• Care Home
  • Care home

Thorn Springs

Overall: Good read more about inspection ratings

Collie Place, Houghton Regis, Dunstable, LU5 6TW

Provided and run by:
Ideal Carehomes (2) Limited

Important: The provider of this service changed. See old profile

Latest inspection summary

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Our current view of the service

Good

Updated 11 February 2026

Date of assessment: 03rd March 2026 to 26th March 2026.

Thorn Springs is a care home supporting people who may be living with dementia, a physical disability, or a sensory impairment. The service provides accommodation for people who need personal care or nursing care. The service can support up to 66 people. 60 people were living at the service at the time of our inspection.

At our last inspection, we found a breach of the legal regulation relating to good governance. At this inspection the service was no longer in breach of regulations. The service has been rated as good in all key questions.

People were safe living at the service and staff were knowledgeable about safeguarding. There were enough staff to support people safely, although staff told us shifts could be very busy meaning they had less time to speak with people and spend time with them than they would like. People’s home environment was safe, and staff followed good infection and prevention and control (IPC) procedures. Staff supported people safely with their medicines. People’s care plans and risk assessments were detailed about how to support them. Staff supported people to live healthy lives, for example making sure they drank enough or supporting them with pressure area care. People were supported in line with the Mental Capacity Act (MCA). People told us staff were kind, and we observed staff supporting people with dignity and respect for the most part. Staff supported people to make choices in their day to day lives and to be independent if they chose to be. People had good experiences and outcomes living at the service. There were still some small improvements to be made at the service in relation to people’s experiences at mealtimes and going for longer periods of time without meaningful engagement. People were still not consistently being supported to understand information discussed with them. The registered manager and wider management team took immediate action to address these issues. They had worked hard to make improvements at the service since our last inspection. Audits and governance measures were effective in monitoring the quality of the service and identifying where improvements may need to be made. The registered manager and wider management team truly cared about staff wellbeing and supported staff in all aspects of their job roles.

People's experience of the service

Updated 11 February 2026

The culture at the service was positive and people and their relatives gave mostly good feedback about their/ their family member’s care and support. We observed people to be relaxed and happy being supported by staff. One person said, ‘‘The staff are lovely and nothing is too much for them. They help with whatever you ask for.’’ A relative told us, ‘‘The atmosphere at the service is great. [Staff] are professional and I would go as far as to say they are amazing.’’