More than half the residents and relatives who responded to a care home provider’s annual survey have rated its services as ‘excellent’.

Family-owned Colten Care, which runs 20 care homes in Hampshire, Dorset, Wiltshire and Sussex, asked respondents to appraise the overall quality of care.

Specific questions focused on nursing knowledge and aspects of daily life such as companionship, cleanliness and dining.

Fifty-four per cent rated overall care quality as ‘excellent’, up from 45% last year.

Altogether, 93% of the 449 residents who responded rate the care they receive as ‘either excellent or good’ with three homes scoring a full 100%.

These are Abbotts Barton in Winchester, Court Lodge in Lymington and Kingfishers in New Milton.

Across Colten Care’s five homes offering dedicated dementia care, 63% of families and friends say the overall quality of care is ‘excellent’.

Ninety-seven per cent say it is ‘excellent or good’ and at three homes – Fernhill in Ferndown, The Aldbury in Poole and Newstone House in Sturminster Newton – 100% say it is ‘excellent or good’.

Seventy-three per cent of respondents were also aware of Colten Care’s Admiral Nurse, a dementia nursing expert available to support families and the wider communities served by the homes.

Elaine Farrer, Operations Director, said: “Against a national backdrop of continuing scrutiny of care homes, what our residents and their relatives are telling us is that we have improved the quality of care we provide.

“To continue doing that, we will share these results at resident and relative meetings and highlight any actions to be taken in response to specific points.

“Feedback is invaluable as it helps us identify what we are doing well – so giving us the chance to share best practice – and where we can do better.

“We thank everyone who took part.”

The residents and relatives’ research, carried out in June 2017, followed a survey of external clinical experts who work closely with Colten Care.

In that poll, 99% of the 171 respondents said the residents they know receive a high standard of care, while 98% said residents were treated with respect and dignity.