Cantref Care Home

Cantref is a family-run care home that was set up over thirty years ago. The Registered Manager is Mrs Joanne Pritchard, who has worked in this environment since the home first opened. Mr and Mrs Bailey are the Care Home Directors and Cara Bailey is the deputy. We have more than twenty five dedicated staff which includes; two teams who work throughout the day (8am-8pm), and two teams who work at night, with additional support at busier times. We have an activities coordinator, two cooks and a lady who likes to keep the place clean and tidy. We are a lucky home in that maintenance are on site and specialise in many areas including being our Responsible Individual also, with that all our minor jobs are able to be swiftly signed off within a short time frame which can mean very little disruption to our staff and residents.

For many of the relatives/visitors that come through our door, it can be the first time they have been into a care home. They may have had a family member who was perfectly fit and well a short time ago, but has suffered a fall and after a subsequent stay in hospital it has transpired that they may need additional support with 24-hour care. It can be a shock and often a daunting process to comprehend.

We specialise in providing support and care to ladies and gentlemen who can no longer live on their own and therefore require assistance with the general aspects of personal care. Our residents receive support with washing, dressing, visiting the toilet and eating and drinking (depending on support needs) – meals are provided and dietary needs catered for. There is no need for a residential care setting to have a registered nurse on site and your health needs are very well supported by our visiting professionals – GP’s, district nurses etc. 

Categories of Care

We are not a nursing facility, however, we would like to think that this is a “homely home” and we do make provisions for the treatment of disease, disorder or injury if it is within our capabilities. 

If the hospital, general practitioner or social worker recommends an EMI (elderly mentally infirm) or a nursing home, these are for residents whose needs are that more in depth and a higher staff ratio is on duty to reflect the more challenging needs of a resident.  

What to do next?

Our first recommendation is to ask those who are already looking after your family member’s wellbeing – social worker, district nursing team, doctors – what they think of the care establishments in the area and whether they have any information. Secondly we would ask that you give us a call and come in and have a look around. We are on Facebook – have a look, see what we have been up to! Most relatives get a good feel for a place once they have been in for a browse it can alleviate some of the stress of starting out. We would only ask that you avoid the key busy times of lunch and tea time.

Write down or be prepared to ask questions – we are here to help. We are transparent and are registered and inspected by the Care Inspectorate Wales. Our inspections reports will be available to view online.

Vacancies

Sometimes families and relatives are often in a position where they have to find a placement quite quickly. Hospitals do not mean to be pushy, but with the ever increasing density of population in Abergavenny, they have their own struggle of trying to look after those who are poorly by having beds. Please try not to feel rushed – it is paramount that the right place is found and is suitable for your nearest and dearest, rather than the wrong one being picked and another subsequent move down the line which can be very stressful for all involved. 

We do not have a vacancy page just yet, but you can give us a quick call to find out if we have any space. You are able to be placed on a waiting list should we not have a suitable room at the time needed. If you are genuinely interested in Cantref being the forever home of your loved one, tell us, we will do our best to keep room options available for you.

Respite

We are able to look after residents for a short term should we have a vacancy that is suitable for their care needs. Some Local Authority’s fund a period of respite. If you or your family are needing some time to get used to the next step in care, perhaps a respite stay is for you? We would advise a two week stay, but would be happy to discuss any terms of respite that is required.

Financial Assessments

We do not get involved with financial assessments of our residents. We have some privately funded and some are Local Authority placements and it is a very even mix. The financial assessments would be prepared by social working teams (if you or your relative have one), aside from this the next big area of responsibility would be the selling of a property. This, we find, is the biggest and most apprehensive part of someone coming into care not just for them, but for the families and friends involved in the mammoth task of getting this organised.  It can be a turbulent time for those who have lived at home quite successfully and built up their houses into homes and gardens for their own families. Some residents take to it very easily as they know and realise they cannot cope at home, for others it can take some time. We know this is difficult and are here to provide support to our residents.  We are also able to provide information on an Advocacy Service.

Rates

The price of our care services (as of May 2024) is £950 per week. Local Authorities their set amount per week, the amount is not currently in line with our charges and therefore there is a “top up” fee amount that we have tried in the past not to ask for. We do review our charges annually, it is likely they will be reviewed more often than that, however we will provide you with 28 days’ notice on any changes. The rate includes all laundry and food. We do have a hairdresser that comes to us on a Tuesday and a Chiropodist every six to eight weeks which is a separate cost. Newspapers and magazines are able to be delivered and the library generally visits every month or so. 

We do ask that resident’s families escort their family members to any hospital appointments, however in extreme circumstances are happy to look at the staff ratio to see if we can help out. There is a charge for this which is £30 for the first two hours and £15 per hour thereafter. Appointments may have to be altered if we cannot safely provide the staff to escort on the day.