
St Mary's you are amazing!Kevin B(Son of Resident/Service User)

Whenever we have visited St Marys, the staff are always very helpful and friendly.Jill C(Daughter of Resident/Service User)

You will always hold a special place in our hearts. Keep doing the wonderful job you do.C G(Daughter of Resident/Service User)

St Mary's you are amazing!Kevin B(Son of Resident/Service User)

Whenever we have visited St Marys, the staff are always very helpful and friendly.Jill C(Daughter of Resident/Service User)

You will always hold a special place in our hearts. Keep doing the wonderful job you do.C G(Daughter of Resident/Service User)

St Marys, in Ipswich supports up to 60 older people to live a comfortable lifestyle, as well as offering dementia care. It is located in an idyllic peninsula setting in the village of Holbrook.
The home continues to welcome new residents for a range of residential care services, including convalescence care, respite care, trial stays, and long term care for those who can no longer look after themselves.
The St Marys care...
Care Provided by St Marys
Primary Care Categories
- Older Person Care
- Dementia
Length of Stay
- Permanent Care
- Respite Care
Care Types Provided
- Residential Care
- Dementia Residential Care
- For a maximum of 60 Service Users
Dementia Care TypesMild Dementia
Someone living with our definition of "mild dementia" might experience some or all of the following:
- Memory problems such as misplacing items and not be able to recall recent events (however, in some forms of dementia a person's memory may be unchanged)
- Difficulties thinking through problems and planning, making decisions
- Language and communication issues such as finding it difficult to recall the appropriate word in a conversation or following a conversation
- Poor orientation, getting lost in areas previously familiar to them
- Difficulty judging distances (more falls than usual)
- Changes in their normal mood including anxiety and depression
- In certain types of dementia, personality and behaviour changes may be present alongside or instead of issues with memory or concentration.
Moderate Dementia
Someone living with our definition of "moderate dementia" might experience some or all of the following:
- Worsened memory problems. Not always recognising own family members and friends. Repeating the same questions over and over again
- Worsened language and communication issues, forgetting what they are saying mid-sentence. Not being able to understand what someone else is saying
- More frequent confusion, e.g. about the time of day or where they are, including their own home
- Apathy, depression and anxiety
- Believing things that aren't true (paranoia)
- Frequent hallucinations
- Lack of emotional control, quick to anger, fearfulness, sadness
- Loss of inhibition
- Difficulties sleeping or waking during the night and behaving as though it is daytime - loss of circadian rhythm.
Advanced Dementia
Someone living with our definition of "severe dementia" might experience some or all of the following:
- Severe memory problems. Not recognising family members and friends. Not being able to recall their own name
- Severe language and communication issues, not being able to understand what someone else is saying
- Severe confusion, e.g. about the time of day or where they are, including their own home
- Apathy, depression and anxiety
- Believing things that aren't true (paranoia)
- Frequent hallucinations
- Lack of emotional control, quick to anger, fearfulness, sadness
- Loss of inhibition
- Difficulties sleeping or waking during the night and behaving as though it is daytime - loss of circadian rhythm.
Verbally or physically aggressive behaviour
If your loved one displays this type of behaviour you may need a care home that has specially trained staff. Verbal/physical aggression is often defined:
- Consistent shouting and screaming
- Verbal abuse
- Physical abuse
How we define Dementia Care Types
Mild Dementia
Someone living with our definition of "mild dementia" might experience some or all of the following:
- Memory problems such as misplacing items and not be able to recall recent events (however, in some forms of dementia a person's memory may be unchanged)
- Difficulties thinking through problems and planning, making decisions
- Language and communication issues such as finding it difficult to recall the appropriate word in a conversation or following a conversation
- Poor orientation, getting lost in areas previously familiar to them
- Difficulty judging distances (more falls than usual)
- Changes in their normal mood including anxiety and depression
- In certain types of dementia, personality and behaviour changes may be present alongside or instead of issues with memory or concentration.
Moderate Dementia
Someone living with our definition of "moderate dementia" might experience some or all of the following:
- Worsened memory problems. Not always recognising own family members and friends. Repeating the same questions over and over again
- Worsened language and communication issues, forgetting what they are saying mid-sentence. Not being able to understand what someone else is saying
- More frequent confusion, e.g. about the time of day or where they are, including their own home
- Apathy, depression and anxiety
- Believing things that aren't true (paranoia)
- Frequent hallucinations
- Lack of emotional control, quick to anger, fearfulness, sadness
- Loss of inhibition
- Difficulties sleeping or waking during the night and behaving as though it is daytime - loss of circadian rhythm.
Advanced Dementia
Someone living with our definition of "severe dementia" might experience some or all of the following:
- Severe memory problems. Not recognising family members and friends. Not being able to recall their own name
- Severe language and communication issues, not being able to understand what someone else is saying
- Severe confusion, e.g. about the time of day or where they are, including their own home
- Apathy, depression and anxiety
- Believing things that aren't true (paranoia)
- Frequent hallucinations
- Lack of emotional control, quick to anger, fearfulness, sadness
- Loss of inhibition
- Difficulties sleeping or waking during the night and behaving as though it is daytime - loss of circadian rhythm.
Verbally or physically aggressive behaviour
If your loved one displays this type of behaviour you may need a care home that has specially trained staff. Verbal/physical aggression is often defined:
- Consistent shouting and screaming
- Verbal abuse
- Physical abuse
How we define Dementia Care Types
- Mild Dementia
- Moderate Dementia
Other Care Provided
- Convalescent Care
Facilities
- Pet Friendly (or by arrangement)
- Close to Local shops
- Near Public Transport
- Lift
- Wheelchair Access
- Gardens
- Residents Kitchenette
- Phone Point in own room
- Television point in own room
Funding & Fees
Weekly Charges per Person
Fees can vary depending on care needs and other factors. Colleagues at St Marys will be happy to discuss our weekly fees with you and what our fees include.
The price(s) shown are provided by the care home. Contact St Marys for full pricing details and T&Cs.
Contact St Marys to confirm what's included and get a personalised quote:
Funding Types Accepted
- Self-Funding (Private)
- Local Authority with Top-up
- Local Authority
- NHS Continuing Healthcare (CHC)
Good to Know
Group / Owner
- Anchor
- Voluntary / Not for Profit Owned
Person in charge
- Anna Dabrowska (Manager)
Local Authority / Social Services
Admission Information
- Mixed (no single-gender units)
- Ages 65+
Care Home Design/Build
- Purpose Built: Yes
Room Information
- Single Rooms (60)
- Single Rooms with ensuite Wet Room (59)
Visiting
- Visitors are welcome at St Marys.
Parking
- Onsite parking is available, including disabled spaces.
St Marys Reviews (157)
St Marys has a Review Score of 9.8 (9.811) out of 10, based on 28 reviews in the last 2 years.
Over all time St Marys has 157 reviews.
Excellent service
She reminds me on each visist how fed up she is with her clothes fading - due to the extreme temperatures that everything is washed at. This also affects the elasticity of various items which shouldn't be washed at temps greater than 40 degrees. This has resulted in far more frequency of buying replacement items. There isn't a box to reflect this area of the care at the home.
We are very happy in all other respects!
The care and kindness Mum received was beyond amazing. Although, sadly, her physical and mental condition declined. We, as a family, were given so much support and comfort until the very end of her death on 6th May 2026. So much respect shown. St Mary's Care Home is a wonderful, friendly and welcoming home. Every member of staff could not have done more for us. You will always hold a special place in our hearts. Keep doing the wonderful job you do.
My grandfather has settled in lovely, he says the care provided is second to none. I agree, I visit him regularly and every care giver I meet is happy, friendly and always willing to help. The areas are cleaned regularly and I see the cleaners doing a thorough job. The entertainment for the residents is so good as well, my grandfather loves the music and singing- always puts a smile on his face. Very improved with the food as well, looks and smells so lovely. No complaints from grandad.
Following a fall at Christmas, mum was taken in for respite care. She is now a full resident. The staff have gone beyond to help mum settle in and sort her medication and health care out. It has been a difficult time made easier by their care and kindness.
For the last five years of mum's life she was cared for by the fabulous team at St Mary's Care Home in Holbrook. As Mum lived with Alzheimer's disease she required a significant level of care, which the team at St Mary's adapted, reviewed and revised on a regular basis. There were occasions when we as a family had concerns for mum's welfare and on each occasion these concerns were dealt with in an empathetic and supportive manner and any necessary changes were implemented. We thank you for listening, and for responding. Mum was placed in care at St Mary's during Covid in 2020, and from the very first moment she arrived she never looked back (literally). We have vivid memories of mum walking through the door and being welcomed to her new home, a place where she felt safe and secure every day. My family and I feel blessed that during the later part of mum's life she was in a warm, secure, safe and loving environment surrounded by a wonderful team of people. St Mary's you are amazing!
Whenever I visit my aunt, she is usually having a good time, she's clean and tidy, and she is pleased with most of her meals. The staff are all very patient with her and she tells me she loves them all, especially the young men! The only complaint is that they get her up early in the morning!
Thank you for taking the time to leave us a review. We are very pleased to hear Aunt seems happy and loves our team. We all love her very much here. We know Aunt certainly likes to get herself up nice and early, with additional support for personal care. We regularly review all our residents' care...
Whenever we have visited St Marys, the staff are always very helpful and friendly. Mum settled in nicely always looking clean and tidy.
I visit most days and am always made to feel very welcome.
St. Mary's is always clean and tidy and has a lovely homely feel to it.
My brother and I are so pleased to have found such a lovely home for Mum. We are confident that she is being well looked after, and know that she is very happy living there. We would highly recommend it.
Staff are always helpful and cheerful. If we have any issues they are always there to help and assist us. Always feel that the person we visit is always cared for and looked after.
All the staff at St Mary's are excellent. My Mum has now been a resident for over 4 months and we are very pleased with the care she has received and is still receiving. The food is very good and varied. Mum especially enjoys the soup at supper. They have frequent activities, Mum especially likes the flower arranging. The residents and family BBQs are another good time to enjoy and really well supported by staff and residents. The home is bright, clean and kept to a high standard. The laundry service is really quick and the cleaners are very kind and helpful. The entire team seems to work really well together. I have several friends who have had family and friends at St Mary's and we certainly recommend the home to our friends and family. It is a very nice place and one which we are pleased to have found for our Mum. We visit daily and are always pleased with how Mum is treated and cared for.
I can't thank the staff enough for the care they provided.
During his last few weeks of his life my father was treated with love, compassion and dignity. The staff have a great affinity with the residents of St Marys care home. I have witnessed this personally. A special mention to the team leaders, all showing great devotion to their roles.
Both catering and administrative staff treated me with kindness and courtesy - nothing was too much trouble for them - this included a sleepless night for me - getting up and a member of staff kindly making me a cup of coffee at midnight.
Excellent.
Excellent effort for all. Varied and excellent food.
The staff at St. Mary's have always been kind, Caring and attentive. The home is beautifully clean, bright and engaging and there always seems to be plenty of activities on offer. We have been very satisfied and happy with the care provided to dad.
He didn't know they were his last six months neither did we, but he was so happy there with his favourite chair and belongings around him he actually said it was like a luxury hotel!
The staff were all so kind and caring catering to his every whim.
We were also greeted by warm friendly faces!
At the end they respected our privacy with him and were kind and compassionate.
Have nothing but praise for everyone
I know the carers are paid to do their job but they often go the extra mile. May I add that the Chrismas dinner was exemplary and was lucky to have been included. I believe in giving praise where praise is due.
This is a good example of the dependability of the staff: One day, after I'd sped to inform the team that a resident was lying on the floor in my husbands lavatory it was action station! They coped admirably, thanked profoundly afterwards. May there be continuing reassureane like this for the residents and their relatives.
Every time I visit the care home. All staff and residents are very happy and helpful. There are lots of activities to take part in if the residents so wish. They have hairdressers and foot people that come to the home regularly. All in all, my experience is excellent.
Regulatory Rating
Care Quality Commission (CQC) Rating
Date: 23 August 2025Good
- CaringGood
- EffectiveGood
- ResponsiveGood
- SafeGood
- Well-ledOutstanding
Inspection ratings
We rate most services according to how safe, effective, caring, responsive and well-led they are, using four levels:
- Outstanding - The service is performing exceptionally well.
- Good - The service is performing well and meeting our expectations.
- Requires Improvement - The service isn't performing as well as it should and we have told the service how it must improve.
- Inadequate - The service is performing badly and we've taken action against the person or organisation that runs it.
- Not rated - we have not yet rated this area of the service, this is normally because the assessments we have carried out have been focused on other key questions.
Bed Vacancies
2 Bed Vacancies
Posted: 27 July 2026We currently have two vacancies for care. Please contact St Marys for further details.
News (7) & Events (0)
- 27 Mar 2026
An Ipswich care home is delighted to have been classed as Good by the Care Quality Commission (CQC), the second highest rating possible, as well as being rated Outstanding for...
- 23 Jan 2026
Residents at Anchor’s St Mary's care home in Holbrook have been celebrating the kindness of a local pupil. Emily, a student at Holbrook Academy, has developed a wonderful bond with...
- 19 Dec 2025
Residents and colleagues at Anchor care homes across Suffolk are embracing the festive spirit. From crafting Christmas decorations and singing carols, to decorating trees and baking festive treats, each activity...
There are no upcoming events for St Marys.
Accreditations
There are no accreditations posted yet for St Marys.
Meet the Team (3)

Hi, I’m Anna. I’ve been with Anchor for almost a decade.
My focus as Home Manager has solidified around pioneering dementia care and fostering a people-oriented environment. Our team, through collaborative efforts, has significantly enhanced operational efficiency and resident satisfaction, upholding high standards of care.
With a strong foundation in care management, I've launched initiatives that promote staff development and ensure compliance with healthcare regulations.

Hi, I’m Allison, and I have been the administrator for St Mary’s for over 10 years now.
My role requires a fair few different hats, including reception, payroll, recruitment, purchasing, and finance, to name a few, and I love the variety that the role brings. My main focus, however, is to be approachable for all residents, family and staff. We operate on an open-door policy, so pop in and say hello; there’s always cake and coffee to be found.

Hello, my name is Marco, and I am the Deputy Manager at St Mary´s care home. My goal is to ensure the care we provide is person-centred, loving and caring.
I like to lead my team by example. Having years of experience in rehabilitation and psychiatric hospitals has given me a baggage of tools that I use daily to coach and guide my team to deliver the best care possible and ensure our residents remain safe, healthy, and happy.
Frequently Asked Questions about St Marys
What types of Care is St Marys registered for?
Older Person Care, Dementia are the registered (by the Care Quality Commission) categories of Care.
How many Rooms does St Marys have?
There are 60 Single Rooms.
What are the Facilities & Services at St Marys?
Pet Friendly (or by arrangement), Close to Local shops, Near Public Transport, Lift, Wheelchair Access, Gardens, Residents Kitchenette, Phone Point in own room, Television point in own room are some of the Facilities & Services.
How far is St Marys to the centre of Ipswich?
4.5 mile(s) as the crow flies, distance by road may be significantly further.
Information on this page is displayed without responsibility for its accuracy on the part of carehome.co.uk. Please contact St Marys to verify any information. View our terms and conditions. St Marys has an Enhanced Service -more info.