England

AmpersandMedway

Illustrative image. Photographs of this home have not yet been added.

Rated:Requires ImprovementNursing

Ampersand

Parsonage Lane, Rochester, Kent, ME2 4HP

01634561014

Care Type

Nursing Care

Assessment date

6 February 2024

Provider

Sovereign Care Limited

Beds

43 beds

How this home compares nearby

Of 28 care homes for older people within 5 miles, 17 are rated higher by CQC, 10 are the same and 1 is lower.

9 of these nearby homes have been inspected more recently than this one.

Based on CQC ratings, updated 22 October 2026. How we compare homes | See the nearby homes

Rating history

GoodDec 2015
Requires ImprovementDec 2017
Requires ImprovementAug 2018
Requires ImprovementOct 2019
Requires ImprovementAug 2023
Requires ImprovementApr 2024

Rating dropped from Good to Requires Improvement in 2017.

Source: CQC inspection reports. Contains CQC data licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

Costs and who runs this home

Run by Sovereign Care Limited, which runs 3 care homes in England: 1 rated Good and 2 Requires Improvement.

Average care home fees in the South East: £1,243 a week for residential care and £1,579 for nursing care (2024-25 averages). Self-funders usually pay more. See our care home costs guide.

NHS-funded Nursing Care pays £267.68 a week to the home towards registered nursing care for eligible residents (2026/27). A quoted fee may already exclude it.
This home lists dementia care, which usually costs more than standard residential care. See dementia care home costs. NHS Continuing Healthcare may apply where someone's needs are primarily health needs.
How to pay for a care home explains the council means test, what counts as capital and the funding you can ask to be assessed for.

About Ampersand

Ampersand is a nursing home in Medway, providing personal and nursing care, including support for people living with dementia. Details of the most recent CQC inspection findings are set out below.

Ampersand is a residential care home providing personal and nursing care to people, including those living with dementia. The CQC rated the service as requires improvement overall, though this marks progress from its previous inspection, with better management of risk, staff recruitment and oversight noted.

Inspectors found people and relatives felt safe and well cared for, with kind, attentive staff and sufficient staffing levels. People felt confident raising concerns with the registered manager. However, shortfalls remained around safety and leadership, meaning further improvement is still required in these areas.

Source: CQC assessment, 30 April 2024

Specialist Care

DementiaOlder people

Fees and availability

We have not verified a current weekly fee for this home. Ask for a written quote based on the room and care needed, including any extra charges.

Check current vacancies, the admission assessment and visiting arrangements directly with the home.

Care and inspection details

Checked against the CQC register on 20 September 2026. This is a check of published information, not a visit to the home.

Registered service: Care home service with nursing
Registered capacity: 43 places — this is not a vacancy count
Registration checked: Registered · ME2 4HP

Registered care categories

Caring for adults over 65 yrs; Dementia.

These describe the registration. The home must assess whether it can meet the individual person's needs and whether a place is available.

CQC ratings in more detail

Overall rating shown by CQC: Requires Improvement.

Assessment published 30 April 2024. Assessment date recorded: 6 February 2024.

Read CQC's assessment overview

The following is CQC's published account of its assessment, published 30 April 2024. References to “we” mean CQC. It describes findings at that time.

Ampersand is a residential care home providing personal and nursing care to people who may be living with dementia. We completed this assessment between 14 February 2024 and 29 February 2024, we visited the service on 14 February 2024, and we spoke to relatives remotely about their experience of the service. We assessed 9 quality statements including Involving people to manage risk, Safe and effective staffing and Governance, Medicines and Infection, prevention, and control. We found improvements had been made since our last inspection including the management of risk, recruitment of staff and oversight of the service. We assessed the quality statements reviewed as good, the overall rating for the service has now improved to requires improvement.

Safe: Requires Improvement
Effective: Good
Caring: Good
Responsive: Good
Well-led: Requires Improvement

Questions prompted by these ratings

Safe: What changes have been made to medicines, staffing and safeguarding since this rating?
Well-led: What has changed in management, checks and oversight since this rating?

These are questions for your visit, not a claim about conditions today.

Read Ampersand's CQC record and reports.

Contains Care Quality Commission information under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Ratings and registration details can change after the date checked.

5 Questions to Ask on Your Visit

When visiting Ampersand, consider asking...

1.What specific dementia training do staff receive and how recently?
2.How do you support a resident who becomes distressed or confused?
3.How does the home keep a record of a resident's life history and personal preferences?
4.How do you involve families as dementia progresses and communication becomes harder?
5.What happens when a resident's dementia reaches an advanced stage?

5 Things to Look For on Your Visit

When you visit Ampersand, look out for...

1.Is the environment calm, uncluttered and easy to navigate?
2.Do staff speak to residents with patience and dignity, even if they repeat themselves?
3.Are there memory cues around the home -- photos, familiar objects, clear signage?
4.Do residents seem settled and safe, or agitated and unsupervised?
5.Is there meaningful activity happening, or are residents just sitting quietly with nothing to do?

Could the NHS fund Ampersand's fees?

The average nursing home costs £1,535 per week. That's £79,820 a year. NHS Continuing Healthcare could cover all of it. No means test, no contribution from you.

Find out if the NHS could fund these fees