Rathgar Care Home

Date of assessment: 30 April 2026 – 19 May 2026.

Rathgar Care Home is a care home providing personal care for up to 23 older people and specialises in caring for people with dementia. The home is an extended and adapted detached house in a residential area. The accommodation is spread over two floors accessed by a lift and stairs. At the time of our assessment there were 20 people living at the home.

We visited the service on 30 April 2026, 1 May 2026, 7 May 2026 and 14 May 2026. We reviewed documents and had follow up contact with the provider until 15 May 2026. We finished the assessment on 19 May 2026.

This was a fully comprehensive assessment carried out due to the length of time since we last rated the service.

This assessment was conducted by one inspector and an Expert by Experience. An Expert by Experience is a person who has personal experience of using or caring for someone who uses this type of care service. We spoke with six people who live at the service, nine relatives, and thirteen staff including care, kitchen, domestic, activities, administration and the registered manager and nominated individual.

The provider delivered care within a service where there were clear strengths in the culture, staff commitment and aspects of day-to-day care delivery. People, relatives and external professionals consistently provided positive feedback about the caring nature of staff and the environment. Staff demonstrated a good understanding of people’s needs in practice and worked collaboratively with healthcare professionals to support positive outcomes for people.

There was evidence of a positive and inclusive culture within the service. People were supported to maintain their independence, participate in meaningful activities, and were treated with kindness, dignity and respect. Staff spoke passionately about their roles and demonstrated a commitment to providing person-centred care.

The feedback we received demonstrated that leaders were compassionate and inclusive. In relation to the registered manager people told us, “This [registered manager] is brilliant,” and, “[Manager] is lovely – you couldn’t get anyone better.” We received similar feedback in relation the nominated individual. A person told us, “On a Monday and a Thursday, [nominated individual] comes and sits with me and talks to me – [nominated individual] is nice”. The positive feedback was echoed by staff who told us, “[Nominated individual] is very involved – it is very good [they] are approachable,” and, “[Nominated individual] has a good bond with residents”.

Although we did not find evidence of harm to people, the provider had not consistently ensured that systems and processes were effective. Governance was not always robust and had not identified a number of the concerns we found during the assessment in relation to aspects of safety and oversight. The provider assured us they had reflected on our findings and told us the actions they were taking, and how they would sustain improvements for the future.

We identified a breach of regulation in relation to good governance. This service has been rated Requires Improvement overall. We have asked the provider to submit an action plan in response to the concerns identified during this assessment.