Care Homes in Ellesmere Port
Ellesmere Port has 10 CQC registered care homes. 7 are rated Good, 1 Requires improvement, and 2 have not yet been rated. 7 of the 10 were last inspected more than three years ago.
Source: Care Quality Commission register, kept up to date as ratings change.
Ellesmere Port at a glance
What the local numbers say about care for older people in Ellesmere Port, to help you judge the options below.
- Cheshire West and Chester Council pays, residential care: £887 a week. Self-funders are typically asked £1,249 to £1,514, median £1,409
- Care home beds filled across Cheshire West and Chester: 85%. The 12 month average is 86%.
- Care home beds per 1,000 people aged 75+: 73
- People aged 75 and over: 42,800. Rising to 50,600 by 2035, up 18%
- Care homes, last 12 months: 1 opened, 0 closed. 18 changed owner, covering 892 beds.
- Who pays, across Cheshire West and Chester (estimate): 45% council, 35% self. The rest is NHS funded or other.
- Living with dementia, aged 65 and over (estimate): 5,500. Rising to 7,100 by 2035, up 28%
- People aged 85 and over: 11,500. Rising to 17,200 by 2035, up 50%
Planned and recent building work within 5 miles
- Wealstone Residential Home Wealstone Lane Upton Chester. Application for a 54 bed care home. Submitted 23 December 2025. Decision pending. (4.9 miles away)
Powered by Orrery Intelligence. Market model built 22 October 2026 (ONS 2022 based population projections, CQC register), published care home prices, council planning records.
Choosing Between the Care Homes in Ellesmere Port
Moving into a care home means handing over the parts of daily life that have stopped being manageable while keeping hold of as much as possible of everything else. In practice that covers help with washing and dressing, medicines given on time, meals prepared and eaten in company, and staff on hand through the night. Nine residential care homes match this search, and the ratings across them are far from uniform, so the reading matters before the ringing round.
Making Use of the Ratings
Whetstone Hey Residential Home, Rivacre House, Astbury Lodge Residential Care Home, Acorn Manor Residential Home, Mayfields and The Vicarage hold Good ratings, awarded on findings about safety, effectiveness, care, responsiveness and leadership. Thornton House Residential Home has been rated Inadequate, the most serious judgement available, and the report behind it should be read in full rather than simply noted. Knot House has not yet been rated, which means judging it on how precisely it answers questions rather than on a published verdict. Dover Drive Short Stay Service is listed here too and is rated Good.
What to Look For in Person
Visit around a mealtime, when a home is busiest and least able to present a tidied version of itself. Listen to how staff speak to residents, look at whether people are occupied or simply waiting, and notice how long a call bell rings before someone answers. Ask how many permanent staff work a shift, how much agency cover is used across a typical week, and how long the manager has been in post. Where a home has been rated poorly, ask the manager directly what inspectors found and ask to see evidence of what has changed since. A home under new management can improve quickly, but the proof should be in front of you rather than promised.
Arranging and Funding a Care Home Place in Ellesmere Port
The Care Needs Assessment
Cheshire West and Chester Council is the authority responsible for carrying out a care needs assessment and for arranging funded support where a person is eligible. The assessment is free, open to anyone who appears to need support, and quite separate from the question of who eventually pays. An assessor looks at daily routine, mobility, medicines, memory and risk, then records what level of support would meet those needs. A relative already providing care can request an assessment of their own situation alongside it.
Fees and Funded Support
A financial assessment accompanies the needs assessment and takes account of savings, income and, for most permanent placements, the value of a property. Those above the threshold pay the fee the home quotes, while those below receive a contribution at a rate the council sets. Fees differ between the homes listed here and reflect room size, the level of care agreed and what is included beyond meals and accommodation. Ask what sits outside the weekly figure, and ask what would happen if savings fell below the threshold after a few years, because a clear answer now spares a much harder conversation later.
10 care homes in Ellesmere Port
- Whetstone Hey Residential Home · Ellesmere Port, Cheshire West and Chester · CQC Good
- Thornton House Residential Home · Ellesmere Port, Cheshire West and Chester · CQC Requires improvement
- Astbury Lodge Residential Care Home · Ellesmere Port, Cheshire West and Chester · CQC Good
- The Vicarage · Ellesmere Port, Cheshire West and Chester · CQC Good
- Dover Drive Short Stay Service · Ellesmere Port, Cheshire West and Chester · CQC Good
- Acorn Manor Residential Home · Ellesmere Port, Cheshire West and Chester · CQC Good
- Mayfields · Ellesmere Port, Cheshire West and Chester · CQC Good
- Willowmere Lodge Care Home · Ellesmere Port, Cheshire West and Chester
- Knot House · Ellesmere Port, Cheshire West and Chester
- Rivacre House · Ellesmere Port, Cheshire West and Chester · CQC Good
What care costs in Cheshire West and Chester, per week
| Type of care | What the council pays | What self-funders are typically asked |
|---|---|---|
| Residential care North West figure, because too few Cheshire West and Chester homes publish this price. 20 homes. Median £1,409. | £887 | £1,249 to £1,514 |
| Nursing care England figure, because too few Cheshire West and Chester homes publish this price. 140 homes. Median £1,916. | £987 | £1,600 to £2,071 |
| Residential dementia care North West figure, because too few Cheshire West and Chester homes publish this price. 17 homes. Median £1,533. | Not published separately | £1,372 to £1,648 |
| Nursing dementia care England figure, because too few Cheshire West and Chester homes publish this price. 75 homes. Median £2,050. | Not published separately | £1,890 to £2,221 |
Published prices are often starting prices, and come from homes that publish fees, so treat them as a guide. Ask the home for its own price. Powered by Orrery Intelligence.
Inspected most recently
- Thornton House Residential Home, 22 July 2026, Requires improvement
- Acorn Manor Residential Home, 28 July 2023, Good
- Dover Drive Short Stay Service, 31 December 2019, Good
Longest since a report
- Rivacre House, 30 March 2018, Good
- The Vicarage, 16 June 2018, Good
- Astbury Lodge Residential Care Home, 17 January 2019, Good
Frequently asked questions about care homes in Ellesmere Port
How many care homes are there in Ellesmere Port?
Ellesmere Port has 10 CQC registered care homes: 7 Good, 1 Requires improvement, 2 not yet rated. Counts come from the CQC register and are kept up to date as ratings change.
How much does a care home cost in Ellesmere Port?
Cheshire West and Chester Council pays an average of £887 a week for residential care. Self-funders are typically asked £1,249 to £1,514 a week. North West figure, because too few Cheshire West and Chester homes publish this price. 20 homes. Median £1,409. Published prices are often starting prices, and come from homes that publish fees, so treat them as a guide. Ask the home for its own price.
Which care homes in Ellesmere Port were inspected most recently?
Thornton House Residential Home (22 July 2026), Acorn Manor Residential Home (28 July 2023) and Dover Drive Short Stay Service (31 December 2019) have the most recent CQC reports.