Care UK Reviews 

Walking in with my dad 2 1/2 years ago I was so impressed. It was a year old care home in Shrewsbury. The care home was no where near full but potentially all staff were in situ. I thought it was wonderful, my dad was overwhelmed. In his first six months, nothing was too much for the staff, food was good, staff predominantly appeared caring to residents and happy in their job. My dad went out on trips, there were lots of outside entertainment coming into the home and I couldn’t fault them. Over the next two years, the staff turnover has been massive, there is much unrest amongst staff, trips out have decreased, people coming in to entertain is spasmodic, in house entertainment has lessened and the food is sometimes great and other times really not good. My dad’s bed is sometimes not made until lunchtime and repeated requests to open his door to the garden takes way too long. My dad is self-funded and paying in excess of £90k a year for the lowest ‘care’, residential. I am informed nearly every visit they are short-staffed but this is due to illness or holiday, when questioned further I’m told the care home has the ‘suggested’/recommended amount of staff but that is decided by Care UK, not the individual home. There are not sufficient staff employed by Care UK for my dad’s care home to ensure their individual needs are met, their trips out are often curtailed and in-house there are so many issues I could raise but I am not complaining about the Care home per se but the overall company of Care UK. I made a complaint directly to Care UK who did not deal with it in accordance with their Ombudsman’s rules and regulations and some eight months later I am still waiting for that to be dealt with. The complaint was not about the actually Care home but the management of Care UK.
I have calculated that Care UK receive easily in excess of 7 million pounds a year just from this one care home. The amount of staff Care UK employ is not enough, the care home staff are expected to learn all the roles. The coffee machine worked on and off for months, there was a hot water issue that went on for months too. There was never any compensation for the residents being failed and in fact, over the last two years Care UK’s costs have increased around 15%. My dad has never received pension increases or investment interest increases beyond around 6.7%. It’s actually really sad because there are mostly wonderful staff who are genuinely caring but there are not enough staff and that is the fault of Care UK.

Reliance Ambulance Team : Kassandra & Adrian would like to state our gratitude towards staff and all residents that made us feel so welcome when we dropped off a Patient,

Lovely set up
Lovely staff
Wonderful service and communication
All facilities are in wonderful clean condition.

We would like to thank #Tamena and team for the continuous welcome and for always offering a lovely cup of coffee ☕️

Lovely place.
Regards
Reliance Team

Woodlands Care Home
Stanmore After a horrendous experience at another care home.
Here is totally different.
Staff and care is excellent ,polite and understanding.
The management is indeed outstanding with the manager being an exceptional,loving caring, genuine person with great knowledge and communication skills.
I cannot fault anything whatsoever.
I have to say all my initial apprehension was dispelled,very quickly on my very 1st vist and l was pleasantly surprised.They can't do enough to be helpful and supportive.

My partner is recieving top notch care and treatment and support.
I am very happy he is being cared for there while he can't come home.
Here is 1st place l have felt he is safe and cared for properly.
I have been here to visit everyday since 3rd of July bar 1 day and the devotion and care is consistently excellent.

I really feel the staff really care and are passionate about caring for people.

All the staff are amazing, helping and polite .
They deserve a 10/10 rating
I would have no hesitation in recommending in personally recommending this care home.as it is by far the best and l have visited many.

Review Ratings:  Overall Experience : Excellent
Facilities : Excellent
Care / Support : Excellent
Cleanliness : Excellent
Treated with Dignity : Excellent
Food & Drink : Excellent
Staff : Excellent
Activities : Excellent
Management : Excellent
Safety / Security : Excellent
Rooms : Excellent
Value for Money : Excellent

I have a had a friend in a Care UK home since February 2026 and all of that time I have tried to work with them as I do with a number of homes where I have friends or relatives as I believe partnership and respect works best.There are undoubtedly some very caring staff who have to work despite the organisation and management rather than because of it. They try to listen, organise and do what they can without the resources or support they need. Medication takes weeks to obtain and there is a once a week access to a doctor at a centre which is miles away. Basics like pads and sterile wipes run out regularly. Despite the amazing looking facilities - cafe with free food and drinks, air conditioning in this area and the main offices though it doesn't work elsewhere, hair salon and lounges, hanging baskets and trimmed trees- the experience for residents who are not independent is extremely poor and they are largely left in their rooms with no stimulation, sometimes with dirty laundry, no access to drinks or food between meals in rooms that in a heatwave are 85 degrees plus and sometimes the "carers" cannot even manage to open the window. Carers and cleaners are often depressed and morose and there is little team spirit or enthusiasm which appears to make the job even more difficult. They may speak or they may not. There is no agreed cleaning schedule so rooms are vacuumed, the toilet is sprayed, the wash basin may be wiped, tables get variable treatment and there is no dusting at all ever. Communal areas are well attended to. Managers are disconnected and disinterested about what actually goes on as they are sited well away from residents and are rarely seen on the floor in my experience. They are dismissive of concerns and are reactive rather than proactive which means that changes are never embedded. Nurses if available are helpful but because there is little coordination there is no consistency of care. There are times when no one can be found even though a number of residents are in bed and unable to do anything for themselves. Buzzers ring continuously as there are so few staff. Carers go in to do one job each and are not aware of the need to attend to the whole room and the resident. They do not feel the need to steer the resident to helpful choices and simply accept whatever they are doing - usually nothing. For those who can access activities, make decisions and get themselves to the right places (which may require going through security doors, using lifts and moving between floors though some are collected from their rooms) there are 2 activities a day. Other than that residents are in their rooms unless they can independently access the gardens in good weather or wander aimlessly up and down the corridors. Food is satisfactory but certainly not as good as that found in some other homes commanding this level of funding. There is little cultural awareness reflected around the home or in the catering. It could suit some people who are still independent but then they would not need to be in a home! Be aware that you need to visit very regularly to ensure that your loved one is looked after because you will have to do the majority of the caring. This does not deliver basic care home standards and certainly not nursing care standards in my experience of what is delivered elsewhere. I feel sorry for the staff who try but there are too few of them to be able to deliver anything of quality.

To be honest staff seem to try can't say they look happy thou, they look as trapped and locked up like the residents and to crack a smile out of them is impossible most just look at you with a firm stare. But still St George's care home Bristol needs alot of help! Dementia patient need daily activities, music and entertainment that is stimulating. All I see is they are dumped in a room no decent old films on just horse racing every time I am there or news and game shows. And staff sat on their phones. No one seems to know how to even make their own job more enjoyable to have a laugh with the residents who can, so they sit on their phones. I understand there are probably moments they will, but a few people in there are saying they are bored out there boxes and the place has got worse since Care UK took over. Weekends they say worse less staff. One lady said it took nearly an hour for someone to take her to the toilet !!! Really very dangerous to her health. Other homes I have been in have Netflix afternoons with old films and musicals on and it's my more joyful, old music playing in corridors, which they respond to. This place is hanging and bloody miserable decor is not that great. The front garden run down, hanging baskets on walls filled with dead plants, Pergola hanging falling apart, if that's what you call it and they get over £5k a month from us. Staff besides one or two don't even smile, and to get in and out is a joke. We don't even get given a code to get in or out so have to wait! And I mean wait. The place will make dementia worse and that in itself is cruel, boredom is a killer. Seems nobody has a clue on creating a nice environment for these old people it's depressing in there...I wouldn't suggest putting anyone in here at the moment for the money you pay. We are closing watching, if it gets worse we will move her again. Care Uk you should change your name to money UK cus that's all this is about MONEY!! Also car park is used by parents when picking their kids up so U have no where to park if you are there at 3pm visiting sort this out the doctors at the side have. Fine then and use the money in the home improvements. I would currently give this place 6/10. I would like to be given a review questionnaire from you.

Absolutely shocking. My mum pays £6214.29 a month and her shower has not worked since 28/02/26. Reported it so many times and we keep asking and reply is that they’re still waiting for the parts. You call this caring???

Provided entertainment for one of their care homes, derbyshire, still NOT be paid, shame on you Care UK, plus gave you a discount as well as...

My 94yr old mother who is nearing end of life with cancer and Alzheimer's and has been self funding her care at Durham gate care home spennymoor for 27 months.
Her finances have almost gone and the local council are taking over the funding for her care.
The new owners CARE UK won't accept the payment from the council even though we were told by the previous owner before she moved in there after 2yrs she would not be asked to leave.
The move to another care home at this time of her life will be detrimental for her.
How can CARE UK a company who are supposed to care for the elderly treat someone with such disregard and contempt.

Such a pretentious company who try and make them look good, not fair to staff members and no commitments

I am absolutely appalled by the treatment of the people in the woodlands apartments in Dursley Gloucestershire.....a block of 7 flats building owned and maintained by Care UK.....
Went to visit some residents there and the lift has been out of action for now over a fortnight trapping at least 3 people in their homes....these people are elderly and immobile and cannot do 'stairs" they were apparently told that the lift would be repaired yesterday ...no one came
Come on Care UK pull your finger out and get it sorted for these poor people who are trapped......rubbish building up which they can't get downstairs, appointments missed ...no communication....just appalling.....

I recently supported the move of my Aunt into Bishops Manor Care Home, Sutton Coldfield. Part of Care UK, I am very happy with the care home and service they are providing and especially the support given to me by their staff and especially Jody Sedgwick.

My friend in Bishops Manor Care Home recently died. and I have to thank the staff who were exemplary every step of the way.
Their kindness and care to my friend was thoughtful and supportive: and their concern for me during a difficult time was very much appreciated.
Very well done to the Bishops Manor Care Team, and many thanks to you all.

My father was diagnosed with terminal cancer at age 67 after spending 2 months in hospital we were told he needs 24hr care & would need a nursing home, I was absolutely dreading it as all care homes I've had dealings with have been awful but we were so lucky to have found bryher court Hastings it really is amazing from the staff to the food to dad's room everything is brilliant a real home from home & i have zero worries of dad being here

Oxbow Manor Shrewsbury run by care UK. You walk into this home and you feel like you are in a lovely hotel. Cinema room/ bar/ help yourself cafe, all you could hope for if you are looking to place a relative into care. But beware because having a lovely facade doesn’t always reflect a true picture. You will be met by the customer relations manager who will sell you a perfect dream for your loved one, dementia champions who can care through all the stages of this awful disease. You think you have found the perfect place. This is where you really need to do your homework. Because £128,000 plus over the course of approximately 18 months count for nothing when it comes to care uk policy. They DO NOT extend credit, not even for a day, even if there is a property on the market waiting to be sold ( and you are not expecting credit - just a deferral of invoices for 1 to 2 months) So, the dementia champions do not engage in negotiations, the contract you signed on day 1 will be adhered to, and used as leverage if necessary to ensure NO CREDIT is given. So please remember before you choose this home, there are other places who provide this care, just as well if not better, they probably won’t look as plush as this one does but looks can be deceiving. Don’t believe everything you are told, and believe the promise that your loved one is going to be looked after for the remainder of their life because when it comes to it, to Care is uk you are just an income, they are a business, & When the money runs out you are also out.
Don’t make my mistake of having to look into your parents eyes on their last paid day and have to try to explain to them why all their belongings are being packed up and they are leaving the place they now believe is their home. Trust me You will never forgive yourself.

I have the highest regard for the whole staff at Larklands Care Home in Ascot Berkshire.
From the very beginning of my mother’s residency to her passing away the staff were exceptionally supportive kind and caring to the point that they treated her like she was their own mother.
If you are going through the process of selecting a nursing home for a family member I strongly recommend that you do your utmost to find a place in this home.
With kindest regards for the care you showed not only to my mum but also to us her children.
Graham Tillyer

When my dad stayed at their care home in Windsor we saw everything that goes on behind the appearance of what looks like a 4 star hotel, which fooled us into thinking he would get the best of care. We visited every day & my dad would often be unshaved & without his dentures in so we had to do that for him. He was on the Dementia floor and it became the norm that they would typically have to search most residents rooms to find my dad whenever we arrived because they did not even know where he was. Because my dad was frail and elderly he should never have been left alone like that, he was only there for 4 months & had already had 3 falls before the final 4th fall which broke his hip and he was alone in another resident's room when that happened.

Absolute disgraceful level of care is being given to my mother in law.
She has dementia but the lack of empathy or care is beyond my comprehension. I see the carers permanently on their phones and it is not filling out reports as they do nothing to warrant a report! Simply put they are lazy uncaring low paid individuals who do not have any desire to actually care for anyone. They are genuinely a disgrace to the caring profession and I hope they receive similar treatment in the future if they need it! It is incredulous to think that people are so dim and ignorant not to understand basic levels of care. Get a grip Care Uk.

When you sign a contract with Care UK for a resident they ask for a deposit of 2 weeks rent. The contract states that they will return the deposit within 28 days following the death of a resident. This is now day 54. They also want the rent paid one month in advance. The result is that they sit on quite a lot of their resident's money and then refuse to return it. So be aware, Care UK is not to be trusted with money. Make sure you minimise the amount you give them because they won't return any overpayments.

In over 4 months I have had zero, literally zero information about my mother from Halecroft Grange, despite having equal power of attorney. No information about her well-being, nor about where she is despite asking, nor any finances. Mum was left without any help or care in profound distress on the first night that I called. The staff member I spoke to was so appallingly rude and dismissive that I have not wanted to call again. People have listened in when I have tried to call and you can't call without being recorded meaning no privacy of communication. Sometimes the phone system doesn't work at all. I have barely been able to speak to her in 4+ months. A complaint led nowhere. They have lied about me to 3rd parties saying I don't care about my mother. They avoided the question whether I can take my own mother out who was taken from her home in Scotland & put there. They don't display the cards I send her. I don't even know if she gets them & suspect not.
Her medically prescribed hearing aids have been taken away. Before she was taken from her community & family & locked up there mum had a very fit and active life doing many everyday household things for herself or with help also impossible now.

AVOID AVOID AVOID
This company only cares about making the most money. They have no care towards members of staff whatsoever Nevermind the residents!. Absolutely shocking management. Takes over multiple care homes and changes pay rota by paying staff two weeks wages for an entire month, when questioned regarding this staff are told they will receive the other half of the month when leaving the company!! SHOCKING