Gardens Care Home food hygiene rating
Caring Premises · Darlington
Gardens Care Home holds a 4, meaning hygiene standards at the care premises are good. It is a solid result, the inspector found nothing serious, though a 5 was just out of reach.
The rating: 4 - Good
This is a fresh result: Gardens Care Home was inspected on 2 September 2026, so the rating reflects what the inspector found very recently.
96% of rated food businesses in Darlington score 4 or 5, so this is a normal, good result for the area. See all Darlington ratings →
Address: Pondfield Close, Darlington, DL3 8LH
How this rating has changed
Gardens Care Home has improved: it was rated 1 before its inspection on 2 September 2026, and now holds a 4.
| Inspected | Rating | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 7 July 2026 | 5 1 | Worse |
| 2 September 2026 | 1 4 | Improved |
The FSA publishes only a business's current rating. This history is our own record of what it has scored since we began watching.
How it compares in Darlington
In Darlington, 90% of rated places manage a 5, so Gardens Care Home sits behind roughly 742 nearby businesses. 6% of the borough shares its 4.
| 5 out of 5 | 742 | 90% | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4 out of 5 | 48 | 6% | ← Gardens Care Home | |
| 3 out of 5 | 19 | 2% | ||
| 2 out of 5 | 8 | 1% | ||
| 1 out of 5 | 5 | 1% | ||
| 0 out of 5 | 1 | <1% |
A further 96 businesses in the area are awaiting inspection or exempt, so are not counted above.
Food hygiene ratings nearby
The closest food businesses to Gardens Care Home, nearest first, so you can see how it compares to its neighbours.
| Business | Distance | Rating | Inspected |
|---|---|---|---|
| Acorn Care (UK) Ltd Caring Premises | 272 yards away | 5 - Very good | 28 April 2026 |
| Carmel College School/college/university | 0.3 miles away | 5 - Very good | 3 October 2025 |
| Co-op Retailers - supermarkets/hypermarkets | 0.6 miles away | 5 - Very good | 26 February 2026 |
| Baydale Beck Pub/bar/nightclub | 0.9 miles away | 5 - Very good | 25 March 2026 |
| Blackwell Grange Hotel Hotel/bed & breakfast/guest house | 0.9 miles away | 5 - Very good | 17 June 2025 |
| Auton Caring Premises | 1.0 miles away | 5 - Very good | 27 July 2026 |
| Clervaux Life Caring Premises | 1.0 miles away | 5 - Very good | 1 December 2023 |
Questions about Gardens Care Home
What is Gardens Care Home's food hygiene rating?
Gardens Care Home has a food hygiene rating of 4 out of 5 (good), given by Darlington Council on 2 September 2026.
Is Gardens Care Home safe to eat at?
The rating covers hygiene standards found at inspection, not the food itself. At 4 out of 5, the inspector found hygiene standards at this care premises to be good, the top end of the scale.
When was Gardens Care Home last inspected?
Gardens Care Home was last inspected on 2 September 2026, within the last month. Food hygiene inspections are unannounced, and the rating is published by Darlington Council rather than by the business.
How does Gardens Care Home compare to other places in Darlington?
90% of the 823 rated food businesses in Darlington hold the top rating of 5, while Gardens Care Home holds a 4. 48 places in the area share that rating.
Who decides the rating?
Darlington Council inspects Gardens Care Home and sets the rating; the Food Standards Agency publishes it. Neither the business nor this site can change a rating, a business that disagrees can appeal to its council, and can request a re-inspection once it has fixed the problems.
Tell me when this changes
The Food Standards Agency publishes only a business's rating today, not what it scored before, and not when it moves. We check every UK rating each night. Watch Gardens Care Home and we will email you the morning after its rating changes.
Free, for three businesses, forever. No password, we send you a link. How rating alerts work →
Understanding this rating
More food hygiene ratings near here
Darlington inspects and rates 919 food businesses across its whole area. See every food hygiene rating in Darlington →
The official record is held by the council: http://www.darlington.gov.uk
Rating from the Food Standards Agency under the Open Government Licence. Ratings reflect standards found at the time of inspection and can change. If you think a rating is wrong, the official record is held by the FSA and the local authority; corrections there flow through here. How ratings work →