Home care agency · Colchester
Southern Family Care Ltd
Typical fee here £30–£37 an hour Estimate
Free · 2 minutes · No obligation · 34,334 registered providers compared
Illustrative photo, not of Southern Family Care Ltd- Address
- 5 Seaview Avenue, West Mersea, Colchester, CO5 8HE
- Run by
- Southern Family Care Ltd
- Type of provider
- Independent (private company)
- Service
- Home care agency
- Dementia
- Not listed as a specialism with CQC; ask the provider
- Registered with CQC
- January 2016 (10 years)
- Registered manager
- Emma Jane Merrick
- Company check
- Active, trading since 2012 (14 years), accounts up to date (Companies House 08094555)
- Last CQC check
- 10 Apr 2020
- Typical fees Estimated
- £30–£37 an hour for visiting care, weekdays; live-in £1,450–£1,770 a week. Our estimate from published local prices, not a quote. How we estimate
Regulated activities on its registration: Personal care
More in Brightlingsea: Home care in Brightlingsea (62) · Best rated home care agencies in Brightlingsea · Elderly care at home in Brightlingsea · Physical disability care at home in Brightlingsea · Learning disability care at home in Brightlingsea · Live-in care in Brightlingsea
See this service on the CQC website · CQC location ID 1-2410755325
An overview of Southern Family Care Ltd
Southern Family Care Ltd in Colchester is registered with the Care Quality Commission as a home care agency. The service is registered to support adults of all ages and children and lists physical disabilities, learning disabilities, mental health conditions, sight or hearing loss, drug or alcohol problems and eating disorders among its specialisms.
CQC rated it Good overall (April 2020). It is one of 62 CQC-registered home care agencies that have an office within 7 miles of Brightlingsea; 33 of those are rated Good or Outstanding.
What it may cost
We estimate visits from Southern Family Care Ltd at £30–£37 an hour (visiting care, weekdays), based on published prices in the region. As an example, an hour each morning and a 30-minute evening call comes to about £350 a week.
Live-in care in this region typically runs £1,450–£1,770 a week.
With savings below £23,250, Essex Council may contribute once it has carried out a free needs assessment.
The local picture
There are 2 other agencies within 3 miles, 1 of them rated Good or Outstanding; the nearest is Nightowls Home Care, 0.6 miles away.
It is registered for needs that fewer services nearby cover: children (3 of the nearest 13).
4 of the 6 nearest rated agencies have a more recent rating than this one.
It sits in Mersea and Pyefleet ward, classed by ONS as larger rural (nearer to a major town or city), among the 50% least deprived neighbourhoods in England. NHS services here are planned by NHS Essex ICB.
The ratings in context
CQC rated every one of the five key questions Good here, so there is no weak spot in the published ratings.
For leadership (Well-led), it shares its Good rating with 233 of the 311 other agencies in Essex that CQC has rated.
How long it has been running
Registered in January 2016, it has 10 years on the CQC register.
CQC has published 3 overall ratings for it (2016–2020), starting at Good and staying Good every time.
6 years have passed since the last overall rating. Services judged lower-risk wait longer for a visit, but teams change, so check what is different today.
CQC lists 3 reports for this location, the latest dated 10 April 2020.
Who it can help
Specialisms as registered with CQC.
What inspectors found
- People were unable to express their views about the care and support they received.
- Relatives and professionals were very positive about the care provided.
- We were told that staff were kind, friendly and attentive to people's needs.
- Relatives told us there were enough staff to meet people's needs.
Inspected 28 February 2020; report published 10 April 2020. In CQC's words, from its published findings (Open Government Licence). Read the full report.
Rating history
- Feb 2016
- Jul 2017
- Apr 2020
- Today Rating 6 years old
CQC rating timeline for this address.
CQC documents
- CQC inspection report 10 April 2020
- CQC inspection report 29 July 2017
- CQC inspection report 12 February 2016
Finding it
- Ward
- Mersea and Pyefleet
- Council
- Essex County Council · paying for care
- Parliamentary constituency
- Harwich and North Essex
- Local NHS (ICB)
- NHS Essex Integrated Care Board
- Urban or rural
- Larger rural; nearer to a major town or city
- Neighbourhood deprivation
- Among the 50% least deprived areas in England
- Postcode district
- Home care in CO5 (11)
Bigger map · Plan a journey · OpenStreetMap (ODbL)
Area details from ONS and NHS postcode data via postcodes.io (Open Government Licence). The office location; ask which streets and villages carers cover.
How CQC rated each area
- Safe271 of 312 in Essex
- Effective290 of 311 in Essex
- Caring291 of 311 in Essex
- Responsive292 of 311 in Essex
- Well-led234 of 312 in Essex
Source: CQC, published 10 April 2020. Under each rating: how many agencies in Essex share it.
The company behind Southern Family Care Ltd
Southern Family Care Ltd is run by Southern Family Care Ltd (company 08094555), incorporated in 2012, 3 years before this service registered with CQC.
At Companies House, the company is listed as active, its accounts are filed on time, it has 2 active directors and there is no insolvency history.
Its registered business activity is other social work without accommodation.
Family reviews
No family has reviewed Southern Family Care Ltd on The Care Panel so far.
Reviews are separate from CQC ratings. We verify the reviewer's email and never let providers remove reviews. How reviews work.
Southern Family Care Ltd against its area
- Rated Good. Across Essex, 90% of the 310 rated home care agencies are Good or Outstanding and 12 are Outstanding.
- Its rating (April 2020) is more recent than 32% of agency ratings in Essex.
- Registered with CQC in 2016: it has been registered longer than 77% of home care agencies in the area.
- It lists 9 specialisms with CQC; the typical agency in Essex lists 6.
Comparison set: every registered home care agency in Essex, CQC data for Oct 2026.
Nearest home care agencies
Guides for families
Recently rated home care agencies near Brightlingsea
- Constable CareMar 2026 · under 0.5 miles
- Essex and Suffolk Quality Care LtdJun 2025 · 2.6 miles
- Aldanat CareSep 2026 · 5.0 miles
Quick answers about Southern Family Care Ltd
- Where is Southern Family Care Ltd?
- 5 Seaview Avenue, West Mersea, Colchester, CO5 8HE. That is the office; visits happen in your own home, so confirm your area is covered.
- What kind of care can Southern Family Care Ltd offer?
- Registration for Southern Family Care Ltd covers: homecare agencies. Check which of these it offers today.
- How much does care from Southern Family Care Ltd cost?
- Southern Family Care Ltd's prices aren't on our site yet. Visiting care typically costs around £32–£34 an hour (typical 2026 prices across England). Request a written quote and check what is charged on top.
- Is Southern Family Care Ltd regulated by the Care Quality Commission?
- Yes. Southern Family Care Ltd is registered with the Care Quality Commission as a home care agency (location ID 1-2410755325) and was rated Good overall in April 2020.
- When did CQC last rate Southern Family Care Ltd?
- CQC published the current rating on 10 April 2020, 6 years ago. Older ratings are common, so ask about changes since.
- Is Southern Family Care Ltd rated well for safety?
- CQC rates five key questions. For Southern Family Care Ltd: Safe: Good; Effective: Good; Caring: Good; Responsive: Good; Well-led: Good. Start with Safe and Well-led when reading the report.
- Is Southern Family Care Ltd registered for dementia care?
- Not as a registered specialism. Some services still support people with mild dementia, so ask.
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Details from the Care Quality Commission register, updated Oct 2026. Contains CQC data licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Text marked "in the provider's own words" is supplied by the provider. The Care Panel is not a care provider.