Care home · Maldon
The Lodge
Illustrative photo, not of The Lodge- Address
- Dykes Chase, Maldon, CM9 6HW
- Run by
- SDM Care Homes LTD (2 services)
- Type of provider
- Independent (private company)
- Service
- Residential care home
- Beds
- 25 (registered with CQC)
- Nursing care
- No, residential care only (CQC registration)
- Dementia
- Registered with CQC to support people living with dementia
- Registered with CQC
- May 2024 (2 years)
- Registered manager
- Clare Susan Hatcher
- Company check
- Active, trading since 2024 (2 years), accounts up to date (Companies House 15398881)
- Last CQC check
- 11 Jun 2026
- Typical fees Estimated
- £1,350–£1,650 a week for residential care (dementia). Our estimate from published local prices, not a quote. How we estimate
Licensed by CQC for: Accommodation for persons who require nursing or personal care
More in Maldon: Care homes in Maldon (8) · Best rated care homes in Maldon · Care homes for dementia care in Maldon · Care homes for elderly care in Maldon · Care homes for care for adults under 65 in Maldon
See this service on the CQC website · CQC location ID 1-18928422722
About this home
The Lodge in Maldon is registered with the Care Quality Commission as a residential care home, run by SDM Care Homes LTD. The service is registered to support adults of all ages and lists dementia among its specialisms.
CQC rated it Good overall (June 2026). Safe was rated Requires improvement. It is one of 8 CQC-registered care homes in and around Maldon; 7 of those are rated Good or Outstanding.
The five key questions
- Safe59% score67 of 364 in Essex
- Effective71% score326 of 364 in Essex
- Caring70% score340 of 364 in Essex
- Responsive68% score322 of 364 in Essex
- Well-led64% score270 of 364 in Essex
From CQC's latest report, published 11 June 2026. Under each rating: how many care homes in Essex share it.
How the scores break down
Behind each rating sit scores of 1 to 4 for individual quality statements, which CQC turns into a percentage for the area. Averaged across the five areas, The Lodge scores 66%.
Safe 59%
- Learning culture2 · Some shortfalls
- Safe systems, pathways and transitions2 · Some shortfalls
- Safeguarding3 · Good
- Involving people to manage risks2 · Some shortfalls
- Safe environments2 · Some shortfalls
- Safe and effective staffing3 · Good
- Infection prevention and control3 · Good
- Medicines optimisation2 · Some shortfalls
Effective 71%
- Assessing needs2 · Some shortfalls
- Delivering evidence-based care and treatment3 · Good
- How staff, teams and services work together3 · Good
- Supporting people to live healthier lives3 · Good
- Monitoring and improving outcomes3 · Good
- Consent to care and treatment3 · Good
Caring 70%
- Kindness, compassion and dignity3 · Good
- Treating people as individuals2 · Some shortfalls
- Independence, choice and control3 · Good
- Responding to people’s immediate needs3 · Good
- Workforce wellbeing and enablement3 · Good
Responsive 68%
- Person-centred Care2 · Some shortfalls
- Care provision, Integration and continuity3 · Good
- Providing Information3 · Good
- Listening to and involving people3 · Good
- Equity in access3 · Good
- Equity in experiences and outcomes3 · Good
- Planning for the future2 · Some shortfalls
Well-led 64%
- Shared direction and culture3 · Good
- Capable, compassionate and inclusive leaders2 · Some shortfalls
- Freedom to speak up3 · Good
- Workforce equality, diversity and inclusion3 · Good
- Governance, management and sustainability2 · Some shortfalls
- Partnerships and communities3 · Good
- Learning, improvement and innovation2 · Some shortfalls
4 means exceptional and 1 means significant shortfalls (3 good, 2 some shortfalls). CQC data, assessed 16 April 2026, published 11 June 2026, Open Government Licence. Where no score shows, that statement wasn't part of this assessment and its earlier result still counts.
Rating history
- Aug 2016
- Apr 2019
- Feb 2022
- Feb 2024
- Jun 2026
- Today Rated in the last 12 months
Overall ratings CQC has published for this location, oldest first. The latest rating is an improvement on the one before.
The neighbourhood
- Ward
- Maldon North
- Council
- Essex County Council · paying for care
- Parliamentary constituency
- Maldon
- NHS integrated care board
- NHS Essex Integrated Care Board
- Type of area
- Urban · nearer to a major town or city
- Neighbourhood deprivation
- Among the 30% least deprived areas in England
- Postcode district
- Care homes in CM9 (9)
Open the full map · Plan a journey · OpenStreetMap (ODbL)
Local amenities
- Bus stop 340 m (4 min walk) · 11 stops within 600 m
- GP surgery Longfield Medical Centre, 690 m (9 min walk)
- Pharmacy Longfield Pharmacy, 690 m (9 min walk)
- Shop Ranya Shop, 440 m (6 min walk)
- Park Oak Tree Meadow, 660 m (8 min walk)
- Café Maldon Cafe, 430 m (5 min walk)
- Place of worship Taoist Tai Chi Society, 250 m (3 min walk)
- Library Maldon Library, 550 m (7 min walk)
Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL). These are direct-line distances, so real walking routes, and times, will be longer.
Local area facts: ONS and NHS geography via postcodes.io, Open Government Licence.
How long it has been running
CQC registration dates from May 2024, so the service has been operating for around 2 years under its current registration.
CQC has published 5 overall ratings for it (2016–2026), starting at Good and improving to Good.
The company behind The Lodge
The Lodge is run by Sdm Care Homes Ltd (company 15398881), incorporated in 2024.
At Companies House, the company is listed as active, its accounts are filed on time, it has 3 active directors and there is no insolvency history.
Its registered business activity is residential care for older and disabled people.
SDM Care Homes LTD runs 2 CQC-registered services across 2 council areas; 1 of the 2 with a rating are Good or Outstanding (50%), against 83% for the same mix of services across England.
Registered specialisms
Taken from its CQC registration.
What it may cost
We estimate The Lodge at £1,350–£1,650 a week for residential care (dementia), based on published prices in the region. Over a year that is roughly £70k–£86k.
Ask whether the fee changes if needs increase, and what is extra: hairdressing, chiropody, outings and newspapers are often charged separately.
Council help is possible below £23,250 in savings: ask Essex Council for a free care needs assessment.
The local picture
There are 7 other care homes within 3 miles, 6 of them rated Good or Outstanding; the nearest is Hailey House, under 0.5 miles away.
1 of the 23 nearest rated care homes has a more recent rating than this one.
It sits in Maldon North ward, classed by ONS as urban (nearer to a major town or city), among the 30% least deprived neighbourhoods in England. NHS services here are planned by NHS Essex ICB.
Within about a 10-minute walk there is a GP surgery (9 min), a pharmacy (9 min), a shop (6 min), a park (8 min), a café (5 min) and a bus stop (4 min), which matters for residents who can go out and for visiting family.
The inspection, summarised
- Since the last inspection, the provider has changed.
- We identified 1 breach of the legal regulations in relation to safe care and treatment.
- We found that some care plans and risk assessments had not been completed or did not always contain sufficient information with regards to people’s needs and the potential risks associated to their medical conditions.
- One relative told us, “The staff are very supportive.” People had access to activities and external healthcare professionals.
Supporting 24 people at the time. Quoted from the CQC report summary, Open Government Licence. Read the full report.
The ratings in context
For The Lodge, Safe is rated below Good; 4 other areas are Good.
Across Essex, 67 of 364 rated care homes are Requires improvement for Safe (18%).
Under CQC's newer scoring, its strongest area is Effective at 71% and its lowest is Safe at 59%, averaging 66% overall.
The Safe findings are the part of the report to read closely; ask the manager what has been put right.
Family reviews
Nobody has reviewed The Lodge here yet. Have you used it? A short, honest review helps the next family decide.
Reviews come from people who used the service or their families, verified by email. They sit alongside, not instead of, CQC ratings, and providers cannot take them down. How reviews work.
Where The Lodge stands locally
- Rated Good. Across Essex, 84% of the 363 rated care homes are Good or Outstanding and 7 are Outstanding.
- Its rating (June 2026) is more recent than 92% of care home ratings in Essex.
- With 25 beds it is larger than 52% of care homes in Essex, where the typical home has 22.
- Registered with CQC in 2024: it has been registered longer than 14% of care homes in the area.
- It lists 3 specialisms with CQC; the typical care home in Essex lists 3.
- Areas CQC rated below Good: Safe (20% of care homes in Essex are also rated below Good here). Ask the provider what has changed since.
Comparison set: every registered care home in Essex, CQC data for Oct 2026.
Closest alternatives
Guides for families
Maldon: care homes inspected recently
- St Peters CourtJan 2026
- Hailey HouseJan 2025
The Lodge: common questions
- How many residents can The Lodge take?
- The Lodge has 25 registered places. Ask how many are free now and which rooms have en-suites.
- Who is the registered provider for The Lodge?
- On CQC's register the provider is SDM Care Homes LTD.
- How much does care from The Lodge cost?
- No fee list from The Lodge has reached us. Residential care home typically costs £1,455 a week (average 2026 self-funder fees in East of England). Ask for a written quote that includes weekend and bank holiday rates.
- How is The Lodge rated for safety and leadership?
- The five CQC areas: Safe: Requires improvement; Effective: Good; Caring: Good; Responsive: Good; Well-led: Good. Safe and Well-led tend to say most about day-to-day reliability.
- What kind of care can The Lodge offer?
- Its CQC registration covers residential homes. Ask The Lodge how it would adapt if needs increase.
- What is The Lodge's address?
- It is at Dykes Chase, Maldon, CM9 6HW.
- Is The Lodge a registered provider?
- Registered, yes: location 1-18928422722 on the Care Quality Commission register, listed as a care home and was rated Good overall in June 2026.
- Does The Lodge support people with dementia?
- Dementia is listed on its CQC registration. Ask what dementia training staff have and how they handle distress or refusals.
- When did CQC last rate The Lodge?
- The latest rating is dated 11 June 2026; ask whether there have been changes since.
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Register data from the Care Quality Commission, refreshed Oct 2026, used under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Provider-written text is labelled as such. We are an independent directory, not a care provider.