- NHS hospital
Mardon Neuro-rehabilitation Centre
Assessment report published 9 September 2026
Contents
Ratings - Medical care (Including older people's care)
Our view of the service
Date of Assessment: 11 June 2026
We conducted an onsite short notice announced assessment visit of Mardon Neurorehabilitation Centre. We assessed all quality statements from the safe, effective, responsive, caring and well-led key questions.
Mardon Neurorehabilitation centre is operated by Royal Devon University Healthcare NHS Trust and is a purpose-built, 12-bed specialist neurorehabilitation inpatient unit located close to Royal Devon and Exeter Hospital (Wonford) site.
The unit cares for a complex patient cohort, including individuals with an acquired brain injury, stroke, and cognitive impairment. Patients typically require intensive multidisciplinary rehabilitation and generally have longer lengths of stay than those in other settings.
During the reporting period for 2025/26, the centre recorded a total of 30 admissions.
At the previous inspection in 2019, the service was rated Good. At this inspection, the service has maintained its Good rating.
Since the previous inspection, the service had made improvements and was no longer in breach of Regulation 18 relating to medical staffing. There were sufficient registrar doctors in post to ensure patients received safe care.
During this inspection, we found there were enough staff to meet patients’ needs, risks were assessed and managed, care plans were personalised and tailored to individuals, and staff demonstrated a positive and supportive culture.
However, the service faced challenges in discharging patients who required packages of care. We have requested an action plan to address these issues under regulation 12 safe care and treatment, which will be sought following publication of the final report.
People's experience of this service
We spoke with 3 patients and 4 relatives during our onsite assessment and looked at feedback provided online. We used a structured observational tool to assess whether people received good care. This approach allowed us to capture the experiences of people who may not have been able to express this for themselves.
People we spoke with were overwhelmingly positive about the caring and compassionate nature of the staff. Health care assistants received high praise, with patients and relatives highlighting their knowledge of neurological and associated injuries, as well as the time they took to understand individual preferences, needs, and personal circumstances.
A family member commented “[member of staff] often spent their allotted break times having a cup of tea with the patient and talking to them, providing the psychological support and companionship that was needed.” Another relative stated their mother would not have been able to return home were it not for the care and support she received at Mardon Neurorehabilitation Centre.
Feedback from other online sources presented a more mixed picture regarding communication. However, all feedback received a response from the service, with individuals invited to discuss their concerns further so these could be investigated and addressed.