Which care homes serve Braintree?

Twelve registered residential care homes cover the town and all of them are listed on this page. They include Bradbury House, Larchwood Care Home, Acorn Lodge Care Home, Braintree Mews Care Home, Fern Lodge and Prince Edward Duke of Kent Court among others. Each entry shows the provider type alongside its current Care Quality Commission rating. Comparing them here is quicker than contacting each home separately for the same information.

What is the difference between a residential care home and a nursing home?

A residential care home provides accommodation with personal care, meaning help with daily living from trained care staff rather than clinical treatment. A nursing home is registered to keep a qualified nurse on the premises, which allows it to manage wounds, complex medication and conditions needing regular clinical oversight. Every provider on this page is registered for residential care rather than nursing. Where someone already needs regular nursing attention, a home with nursing registration is the more sensible starting point.

What should I ask when visiting a care home in Braintree?

Ask how many care staff are on duty during the day and overnight, and how sickness and annual leave are covered. Ask how care plans are reviewed, how quickly families are told about falls or infections, and what happens when a resident becomes unwell in the night. Request a recent menu and activities programme, then ask what a day looks like for someone who prefers to stay in their room. A manager who answers awkward questions plainly is giving you better evidence than any brochure.

How do I arrange a care needs assessment in Braintree?

Contact adult social care at Essex County Council by telephone or through the referral form on its website and explain what has changed. Assessments are free and open to anyone who appears to need care and support, whatever their means. A practitioner will discuss daily tasks, health, safety at home and the help already coming from family or neighbours. Noting how the past fortnight has really gone helps the assessment reflect a typical week rather than a good day.

Can Essex County Council pay for a care home placement?

It can, where a needs assessment confirms that residential care is required and a financial assessment shows capital and income below the national thresholds. The resident normally contributes an assessed amount from income while the authority meets the balance up to the rate it usually pays. If a family selects a home charging more than that rate, a third party may need to cover the difference. It is worth asking the authority what its usual rate is before committing to a particular home.

How far in advance should I start looking?

Earlier than most families expect, because well regarded homes keep waiting lists and rushed decisions seldom hold up. Starting while the current arrangement still works allows more than one visit and time to compare properly. If a hospital discharge is being planned, tell the ward team and the local authority promptly so assessment and placement can advance together. Even a provisional shortlist removes a great deal of pressure when circumstances change suddenly.

Care Homes in Braintree

Braintree has 13 CQC registered care homes. 11 are rated Good, 2 Requires improvement. 8 of the 13 were last inspected more than three years ago.

Source: Care Quality Commission register, kept up to date as ratings change.

Braintree at a glance

What the local numbers say about care for older people in Braintree, to help you judge the options below.

Essex County Council pays, residential care: £849 a week. Self-funders are typically asked £1,384 to £1,672, median £1,520
Care home beds filled across Essex: 88%. The 12 month average is 87%.
Care home beds per 1,000 people aged 75+: 97. Essex average is 67.
People aged 75 and over: 18,000. Rising to 20,900 by 2035, up 16%
Care homes, last 12 months: 0 opened, 1 closed. 4 changed owner, covering 183 beds.
Who pays, across Essex (estimate): 36% council, 38% self. The rest is NHS funded or other.
Living with dementia, aged 65 and over (estimate): 2,300. Rising to 2,900 by 2035, up 28%
People aged 85 and over: 4,600. Rising to 7,400 by 2035, up 62%

Powered by Orrery Intelligence. Market model built 22 October 2026 (ONS 2022 based population projections, CQC register), published care home prices, council planning records.

Choosing a care home in Braintree and what to look for

Distance is the consideration families most often get wrong. A home half an hour further away may look better on a first visit, but the one that can be reached easily on a wet Wednesday evening is the one where a resident will see familiar faces regularly, and regular visitors are the strongest safeguard any resident has. Twelve residential care homes serve the town, so proximity and quality rarely have to be traded against each other.

What residential registration covers

A residential home provides a room, meals and help with washing, dressing, medication and the ordinary business of the day from staff present at every hour. None of the homes on this page is registered for nursing, which means no qualified nurse is based in the building; community nursing can visit, but a resident whose health needs grow substantially may eventually need a home with nursing registration. Ask each manager how they would respond if needs increased after a move, because the answer shows how far ahead the home is prepared to plan.

Ratings and what lies beneath them

The published picture here is largely settled. Ten homes are rated Good, including Bradbury House, Larchwood Care Home, Acorn Lodge Care Home and Braintree Mews Care Home, while two are currently rated Requires Improvement. A rating reflects particular days and particular inspectors, so the report itself is the more useful document: check when the visit took place and whether the findings concerned record keeping or the care residents actually received. Then arrange to call in at a busy hour, watch how staff talk to residents who cannot easily reply, and ask what the turnover of care workers has been over the past year.

Arranging a placement in Braintree and paying for it

The care needs assessment

Anyone who appears to need care and support has a legal right to an assessment, whatever their savings, and asking for one costs nothing. It is carried out by Essex County Council Adult Social Care, and a practitioner will consider washing, dressing, meals, medication, mobility, night time needs and how much a relative is currently absorbing before recording whether residential care is proportionate. A financial assessment follows and decides contributions. Households intending to pay their own fees still benefit from the written outcome, since it turns a general anxiety into a specification each home can be measured against.

Fees and who pays them

Residential fees are quoted weekly and vary with the room, the level of support and whether the placement is privately funded. Where capital and income fall below the national thresholds, the local authority contributes and the resident pays an assessed amount from income; where a family chooses a home charging more than the authority normally pays, a third party may be asked to meet the difference. Above the thresholds a person funds the placement themselves, though the authority can still advise and in some circumstances arrange it on their behalf. Ask every home for its charges in writing, including what sits outside the weekly rate such as hairdressing, chiropody or escorted appointments.

13 care homes in Braintree

Meadows · Fairy Hall Lane, Braintree, Essex, CM77 6SZ
Care home · CQC Good · Run by Butterflys Care Homes Ltd
Meadows is a residential care home in Braintree, Essex, supporting adults with a learning disability or autism, adults living with mental health conditions, people with physical disabilities and people with a visual or hearing impairment....
Specialisms: Learning Disability / Autism, Mental Health, Physical Disability, Visual / Hearing Impairment, Younger Adults, Respite Care
Millard House · Church Street, Braintree, Essex, CM7 5LL
Care home · CQC Good · Run by Corner House Care Limited
Millard House is a residential care home in Braintree, Essex. We are home to older people who need support with everyday life, including residents living with dementia and residents with physical disabilities, and we offer respite stays...
Specialisms: Older Person Care, Dementia Care, Physical Disability, Respite Care
Poplars · Clockhouse Way, Braintree, Essex, CM7 3RD
Care home · CQC Good · Run by Innova Care Limited
Here at Poplars, we offer residential care for a wide range of people from our home in Braintree, Essex. We support older adults, younger adults, and people living with learning disabilities, autism, mental health conditions, physical...
Specialisms: Older Person Care, Learning Disability / Autism, Mental Health, Physical Disability, Visual / Hearing Impairment, Younger Adults, Respite Care
Bradbury House · New Street, Braintree, Essex, CM7 1ES
Care home · CQC Good · Run by Aria Healthcare Group LTD
Here at Bradbury House, we offer residential care for a range of people across our home in Braintree, Essex. We support older adults, younger adults, and those living with dementia, and we also provide respite care for those who need a...
Specialisms: Older Person Care, Dementia Care, Younger Adults, Respite Care
Fern Lodge · 108 Broad Road, Braintree, Essex, CM7 9RX
Care home · CQC Good · Run by Provide Care Solutions Limited
We are a residential care home in Braintree, Essex, supporting older people and younger adults, including adults with a learning disability or autism, people with physical disabilities and people living with sight or hearing loss. We also...
Specialisms: Older Person Care, Learning Disability / Autism, Physical Disability, Visual / Hearing Impairment, Younger Adults, Respite Care
Acorn Lodge Care Home · Bovington Road, Braintree, Essex, CM7 5JH
Care home · CQC Good · Run by Eden Health Care Services (UK) Limited
We are Acorn Lodge Care Home in Braintree, Essex. We provide residential care for older people, including those living with dementia, and we also support adults with learning disabilities and autistic adults. Respite stays are available....
Specialisms: Older Person Care, Dementia Care, Learning Disability / Autism, Respite Care
Larchwood Care Home · 108 Broad Road, Braintree, Essex, CM7 9RX
Care home · CQC Good · Run by HC-One Limited
We at Larchwood Care Home are proud to offer a warm and welcoming residential care home in the heart of Braintree, Essex, where older people can feel truly at home. Our community is built around compassionate residential care, including...
Specialisms: Older Person Care, Dementia Care, Respite Care
New Partnerships Lynray and Peach Cottage · Lynray, Braintree, Essex, CM77 6RL
Care home · CQC Requires improvement · Run by Achieve Together Limited
New Partnerships Lynray and Peach Cottage is a residential care home in Braintree supporting younger adults living with a learning disability, autism or a physical disability. We are two houses working closely together, which lets us keep...
Specialisms: Learning Disability / Autism, Physical Disability, Younger Adults, Respite Care
Aspen Grange Care Home · Coldnailhurst Avenue, Braintree, Essex, CM7 5PY
Nursing home · Care home · CQC Good · Nursing on site · Run by Opal Care Homes Limited
Aspen Grange Care Home is in Braintree and we provide both residential and nursing care under one roof. That matters to the people who live here, because it means that if someone's health needs change over time they do not have to move...
Specialisms: Older Person Care, Dementia Care, Respite Care
Prince Edward Duke of Kent Court · Stisted Hall, Braintree, Essex, CM77 8AG
Care home · CQC Good · Run by The Royal Masonic Benevolent Institution Care Company
Prince Edward Duke of Kent Court is a residential care home in Braintree, Essex, offering older people and younger adults a comfortable place to live with support always close at hand. We try to keep the feel of a household rather than an...
Specialisms: Older Person Care, Dementia Care, Younger Adults, Respite Care
Kilkee Lodge Residential Home · Coggeshall Road, Braintree, Essex, CM7 9ED
Care home · CQC Requires improvement · Run by Kilkee Lodge Care Home Limited
Kilkee Lodge Residential Home is a care home in Braintree supporting older people. We are a residential home rather than a nursing home, so the shape of the day here is domestic. Meals, company, familiar routines, visitors, time outside...
Specialisms: Older Person Care, Respite Care
Mews Care Home · Church Lane, Braintree, Essex, CM7 5SE
Care home · CQC Good · Run by Artisan Ivy Opco Limited
Braintree Mews Care Home is a residential care home in Braintree, Essex. We look after older people who need help through the day, including many living with dementia, people with a physical disability, and people who are blind, partially...
Specialisms: Older Person Care, Dementia Care, Physical Disability, Visual / Hearing Impairment, Younger Adults, Respite Care
Imola · Lanham Green, Braintree, Essex, CM77 8DT
Care home · CQC Good · Run by Zero Three Care Homes LLP
Imola is a residential care home in Braintree, Essex, supporting adults who need help with daily living in an ordinary house rather than an institutional setting. Much of our work is with adults who have a learning disability or who are...
Specialisms: Learning Disability / Autism, Younger Adults, Respite Care

What care costs in Essex, per week

Type of care	What the council pays	What self-funders are typically asked
Residential care Middle half of prices from 11 Essex homes. Median £1,520.	£849	£1,384 to £1,672
Nursing care East of England figure, because too few Essex homes publish this price. 17 homes. Median £1,935.	£1,103	£1,800 to £2,126
Residential dementia care East of England figure, because too few Essex homes publish this price. 33 homes. Median £1,785.	Not published separately	£1,602 to £1,877
Nursing dementia care East of England figure, because too few Essex homes publish this price. 10 homes. Median £1,940.	Not published separately	£1,870 to £2,100

Published prices are often starting prices, and come from homes that publish fees, so treat them as a guide. Ask the home for its own price. Powered by Orrery Intelligence.

Inspected most recently

New Partnerships Lynray and Peach Cottage, 30 October 2025, Requires improvement
Fern Lodge, 20 May 2025, Good
Larchwood Care Home, 13 May 2025, Good

Longest since a report

Bradbury House, 25 November 2017, Good
Acorn Lodge Care Home, 17 April 2018, Good
Millard House, 13 March 2019, Good

Frequently asked questions about care homes in Braintree

How many care homes are there in Braintree?

Braintree has 13 CQC registered care homes: 11 Good, 2 Requires improvement. Counts come from the CQC register and are kept up to date as ratings change.

How much does a care home cost in Braintree?

Essex County Council pays an average of £849 a week for residential care. Self-funders are typically asked £1,384 to £1,672 a week. Middle half of prices from 11 Essex homes. Median £1,520. Published prices are often starting prices, and come from homes that publish fees, so treat them as a guide. Ask the home for its own price.

Which care homes in Braintree were inspected most recently?

New Partnerships Lynray and Peach Cottage (30 October 2025), Fern Lodge (20 May 2025) and Larchwood Care Home (13 May 2025) have the most recent CQC reports.

Local care news in Essex

New 55 bed care home registered with CQC in Basildon: Oaklands (Essex) (5 November 2026)
Highfield Care Home registered as a 60 bed care home in Uttlesford (5 November 2026)

More local care news for Essex