Squirrel Lodge

What families say

People describe a warm atmosphere where residents seem content. Family members have noticed their relatives appearing happy and well-settled, which can make such a difference when you're worried about how someone will adjust to care.

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 & leadership65
• Resident happiness55

What inspectors found

Inspected 2019-09-17 · Report published 2019-09-17 · Inspected 3 times in the last three years

• Is this home safe?

  Good

  {"found":"Squirrel Lodge was rated Good for safety at its September 2019 inspection, representing an improvement from a previous Requires Improvement rating. The safe domain covers staffing levels, medicines management, infection control, and how the home responds to accidents and incidents. No specific concerns were recorded in the published summary. The improvement from Requires Improvement to Good in this domain is a positive signal, though the underlying detail of what changed is not available in the published text. The home's small size u2014 24 beds u2014 can support safer staffing ratios, though this depends on how the home manages nights and busy periods.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"A Good rating for safety means inspectors did not find evidence of harm, unsafe practice, or inadequate staffing at the point of inspection. For your parent living with dementia, safety covers more than physical accidents u2014 it includes whether staff recognise changes in health, respond promptly to distress, and maintain consistent routines that reduce anxiety. The previous Requires Improvement rating means there were earlier concerns, and the improvement is encouraging, but the 2019 inspection is now several years old. Good Practice research is clear that night staffing is where safety most often slips in smaller homes u2014 and with 24 beds, the margin for error on a night shift is narrow. Family review data shows that 14% of positive reviews specifically mention staff attentiveness as the reason families feel their parent is safe.","evidence_base":"The IFF Research and Leeds Beckett rapid evidence review found that inadequate night staffing is one of the most consistent predictors of safety failures in care homes, and that agency staff unfamiliar with individual residents significantly increase risk for people with dementia.","watch_out":"Ask the home directly: how many staff members are on duty overnight, and what proportion of those are permanent members of the team rather than agency staff? A 24-bed home should have at least two staff on at night; if the answer is one, or if agency use is frequent, that warrants a follow-up question about how the home manages."}

  Verified by inspectorMentioned, not assessed

• Is the care effective?

  Good

  {"found":"Squirrel Lodge was rated Good for effectiveness at its September 2019 inspection. This domain covers care planning, staff training, health monitoring, access to healthcare professionals, and nutrition. Dementia is listed as a specific specialism of the home, which means inspectors would have considered whether training and care approaches are appropriate for people living with dementia. No specific examples of care plan quality, GP access arrangements, or training content are available in the published summary. The Good rating suggests no significant gaps were found at the time of inspection.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"For your mum or dad, effectiveness is the difference between a care plan that genuinely reflects who they are and one that looks complete on paper but doesn't shape day-to-day care. Good Practice research shows that care plans for people with dementia should be treated as living documents u2014 updated after changes in health, behaviour, or preferences, not just annually. With dementia listed as a specialism, you have the right to ask what specific training staff have completed and how recently. Family review data shows that 12.7% of positive reviews specifically mention dementia-specific care as a reason for satisfaction u2014 staff who understand how dementia progresses make a measurable difference to your parent's comfort and wellbeing.","evidence_base":"The Good Practice evidence base identifies that dementia training focused on behavioural understanding and non-verbal communication u2014 rather than generic awareness modules u2014 is associated with measurably better outcomes for residents and lower rates of distressed behaviour.","watch_out":"Ask to see a sample care plan u2014 not your parent's, but a completed example u2014 and check whether it contains specific personal detail such as preferred name, daily routine, food preferences, and communication style, or whether it reads like a standard template with names filled in."}

  Verified by inspector

• Is this home caring?

  Good

  {"found":"Squirrel Lodge received a Good rating for Caring at its September 2019 inspection. This domain assesses whether staff treat people with kindness, respect, and dignity u2014 including how they communicate with residents, whether they support independence, and whether people's privacy is maintained. No direct observations of staff interactions, resident quotes, or relative testimony are available in the published summary. The Good rating indicates inspectors did not observe or record concerns about the quality of staff relationships with residents.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"The Caring domain is the one that matters most to families u2014 our review data shows that staff warmth (57.3%) and compassion and dignity (55.2%) are the two most important themes in the 3,602 positive family reviews we analysed. These are not things that can be fully assessed in an inspection: they show up in the small moments u2014 whether a staff member uses your parent's preferred name, whether they crouch down to make eye contact, whether they knock before entering a room. A Good rating tells you inspectors saw no evidence of poor practice. It does not guarantee warmth. When you visit, watch how staff interact with your parent and other residents in passing u2014 not in formal interactions but in corridors and during meals.","evidence_base":"Good Practice research from Leeds Beckett highlights that for people with advanced dementia who have limited verbal communication, staff non-verbal behaviour u2014 tone of voice, pace, physical proximity u2014 has a greater impact on wellbeing than the content of what is said.","watch_out":"During your visit, observe whether staff use your parent's preferred name unprompted, whether interactions feel unhurried, and whether staff make eye contact and speak directly to residents rather than across them u2014 these small details are reliable indicators of a genuinely caring culture."}

  Verified by inspectorResident testimony recorded

• Is the home responsive?

  Good

  {"found":"Squirrel Lodge was rated Good for Responsiveness at the September 2019 inspection. This domain covers whether care is personalised to individual needs, whether activities are meaningful and varied, and whether end-of-life care is planned appropriately. The home cares for people with dementia, physical disabilities, and sensory impairment u2014 a combination that requires genuinely tailored responses rather than a one-size approach. No specific examples of activity programmes, individual engagement, or end-of-life planning are available in the published text.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"For your parent, responsiveness is about whether the home builds their daily life around who they are u2014 not just their care needs, but their history, preferences, and personality. Family review data shows that resident happiness (27.1%) and activities (21.4%) are consistently mentioned in positive reviews. Good Practice research is clear that group activities alone are insufficient for people with moderate or advanced dementia u2014 one-to-one engagement and meaningful everyday tasks such as folding, sorting, or tending to plants are more effective at reducing anxiety and supporting a sense of purpose. With 24 residents and a dementia specialism, ask specifically how the home supports residents who can no longer join group activities.","evidence_base":"The rapid evidence review found that Montessori-based and individual activity approaches u2014 including familiar household tasks and sensory engagement u2014 produced measurably better wellbeing outcomes for people with dementia than structured group activities alone.","watch_out":"Ask to see last week's activity schedule, then ask what happened for any residents who were unable to join the group sessions u2014 a good home will have a clear answer about one-to-one engagement; a less responsive home will not."}

  Verified by inspector

• Is the home well-led?

  Good

  {"found":"Squirrel Lodge was rated Good for Well-led at the September 2019 inspection, having previously been Requires Improvement. Two registered managers u2014 Mrs Linda King and Mrs Kirsty Wright u2014 were in post at the time of inspection, alongside Linda King as the nominated individual and company representative. The improvement from Requires Improvement to Good in Well-led is one of the most significant signals in this inspection, as poor leadership is a strong predictor of quality decline. No specific information about governance processes, staff culture, or how the home handles complaints is available in the published text.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"Good Practice research consistently identifies leadership stability as the single strongest predictor of whether a care home's quality improves or deteriorates over time. The fact that Squirrel Lodge moved from Requires Improvement to Good under the current management is a genuine positive u2014 it shows the team can identify problems and fix them. With two registered managers, there is a question about continuity: who leads day-to-day, and what happens if one leaves? Family review data shows that 11.5% of positive reviews specifically reference communication with families u2014 ask how the home keeps you updated, who your named contact would be, and how quickly the manager responds to concerns.","evidence_base":"The IFF Research evidence base found that care homes with stable, visible management who actively empower frontline staff to raise concerns show consistently better outcomes than those where management is primarily administrative u2014 and that bottom-up empowerment is a more reliable quality marker than top-down inspection compliance.","watch_out":"Ask both managers u2014 or whichever is present u2014 how long they have each been in post, what the most significant improvement they made in the last two years was, and how a family member would raise a concern if they were worried about their parent's care. Confident, specific answers are a good sign; vague ones are not."}

  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 provides care for people over 65, with particular experience supporting those with sensory impairments and physical disabilities.. Gaps or open questions remain on They also care for people living with dementia, though it's worth asking about their specific approach and any specialist training when you visit. — areas worth probing directly during a visit.