Requires improvementSafe: Requires improvementEffective: Requires improvementCaring: Requires improvementResponsive: GoodWell-led: Requires improvementRated 1 year ago↓ Down from Good
SafeAre people protected from abuse and avoidable harm?50%Requires improvement
See the breakdownHide the breakdown8 of 8 below good
Infection prevention and controlSome shortfalls
Involving people to manage risksSome shortfalls
Learning cultureSome shortfalls
Medicines optimisationSome shortfalls
Safe and effective staffingSome shortfalls
Safe environmentsSome shortfalls
Safe systems, pathways and transitionsSome shortfalls
SafeguardingSome shortfalls
EffectiveDoes care achieve good outcomes and a good quality of life?54%Requires improvement
See the breakdownHide the breakdown5 of 6 below good
Assessing needsSome shortfalls
Consent to care and treatmentSome shortfalls
Delivering evidence-based care and treatmentSome shortfalls
How staff, teams and services work togetherSome shortfalls
Monitoring and improving outcomesSome shortfalls
Supporting people to live healthier livesGood
CaringAre staff kind, compassionate and respectful?60%Requires improvement
See the breakdownHide the breakdown3 of 5 below good
Independence, choice and controlSome shortfalls
Responding to people's immediate needsSome shortfalls
Workforce wellbeing and enablementSome shortfalls
Kindness, compassion and dignityGood
Treating people as individualsGood
ResponsiveAre services organised to meet people's needs?68%Good
See the breakdownHide the breakdown2 of 7 below good
Care provision, integration and continuitySome shortfalls
Person-centred careSome shortfalls
Equity in accessGood
Equity in experiences and outcomesGood
Listening to and involving peopleGood
Planning for the futureGood
Providing InformationGood
Well-ledIs the home well managed, with a culture of high-quality care?57%Requires improvement
See the breakdownHide the breakdown5 of 7 below good
Capable, compassionate and inclusive leadersSome shortfalls
Freedom to speak upSome shortfalls
Governance, management and sustainabilitySome shortfalls
Partnerships and communitiesSome shortfalls
Workforce equality, diversity and inclusionSome shortfalls
Learning, improvement and innovationGood
Shared direction and cultureGood
Percentages are CQC scores from its newer way of assessing homes. ?
CQC scored 33 standards: 10 good, 23 below good. Use “See the breakdown” on each key question for its standards. ?
CQC hasn't inspected this home for more than 5 years. It re-inspects based on risk, so an old rating doesn't count against a home on this site, but it may not reflect the home today. ?
DHCH14 Limited runs Birch Abbey, a nursing home in Southport, Sefton with room for 60 residents. CQC registers it to look after older people, people with dementia, younger adults, people with a physical disability, people with mental health needs and people with a sensory impairment. Most homes in Sefton are smaller: the median there is 27 beds.
It is one of 22 homes run by DHCH14 Limited. 16 of those with a rating are Good or Outstanding. About 0.1 km away, Abingdon is rated Good. In Sefton, 79% of rated care homes are Good or Outstanding (England 82%). Food hygiene inspectors scored the kitchen 5 out of 5 in July 2025. 94% of homes in Sefton also score 5.
The current CQC rating is Requires improvement, published in April 2025. Safe, effective, caring and well-led were also Requires improvement. For responsive, the rating was Good. That is down from Good in August 2022. The typical rating in Sefton is about 5 years old, so this one is fairly recent. CQC found some shortfalls in “independence, choice and control”, one of 23 standards out of 33 scored below good.
