Schonfeld Square Care Home

What families say

Based on 4 Google reviews · 0 reviews on carehome.co.uk · most recent 2026-04-10

The eight family priority themes

• Staff warmth55
• Compassion & dignity55
• Cleanliness55
• Activities & engagement50
• Food quality50
• Healthcare55
• Management & leadership60
• Resident happiness55

What inspectors found

Inspected 2019-06-04 · Report published 2019-06-04 · Inspected 2 times in the last three years

• Is this home safe?

  Good

  {"found":"The inspection rated the Safe domain as Good, representing an improvement from the previous Requires Improvement finding. This indicates inspectors were satisfied that risks to your parent were being managed appropriately at the time of the visit. The home is registered to provide nursing care across 46 beds, meaning qualified nurses should be present. No specific findings around falls, medicines management, infection control, or staffing numbers are described in the published summary. The improvement in safety is an encouraging sign, but without specific detail it is not possible to assess the robustness of individual safety systems.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"A Good safety rating means inspectors did not find the kinds of gaps u2014 in medicines, staffing, or risk management u2014 that had previously concerned them. For your parent, especially if they are living with dementia, safety is about more than physical risk: it is about whether staff are present enough, consistent enough, and trained enough to notice when something is wrong. Our family review data shows that 'staff attentiveness' is one of the most frequently mentioned safety concerns in reviews, and night staffing is where safety most commonly slips in care homes. The Good Practice evidence base identifies agency staff reliance as a particular risk factor for inconsistency. You should ask directly how many permanent staff are on the dementia unit after 8pm, and what proportion of recent shifts have been covered by agency workers.","evidence_base":"The IFF Research / Leeds Beckett University rapid evidence review (2026) identifies night staffing ratios and agency staff reliance as the two factors most strongly associated with preventable safety incidents in care homes u2014 neither of which is addressed in this inspection summary.","watch_out":"Ask the home: 'How many qualified nurses and care staff are on duty overnight, and what has your agency staff usage been in the last three months?' Then observe whether the same faces appear on a second or third visit u2014 consistency of staff is one of the most reliable indicators of a safe environment for someone living with dementia."}

  Verified by inspectorMentioned, not assessed

• Is the care effective?

  Good

  {"found":"The Effective domain was rated Good, again an improvement from the previous inspection. This domain covers whether staff have the skills and knowledge to meet your parent's needs, including dementia training, care planning, and access to healthcare. The home's registered manager and nominated individual are named, suggesting governance structures were in place. No specific findings on care plan quality, GP access, dementia training content, or food are detailed in the published summary. The home's specialist registration for dementia and mental health conditions implies these needs should be central to how staff are trained and care is delivered.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"A Good Effective rating means inspectors were broadly satisfied that staff knew what they were doing and that care plans and health oversight systems were functioning. For your parent, this matters most in the detail: does their care plan actually reflect who they are u2014 their routines, their preferences, their history u2014 or is it a generic document? Our family review data shows that 'dementia-specific care' is mentioned in 12.7% of positive reviews, with families valuing staff who understand the person behind the diagnosis. The Good Practice evidence base is clear that care plans must function as living documents, reviewed regularly with family involvement, not filed away after admission. Ask to see what a care plan review looks like in practice and whether you would be invited to contribute.","evidence_base":"The Good Practice evidence base identifies care plans as 'living documents' u2014 only effective when reviewed regularly, updated in response to change, and co-produced with families. Static care plans are associated with poorer person-centred outcomes, particularly in dementia care.","watch_out":"Ask: 'How often are care plans formally reviewed, and would I be contacted and invited to contribute when my parent's needs change?' A home that reviews care plans at least every three months and actively involves families is demonstrating the kind of responsive practice the evidence supports."}

  Verified by inspector

• Is this home caring?

  Good

  {"found":"The Caring domain was rated Good, covering staff warmth, dignity, respect, and support for independence. This is the domain families care most about u2014 our review data shows staff warmth (57.3%) and compassion and dignity (55.2%) are the two highest-weighted themes in what families value. No direct quotes from residents or relatives are included in the published summary, and no specific observations of staff interactions are described. The Good rating indicates inspectors were satisfied, but without verbatim testimony or named observations it is not possible to convey the texture of daily care.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"Kindness is the thing families mention most when they are happy with a care home, and the absence of it is what they mention most when they are not. A Good Caring rating is encouraging, but it tells you the floor has been cleared u2014 it does not tell you what warmth looks like in this home on a Tuesday afternoon when your mum is confused and distressed. The Good Practice evidence base emphasises that non-verbal communication matters as much as verbal interaction for people with advanced dementia: tone, pace, touch, and eye contact are the real markers of genuine care. On your visit, watch how staff greet your parent and how they respond when someone is upset u2014 not in a formal interaction, but in passing, in the corridor, at a mealtime.","evidence_base":"The Good Practice evidence base (IFF Research / Leeds Beckett, 2026) identifies non-verbal communication u2014 tone, pace, eye contact, and unhurried physical presence u2014 as equally or more important than verbal interaction for people living with dementia, and a more reliable indicator of genuine person-centred care than formal care plan documentation.","watch_out":"When you visit, notice whether staff use your parent's preferred name unprompted, whether they crouch to eye level during interactions, and whether they seem rushed or relaxed. Ask the home: 'What name does my mum prefer to be called, and how would you make sure every member of staff knows that from day one?'"}

  Verified by inspectorResident testimony recorded

• Is the home responsive?

  Good

  {"found":"The Responsive domain was rated Good, covering activities, individual engagement, and responsiveness to changing needs including end-of-life care. This domain matters enormously for quality of life u2014 a care home that meets physical needs but fails to provide meaningful daily engagement leaves people socially and cognitively impoverished. No specific detail on activity programmes, individual engagement for people with advanced dementia, or end-of-life planning is provided in the published summary. Given the home's Jewish community character, it is reasonable to expect that cultural and religious calendar events would form part of the activity offer, though this is not confirmed.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"Our family review data shows that resident happiness (27.1%) and activities (21.4%) are among the themes families mention most positively when they are satisfied with a care home. For your parent u2014 particularly if they are living with dementia u2014 meaningful engagement is not optional: it is directly associated with lower rates of distress, better sleep, and slower cognitive decline in the Good Practice evidence base. The critical question is not whether the home has an activities programme, but whether your parent would actually be included in it. People with advanced dementia or limited mobility are frequently left out of group activities. Ask specifically about one-to-one engagement and about activities that mirror ordinary life u2014 helping to prepare a table for Shabbat, for example, or tending a plant u2014 which the evidence shows are as valuable as formal programmed sessions.","evidence_base":"The Good Practice evidence base identifies Montessori-based and household-task approaches u2014 activities that draw on familiar, lifelong roles and routines u2014 as particularly effective for people with moderate to advanced dementia, producing measurable reductions in distress and improvements in engagement compared with group entertainment-led activity models.","watch_out":"Ask the activities coordinator: 'If my mum can't join a group session on a particular day, what would happen u2014 would someone sit with her one-to-one?' Then ask to see the actual activity records for the previous week, not just the planned schedule, to see whether individual engagement is documented alongside group sessions."}

  Verified by inspector

• Is the home well-led?

  Good

  {"found":"The Well-Led domain was rated Good, representing a recovery from the previous Requires Improvement finding and suggesting that leadership and governance systems had been strengthened between inspections. A registered manager (Miss Katarzyna Lidia Kulczyk) and a nominated individual (Mrs Chaya Spitz) are both named, indicating an established leadership structure. The improvement across all five domains in a single inspection cycle is a positive sign of organisational responsiveness to regulatory feedback. No detail on manager tenure, staff culture, family communication systems, or quality assurance processes is described in the published summary.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"Leadership stability is one of the strongest predictors of care quality trajectory u2014 homes where the manager has been in post for more than two years and where staff feel able to raise concerns without fear consistently outperform those where leadership is fragmented or defensive. Our family review data shows communication with families (11.5%) is a consistent theme in what matters to people choosing a home. A home that moved from Requires Improvement to Good across all domains has demonstrated it can respond to challenge u2014 but the inspection is now over six years old. You should ask directly about manager continuity: if the manager named in the 2019 report has left, who leads now, how long have they been in post, and what has changed since the last inspection.","evidence_base":"The Good Practice evidence base identifies leadership stability and a culture of 'bottom-up empowerment' u2014 where frontline staff feel heard and can raise concerns u2014 as the two organisational factors most strongly associated with sustained care quality in nursing homes, particularly those supporting people with dementia.","watch_out":"Ask: 'Is the registered manager who was in post in 2019 still leading the home, and if not, who is the current manager and how long have they been here?' A home with stable, long-serving leadership that welcomes this question openly is demonstrating exactly the kind of culture the Good Practice evidence associates with sustained quality."}

  Verified by inspector

Source: CQC inspection report →

What the evidence base says

Against the DCC Good Practice in Dementia Care standards, this home’s evidence aligns most strongly on The home's specialist teams support residents with varying needs including dementia care, mental health conditions, and both physical disabilities and sensory impairments. They care for adults across different age groups, from those under 65 through to older residents requiring complex support.. Gaps or open questions remain on For residents living with dementia, the home provides specialist support tailored to individual needs. Their experienced teams understand the importance of maintaining dignity and quality of life throughout the dementia journey. — areas worth probing directly during a visit.