbc_specialisms":"Caring for adults over 65 yrs, Caring for adults under 65 yrs, Dementia, Mental health conditions, Physical disabilities, Sensory impairment","cqcbc_regulated_activities":"Accommodation for persons who require nursing or personal care, Treatment of disease, disorder or injury","cqcbc_overall_rating":"Outstanding","cqcbc_overall_report_date":"","cqcbc_overall_report_link_id":"","cqcbc_rating_safe":"Good","cqcbc_rating_effective":"Good","cqcbc_rating_caring":"Outstanding","cqcbc_rating_responsive":"Good","cqcbc_rating_well_led":"Outstanding","cqcbc_previous_overall_rating":"","cqcbc_rating_trend":"stable","cqcbc_inspection_count":"0","cqcbc_last_report_date":"2025-01-22","cqcbc_last_inspection_date":"2025-01-22","cqcbc_latest_report_link_id":"","cqcbc_fetched_at":"2026-05-07 09:12:54","cqcbc_family_score":"79","cqcbc_score_staff_warmth":"85","cqcbc_score_compassion_dignity":"88","cqcbc_score_resident_happiness":"75","cqcbc_score_cleanliness":"70","cqcbc_score_management_leadership":"85","cqcbc_score_activities_engagement":"70","cqcbc_score_food_quality":"65","cqcbc_score_healthcare":"70","cqcbc_score_explanation":"The Rowans earned an Outstanding overall rating, with inspectors singling out Caring and Well-led as exceptional. The score reflects genuine strength in the areas families care about most, tempered by the limited narrative detail available in the published findings, which means some important questions remain for you to ask on a visit.","cqcbc_checklist_verified":"[{\"title\":\"Outstanding Caring rating confirmed\",\"detail\":\"Inspectors awarded an Outstanding rating in the Caring domain, confirming that warmth, dignity, and respect for the people living here met the highest standard. This is awarded to fewer than five percent of homes.\",\"source\":\"Inspector assessment, January 2025\"},{\"title\":\"Outstanding Well-led rating confirmed\",\"detail\":\"Inspectors awarded an Outstanding rating in the Well-led domain, confirming strong governance, a positive culture, and accountable leadership at the time of inspection.\",\"source\":\"Inspector assessment, January 2025\"},{\"title\":\"Visible, approachable management\",\"detail\":\"The registered manager is named and registered with the regulator. An Outstanding Well-led rating requires inspectors to have found specific evidence of visible, effective management. The named manager is Mr Christopher Paul Durnan.\",\"source\":\"Registration record and Inspector assessment, January 2025\"}]","cqcbc_checklist_mentioned":"[{\"title\":\"Dementia care specialism\",\"detail\":\"The home is registered to provide dementia care and has been noted as a finalist in awards for complex dementia support, which suggests a purposeful approach. The specific practices behind this are not detailed in the available findings.\",\"source\":\"Registration record and home information\"},{\"title\":\"Staffing levels adequate\",\"detail\":\"A Good Safe rating requires inspectors to have been satisfied that staffing was sufficient, but no specific ratios or rota details are published in the available report.\",\"source\":\"Inspector assessment, January 2025\"},{\"title\":\"Care plans reflect individual preferences\",\"detail\":\"A Good Effective rating requires some evidence that care planning meets individual needs, but the level of personalisation and review frequency are not described in the available narrative.\",\"source\":\"Inspector assessment, January 2025\"},{\"title\":\"Healthcare access\",\"detail\":\"A Good Effective rating covers GP and healthcare access as part of its scope, indicating the standard was met, but no specific examples of healthcare monitoring or referral practice are available.\",\"source\":\"Inspector assessment, January 2025\"},{\"title\":\"Home learns from incidents\",\"detail\":\"An Outstanding Well-led rating typically requires evidence of learning from incidents and complaints. This is implied by the rating but not described in specific detail in the available text.\",\"source\":\"Inspector assessment, January 2025\"}]","cqcbc_checklist_not_assessed":"[{\"title\":\"Staff described as warm and welcoming\",\"detail\":\"The Outstanding Caring rating strongly implies this, but no direct inspector observations or resident testimony are available in the published findings to confirm specific interactions.\",\"source\":\"Ask the home directly\"},{\"title\":\"Staff respond to distress appropriately\",\"detail\":\"Not covered in the published findings. This is especially important if your parent has dementia or a mental health condition.\",\"source\":\"Ask the home directly\"},{\"title\":\"Residents not rushed\",\"detail\":\"Not covered in the published findings. Observe this yourself at mealtimes and during personal care handovers on your visit.\",\"source\":\"Ask the home directly\"},{\"title\":\"Good food quality with choice\",\"detail\":\"Not covered in the published findings. Ask to see a week's menu and, if possible, visit at a mealtime.\",\"source\":\"Ask the home directly\"},{\"title\":\"Clean, hygienic premises\",\"detail\":\"Not covered in specific detail in the published findings. Observe the environment yourself on your visit, including communal bathrooms and the kitchen area if permitted.\",\"source\":\"Ask the home directly\"},{\"title\":\"Varied activity programme\",\"detail\":\"Not covered in specific detail. Ask to see the activities schedule for the past two weeks and ask what provision exists for people who cannot join group sessions.\",\"source\":\"Ask the home directly\"},{\"title\":\"Privacy and dignity respected\",\"detail\":\"Implied by the Outstanding Caring rating but not described with specific observations in the available findings.\",\"source\":\"Ask the home directly\"},{\"title\":\"Dementia-friendly environment\",\"detail\":\"Not covered in the published findings. Ask about signage, colour contrast, safe outdoor access, and how the environment supports orientation.\",\"source\":\"Ask the home directly\"},{\"title\":\"Families welcomed\",\"detail\":\"Not covered in the published findings. Ask whether there are any restrictions on visiting times and how families are involved in care planning reviews.\",\"source\":\"Ask the home directly\"},{\"title\":\"End-of-life plans in place\",\"detail\":\"Not covered in the published findings. Ask how the home approaches advance care planning and whether it works with a local hospice or palliative care team.\",\"source\":\"Ask the home directly\"},{\"title\":\"Staff trained in dementia care\",\"detail\":\"Not covered in specific detail. Ask what the dementia training programme covers, how recently staff on each unit completed it, and whether any staff hold dementia-specific qualifications.\",\"source\":\"Ask the home directly\"},{\"title\":\"Communication with families\",\"detail\":\"Not covered in the published findings. Ask how the home routinely updates families, not just in a crisis, and what happens if you want to flag a concern.\",\"source\":\"Ask the home directly\"},{\"title\":\"Care plan review frequency\",\"detail\":\"Not covered in the published findings. Ask how often care plans are formally reviewed and whether families are invited to contribute.\",\"source\":\"Ask the home directly\"},{\"title\":\"Night staffing numbers\",\"detail\":\"Not covered in the published findings. Ask how many carers and senior staff are on duty overnight for the number of residents on each unit.\",\"source\":\"Ask the home directly\"},{\"title\":\"Agency staff usage\",\"detail\":\"Not covered in the published findings. Ask what proportion of shifts are covered by agency staff and whether the same agency workers are used regularly.\",\"source\":\"Ask the home directly\"},{\"title\":\"Outdoor space and gardens\",\"detail\":\"Not covered in the published findings. Ask whether there is secure outdoor access and whether it is available to people with dementia independently or only with escort.\",\"source\":\"Ask the home directly\"},{\"title\":\"One-to-one activities for people who cannot join groups\",\"detail\":\"Not covered in the published findings. This is a critical question if your parent has more advanced dementia. Ask how many planned one-to-one engagement sessions each person receives each week.\",\"source\":\"Ask the home directly\"}]","cqcbc_verdict":"The Rowans Care Home on Bickershaw Lane in Wigan was rated Outstanding at its assessment in January 2025, with inspectors awarding Outstanding in both Caring and Well-led, and Good across Safe, Effective, and Responsive. An Outstanding Caring rating is rare: fewer than five percent of care homes in England achieve it, and it directly reflects the warmth, dignity, and respect that families tell us matter most. The home is registered to support people with dementia, mental health conditions, physical disabilities, and sensory impairments, and cares for both younger adults and older adults across 66 beds.\n\nThe published report narrative is limited, which means there is less specific inspector observation and direct testimony available than families would ideally want to read. The headline ratings are a strong signal, but they are not a substitute for your own visit. When you go, pay particular attention to how staff interact with your parent in unplanned moments, in corridors, at mealtimes, and when someone is distressed. Ask the manager directly about staffing levels on nights, agency use, and how families are kept informed. The Outstanding Well-led rating suggests the home has strong governance, but leadership quality is best confirmed by meeting the registered manager in person.","cqcbc_domain_safe":"{\"found\":\"Inspectors rated Safe as Good at the January 2025 assessment. This means the home met the required standard for protecting people from harm, managing medicines, and maintaining adequate staffing. A Good rating in Safe indicates no significant concerns were identified, though it falls short of Outstanding. The detailed narrative behind this rating is not published in the available report text, so the specific observations that informed it are not accessible here.\",\"quotes\":[],\"family_meaning\":\"A Good Safe rating tells you that inspectors did not find the kinds of serious gaps, such as unsafe medicines management, inadequate night staffing, or unaddressed falls risks, that would give immediate cause for concern. Good Practice research consistently identifies night staffing as the point where safety most commonly slips in care homes, and agency reliance as a factor that undermines consistency for people with dementia who depend on familiar faces. Because the inspection narrative is not detailed here, you cannot rely on the published findings alone to answer those questions. Our review data shows that fourteen percent of positive family reviews specifically mention staff attentiveness as a safety signal, and the best way to assess this for your parent is to ask for the actual staffing rota, not the template.\",\"evidence_base\":\"The IFF Research and Leeds Beckett rapid evidence review found that consistent staffing, particularly at night, is one of the strongest predictors of physical safety for people with dementia. Homes with low agency use and stable permanent teams have significantly better incident profiles.\",\"watch_out\":\"Ask the manager to show you last week's actual staffing rota for the dementia unit, not the planned template. Count how many permanent staff names appear on night shifts compared with agency names, and ask what the usual ratio of carers to residents is after 8pm.\"}","cqcbc_domain_effective":"{\"found\":\"Inspectors rated Effective as Good at the January 2025 assessment. This domain covers how well the home uses its knowledge and skills to deliver care, including training, care planning, healthcare access, and nutrition. A Good rating indicates the required standard was met. No detailed narrative observations, care plan examples, or training records are available in the published findings to give a more granular picture.\",\"quotes\":[],\"family_meaning\":\"Good Practice research identifies care plans as living documents that should be reviewed regularly with family input, not filed and forgotten. A Good Effective rating tells you the home is meeting baseline standards here, but it does not tell you how often your parent's care plan would be reviewed or whether you would be invited to contribute. Food quality is a marker of genuine care in our review data, mentioned in over twenty percent of positive family reviews, and it is not specifically addressed in the available findings. Ask to see an example care plan on your visit, with personal details removed, so you can judge whether it reads as a document about a real person or a compliance checklist.\",\"evidence_base\":\"The Leeds Beckett evidence review found that dementia-specific training, particularly training that goes beyond basic awareness to cover communication, behavioural support, and end-of-life care, is a strong predictor of care quality. Ask what the training programme covers and how recently staff on the dementia unit completed it.\",\"watch_out\":\"Ask how often care plans are formally reviewed, who is invited to those reviews, and whether families can request an update outside the scheduled cycle. Then ask to sit in the dining room at a mealtime: the pace, the assistance offered, and the choice available will tell you more about Effective care than any document.\"}","cqcbc_domain_caring":"{\"found\":\"Inspectors rated Caring as Outstanding at the January 2025 assessment. This is the highest possible rating and is awarded to fewer than one in twenty care homes in England. The Caring domain covers how staff treat people: warmth, dignity, respect, privacy, and support for independence. An Outstanding rating in this domain means inspectors found compelling, specific evidence that staff go beyond compliance and genuinely connect with the people they care for. The detailed observations and testimony that supported this rating are not reproduced in the available report text.\",\"quotes\":[],\"family_meaning\":\"Staff warmth is the single biggest driver of family satisfaction in our review data, cited in 57.3 percent of positive reviews, and compassion and dignity together account for a further 55.2 percent. An Outstanding Caring rating is the strongest official signal available that the staff here are likely to treat your parent as an individual. Good Practice research shows that for people with dementia, non-verbal communication, unhurried pace, and being addressed by a preferred name can be as important as any clinical intervention for wellbeing. Because the narrative is limited, the best way to verify this rating is to observe it yourself: watch how staff greet your parent when you arrive together, and notice whether interactions feel rushed or genuinely present.\",\"evidence_base\":\"The IFF Research rapid evidence review found that person-led care, defined as staff knowing the individual's history, preferences, and communication style, is one of the strongest predictors of emotional wellbeing for people with dementia. Homes rated Outstanding for Caring typically show this knowledge in everyday interactions, not just in care plan documents.\",\"watch_out\":\"When you visit, ask a member of staff on the unit what your parent's preferred name would be, how they would like to spend a typical morning, and one thing that comforts them when they are anxious. The specificity of the answer, not the policy on the wall, will tell you whether this Outstanding rating reflects everyday practice.\"}","cqcbc_domain_responsive":"{\"found\":\"Inspectors rated Responsive as Good at the January 2025 assessment. This domain covers whether the home tailors its care to individual needs, provides meaningful activities, supports independence, and plans appropriately for end of life. A Good rating indicates the required standard was met across these areas. The home supports a range of needs including dementia, mental health conditions, physical disabilities, and sensory impairments, which means the activity programme and individual engagement approaches need to be genuinely flexible.\",\"quotes\":[],\"family_meaning\":\"Activities and engagement account for 21.4 percent of positive family reviews in our data, and resident happiness is cited in 27.1 percent. A Good Responsive rating tells you the home is meeting the standard, but it does not tell you whether activities are genuinely tailored to your parent or whether the programme is primarily group-based. Good Practice research consistently shows that people with more advanced dementia, who cannot participate in group activities, are at greatest risk of spending long periods without meaningful engagement. One-to-one activity provision is the key question here, and it is not addressed in the available findings.\",\"evidence_base\":\"The Leeds Beckett evidence review found that Montessori-based and everyday household task approaches to activity are particularly effective for people with dementia, offering a sense of purpose and continuity that group entertainment activities do not replicate. Ask specifically what provision exists for people who cannot join group sessions.\",\"watch_out\":\"Ask the activities coordinator to describe what engagement looks like for a resident with advanced dementia who cannot join a group session. Ask how many one-to-one activity sessions are planned each week per person, and ask to see the activities schedule for the past two weeks, not a sample plan, to see what actually happened.\"}","cqcbc_domain_well_led":"{\"found\":\"Inspectors rated Well-led as Outstanding at the January 2025 assessment. This domain covers the quality of management, governance, culture, and accountability. An Outstanding Well-led rating means inspectors found evidence of a culture that consistently learns, empowers staff, and drives improvement. The registered manager is named as Mr Christopher Paul Durnan, with Ms Samantha Crawley as the nominated individual for the operating organisation, EQ Care Group Limited. The detailed findings behind this rating are not reproduced in the available report text.\",\"quotes\":[],\"family_meaning\":\"Management quality accounts for 23.4 percent of positive family reviews in our data, and Good Practice research identifies leadership stability as one of the strongest predictors of a home's quality trajectory over time. An Outstanding Well-led rating, combined with an Outstanding Caring rating, is a particularly encouraging combination: it suggests the culture of warmth observed in Caring is not accidental but is actively shaped and sustained by the leadership team. Communication with families accounts for 11.5 percent of positive reviews, and the well-led domain is where that accountability sits. Ask on your visit how the manager ensures families are kept informed, not just in a crisis but routinely.\",\"evidence_base\":\"The IFF Research evidence review found that homes where staff feel empowered to raise concerns without fear, and where managers are visible on the floor rather than office-bound, consistently perform better across all care domains. Bottom-up empowerment is a hallmark of genuinely Outstanding leadership.\",\"watch_out\":\"Ask the registered manager how long they have been in post and what the biggest change they have made to the home in the past year has been. Then ask a care worker you meet on the unit the same second question. If the answers are broadly consistent, that tells you the leadership culture is real rather than performative.\"}","cqcbc_ai_generated_date":"2026-05-07 09:12:54","_seopress_titles_title":"The Rowans Care Home – Dementia, Residential, Respite & Nursing Home in Wigan, Greater Manchester","_seopress_titles_desc":"If you live near Wigan, Greater Manchester, Dementia Care Choices walks with you through every stage of Dementia. From the first signs of Dementia to finding the right care home, we help you stay informed and organised throughout,","cqcbc_safe_found":"Inspectors rated Safe as Good at the January 2025 assessment. This means the home met the required standard for protecting people from harm, managing medicines, and maintaining adequate staffing. A Good rating in Safe indicates no significant concerns were identified, though it falls short of Outstanding. The detailed narrative behind this rating is not published in the available report text, so the specific observations that informed it are not accessible here.","cqcbc_safe_family_meaning":"A Good Safe rating tells you that inspectors did not find the kinds of serious gaps, such as unsafe medicines management, inadequate night staffing, or unaddressed falls risks, that would give immediate cause for concern. Good Practice research consistently identifies night staffing as the point where safety most commonly slips in care homes, and agency reliance as a factor that undermines consistency for people with dementia who depend on familiar faces. Because the inspection narrative is not detailed here, you cannot rely on the published findings alone to answer those questions. Our review data shows that fourteen percent of positive family reviews specifically mention staff attentiveness as a safety signal, and the best way to assess this for your parent is to ask for the actual staffing rota, not the template.","cqcbc_safe_evidence_base":"The IFF Research and Leeds Beckett rapid evidence review found that consistent staffing, particularly at night, is one of the strongest predictors of physical safety for people with dementia. Homes with low agency use and stable permanent teams have significantly better incident profiles.","cqcbc_safe_watch_out":"Ask the manager to show you last week's actual staffing rota for the dementia unit, not the planned template. Count how many permanent staff names appear on night shifts compared with agency names, and ask what the usual ratio of carers to residents is after 8pm.","cqcbc_effective_found":"Inspectors rated Effective as Good at the January 2025 assessment. This domain covers how well the home uses its knowledge and skills to deliver care, including training, care planning, healthcare access, and nutrition. A Good rating indicates the required standard was met. No detailed narrative observations, care plan examples, or training records are available in the published findings to give a more granular picture.","cqcbc_effective_family_meaning":"Good Practice research identifies care plans as living documents that should be reviewed regularly with family input, not filed and forgotten. A Good Effective rating tells you the home is meeting baseline standards here, but it does not tell you how often your parent's care plan would be reviewed or whether you would be invited to contribute. Food quality is a marker of genuine care in our review data, mentioned in over twenty percent of positive family reviews, and it is not specifically addressed in the available findings. Ask to see an example care plan on your visit, with personal details removed, so you can judge whether it reads as a document about a real person or a compliance checklist.","cqcbc_effective_evidence_base":"The Leeds Beckett evidence review found that dementia-specific training, particularly training that goes beyond basic awareness to cover communication, behavioural support, and end-of-life care, is a strong predictor of care quality. Ask what the training programme covers and how recently staff on the dementia unit completed it.","cqcbc_effective_watch_out":"Ask how often care plans are formally reviewed, who is invited to those reviews, and whether families can request an update outside the scheduled cycle. Then ask to sit in the dining room at a mealtime: the pace, the assistance offered, and the choice available will tell you more about Effective care than any document.","cqcbc_caring_found":"Inspectors rated Caring as Outstanding at the January 2025 assessment. This is the highest possible rating and is awarded to fewer than one in twenty care homes in England. The Caring domain covers how staff treat people: warmth, dignity, respect, privacy, and support for independence. An Outstanding rating in this domain means inspectors found compelling, specific evidence that staff go beyond compliance and genuinely connect with the people they care for. The detailed observations and testimony that supported this rating are not reproduced in the available report text.","cqcbc_caring_family_meaning":"Staff warmth is the single biggest driver of family satisfaction in our review data, cited in 57.3 percent of positive reviews, and compassion and dignity together account for a further 55.2 percent. An Outstanding Caring rating is the strongest official signal available that the staff here are likely to treat your parent as an individual. Good Practice research shows that for people with dementia, non-verbal communication, unhurried pace, and being addressed by a preferred name can be as important as any clinical intervention for wellbeing. Because the narrative is limited, the best way to verify this rating is to observe it yourself: watch how staff greet your parent when you arrive together, and notice whether interactions feel rushed or genuinely present.","cqcbc_caring_evidence_base":"The IFF Research rapid evidence review found that person-led care, defined as staff knowing the individual's history, preferences, and communication style, is one of the strongest predictors of emotional wellbeing for people with dementia. Homes rated Outstanding for Caring typically show this knowledge in everyday interactions, not just in care plan documents.","cqcbc_caring_watch_out":"When you visit, ask a member of staff on the unit what your parent's preferred name would be, how they would like to spend a typical morning, and one thing that comforts them when they are anxious. The specificity of the answer, not the policy on the wall, will tell you whether this Outstanding rating reflects everyday practice.","cqcbc_responsive_found":"Inspectors rated Responsive as Good at the January 2025 assessment. This domain covers whether the home tailors its care to individual needs, provides meaningful activities, supports independence, and plans appropriately for end of life. A Good rating indicates the required standard was met across these areas. The home supports a range of needs including dementia, mental health conditions, physical disabilities, and sensory impairments, which means the activity programme and individual engagement approaches need to be genuinely flexible.","cqcbc_responsive_family_meaning":"Activities and engagement account for 21.4 percent of positive family reviews in our data, and resident happiness is cited in 27.1 percent. A Good Responsive rating tells you the home is meeting the standard, but it does not tell you whether activities are genuinely tailored to your parent or whether the programme is primarily group-based. Good Practice research consistently shows that people with more advanced dementia, who cannot participate in group activities, are at greatest risk of spending long periods without meaningful engagement. One-to-one activity provision is the key question here, and it is not addressed in the available findings.","cqcbc_responsive_evidence_base":"The Leeds Beckett evidence review found that Montessori-based and everyday household task approaches to activity are particularly effective for people with dementia, offering a sense of purpose and continuity that group entertainment activities do not replicate. Ask specifically what provision exists for people who cannot join group sessions.","cqcbc_responsive_watch_out":"Ask the activities coordinator to describe what engagement looks like for a resident with advanced dementia who cannot join a group session. Ask how many one-to-one activity sessions are planned each week per person, and ask to see the activities schedule for the past two weeks, not a sample plan, to see what actually happened.","cqcbc_well_led_found":"Inspectors rated Well-led as Outstanding at the January 2025 assessment. This domain covers the quality of management, governance, culture, and accountability. An Outstanding Well-led rating means inspectors found evidence of a culture that consistently learns, empowers staff, and drives improvement. The registered manager is named as Mr Christopher Paul Durnan, with Ms Samantha Crawley as the nominated individual for the operating organisation, EQ Care Group Limited. The detailed findings behind this rating are not reproduced in the available report text.","cqcbc_well_led_family_meaning":"Management quality accounts for 23.4 percent of positive family reviews in our data, and Good Practice research identifies leadership stability as one of the strongest predictors of a home's quality trajectory over time. An Outstanding Well-led rating, combined with an Outstanding Caring rating, is a particularly encouraging combination: it suggests the culture of warmth observed in Caring is not accidental but is actively shaped and sustained by the leadership team. Communication with families accounts for 11.5 percent of positive reviews, and the well-led domain is where that accountability sits. Ask on your visit how the manager ensures families are kept informed, not just in a crisis but routinely.","cqcbc_well_led_evidence_base":"The IFF Research evidence review found that homes where staff feel empowered to raise concerns without fear, and where managers are visible on the floor rather than office-bound, consistently perform better across all care domains. Bottom-up empowerment is a hallmark of genuinely Outstanding leadership.","cqcbc_well_led_watch_out":"Ask the registered manager how long they have been in post and what the biggest change they have made to the home in the past year has been. Then ask a care worker you meet on the unit the same second question. If the answers are broadly consistent, that tells you the leadership culture is real rather than performative.","pp_cqc_url":"https:\/\/www.cqc.org.uk\/location\/1-17709796445","_edit_lock":"1778138891:1"}

The Rowans provides specialist support for people with dementia, mental health conditions, physical disabilities, and sensory impairments. The home cares for both younger adults under 65 and older adults.

Management & ethos

The care team at The Rowans appears particularly responsive to residents' needs, with families noting how staff stay engaged and attentive. There's mention of the home working closely with local healthcare teams when managing complex cases.

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