SafeAre people protected from abuse and avoidable harm?59%Requires improvement
See the breakdownHide the breakdown4 of 8 below good
Involving people to manage risksSignificant shortfalls
Learning cultureSome shortfalls
Safe and effective staffingSome shortfalls
Safe systems, pathways and transitionsSome shortfalls
Infection prevention and controlGood
Medicines optimisationGood
Safe environmentsGood
SafeguardingGood
EffectiveDoes care achieve good outcomes and a good quality of life?67%Good
See the breakdownHide the breakdown2 of 6 below good
Assessing needsSome shortfalls
Monitoring and improving outcomesSome shortfalls
Consent to care and treatmentGood
Delivering evidence-based care and treatmentGood
How staff, teams and services work togetherGood
Supporting people to live healthier livesGood
CaringAre staff kind, compassionate and respectful?75%Good
See the breakdownHide the breakdownAll 5 good
Independence, choice and controlGood
Kindness, compassion and dignityGood
Responding to people's immediate needsGood
Treating people as individualsGood
Workforce wellbeing and enablementGood
ResponsiveAre services organised to meet people's needs?75%Good
See the breakdownHide the breakdownAll 7 good
Care provision, integration and continuityGood
Equity in accessGood
Equity in experiences and outcomesGood
Listening to and involving peopleGood
Person-centred careGood
Planning for the futureGood
Providing InformationGood
Well-ledIs the home well managed, with a culture of high-quality care?62%Requires improvement
See the breakdownHide the breakdown2 of 7 below good
Governance, management and sustainabilitySignificant shortfalls
Learning, improvement and innovationSome shortfalls
Capable, compassionate and inclusive leadersGood
Freedom to speak upGood
Partnerships and communitiesGood
Shared direction and cultureGood
Workforce equality, diversity and inclusionGood
Percentages are CQC scores from its newer way of assessing homes. ?
CQC scored 33 standards: 25 good, 8 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. ?
CQC's register shows no registered manager for this home. Every care home must have one. The home may be recruiting, or a new manager may be applying to CQC. ?
The Orchards is in the Requires improvement tier ?, with 9 other homes in Cambridgeshire.
92% of rated homes here are Good or Outstanding (England: 82%).
Run by Greensleeves Homes Trust, The Orchards is a residential care home in Ely, Cambridgeshire with 66 registered beds. CQC registers it to look after older people, people with dementia, people with a physical disability and people with a sensory impairment. That is larger than most homes in Cambridgeshire, where the typical home has 35 beds.
There is no registered manager on CQC's register right now. The nearest home with a higher rating is Fen House (Good), 0.8 km away. 18 of Greensleeves Homes Trust’s 26 rated homes are Good or Outstanding (compare care home groups). Food hygiene inspectors scored the kitchen 5 out of 5 in July 2026. 88% of homes in Cambridgeshire also score 5. In Cambridgeshire, 92% of rated care homes are Good or Outstanding (England 82%).
CQC last rated the home in December 2025, giving it Requires improvement overall. It was Requires improvement for safe and well-led as well. Effective, caring and responsive were rated Good. Before that, in February 2021, it was rated Good. That is more recent than most ratings in Cambridgeshire, where the typical rating is about 7 years old. 8 of its 33 scored standards were below good, including “involving people to manage risks”.
