The home we liked best has a requires improvement rating, would you still consider it?

We have been looking for a home for Mum for a few weeks now and out of the five we have seen, one stood out by a mile. The atmosphere was warm, residents were up and doing things rather than sat in a row, the staff seemed to know everyone by name and Mum actually smiled while we were there, which she hasn't done at any of the others.

Then I looked up the inspection report and it says Requires Improvement. When I asked, the manager was open about it and said it came down to one area that has since been sorted, with new systems in place and a lot of the paperwork tightened up. She didn't seem defensive at all, which I appreciated. But the report is a couple of years old now and there hasn't been a new inspection since, so I have no way of knowing whether things really have moved on.

How much weight would you give a rating like that against what you saw with your own eyes? Has anyone chosen a home in this position and been glad, or regretted it?