OSJCT Monkscroft Care Centre

What families say

Families describe a place where visiting feels natural and relaxed. People mention unrestricted visiting hours and how they're encouraged to bring pets to see their relatives. The atmosphere strikes visitors as friendly rather than clinical, with staff across different departments taking time to connect with both residents and their families.

Based on 52 Google reviews · 0 reviews on carehome.co.uk · most recent 2026-04-10

The eight family priority themes

• Staff warmth85
• Compassion & dignity90
• Cleanliness70
• Activities & engagement82
• Food quality60
• Healthcare72
• Management & leadership72
• Resident happiness82

What inspectors found

Inspected 2018-07-05 · Report published 2018-07-05 · Inspected 1 times in the last three years

• Is this home safe?

  Good

  {"found":"The Safe domain was rated Good at the May 2018 inspection. This means inspectors found that systems to keep your parent safe, including medicines management, staffing levels, and infection control, were in place and working at the time. A Good Safe rating is a solid baseline, though it indicates meeting expected standards rather than going beyond them. The published summary does not provide specific detail about night staffing ratios, falls management systems, or agency staff use. The home lists sensory impairments and physical disabilities among its specialisms, which means environmental safety, such as fall prevention and accessible spaces, is particularly relevant to ask about.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"For families choosing a home for a parent with dementia or a physical disability, safety is the foundation everything else rests on. A Good Safe rating tells you that inspectors did not find gaps in medicines systems or obvious staffing shortfalls. Good Practice research consistently identifies night staffing as the point where safety most commonly slips in care homes, and this is not detailed in the published findings for Monkscroft. Our review data shows that families reference safe environments in around 11.8% of positive reviews, often noting whether they trust staff to notice and respond quickly when something changes. The six-year gap since inspection is the main uncertainty here: staffing rotas, agency reliance, and even the physical environment can shift considerably over that period.","evidence_base":"The IFF Research and Leeds Beckett University rapid evidence review found that agency staff reliance is one of the clearest predictors of inconsistent safety outcomes, because unfamiliar staff are less likely to notice subtle changes in a person's usual behaviour or physical condition.","watch_out":"Ask the manager to show you last week's actual staffing rota for the dementia unit or the floor where your parent would live, not the template. Count how many shifts were covered by permanent staff and how many by agency workers, and ask what the typical night staffing ratio is for the number of residents on that unit."}

  Verified by inspectorMentioned, not assessed

• Is the care effective?

  Good

  {"found":"The Effective domain was rated Good in May 2018. This covers whether staff have the right training, whether care plans are thorough and up to date, and whether the home manages health needs well, including GP access, medicines reviews, and nutritional support. The home lists dementia as a specialism, which means inspectors would have expected to see evidence of dementia-specific training and adapted approaches. The published summary does not describe specific training programmes, care plan review cycles, or how the home involves families in health decisions. Food quality, which falls partly under Effective, is not described in the available text.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"A Good Effective rating means the basics are in place: staff are trained, care plans exist, and healthcare is managed. What it does not tell you is how recently your parent's care plan would be reviewed, whether you would be invited to those reviews, or what dementia-specific approaches the staff use when words become harder for your parent. Our review data shows that 12.7% of positive family reviews specifically mention dementia-aware care as a reason for satisfaction. The Good Practice evidence base places significant weight on care plans as living documents, updated regularly in response to small changes, not just at set intervals. Food quality, often a reliable signal of genuine attentiveness, is worth assessing directly.","evidence_base":"The Leeds Beckett rapid evidence review found that regular, family-inclusive care plan reviews are associated with better health outcomes and higher family confidence, particularly where dementia means the person cannot easily advocate for themselves.","watch_out":"Ask how often care plans are formally reviewed and, specifically, whether you would be invited to participate. Then ask what dementia training staff have completed in the last 12 months and whether it covered non-verbal communication and distress recognition, not just manual handling."}

  Verified by inspector

• Is this home caring?

  Outstanding

  {"found":"The Caring domain was rated Outstanding in May 2018, the highest possible rating. This is a significant finding. Inspectors award Outstanding in Caring only when they observe or hear consistent, specific evidence of staff going beyond expected standards in how they treat the people in their care. This typically includes staff knowing residents as individuals, using preferred names, moving at the resident's pace, and responding to distress with patience and skill. The home supports people with dementia, physical disabilities, and sensory impairments, all of which require particularly thoughtful, adapted approaches to dignity and communication. The published summary does not reproduce the specific observations or quotes that supported this rating, but the rating itself is a strong marker.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"Staff warmth is the single biggest driver of family satisfaction in our review data, mentioned in 57.3% of positive reviews, and compassion and dignity appear in 55.2%. An Outstanding Caring rating is as close as an inspection can get to telling you that the people who live here are treated as individuals, not as tasks on a rota. For a parent with dementia who may not be able to tell you whether they feel cared for, seeing how staff interact in the corridor or at a mealtime is the most reliable signal you have. Good Practice research confirms that non-verbal communication, tone of voice, eye contact, unhurried presence, matters as much as any formal care plan for people in the later stages of dementia.","evidence_base":"The IFF Research rapid evidence review found that person-centred care approaches, where staff know and use individual histories, preferences, and communication styles, are associated with reduced distress, lower use of sedating medication, and higher reported wellbeing for people with dementia.","watch_out":"During your visit, find a moment to watch how a staff member approaches your parent's potential future neighbour, someone who may not be able to speak clearly or initiate conversation. Does the staff member make eye contact, use the person's name, and pause to wait for a response? That unhurried approach is the clearest observable evidence that the Outstanding Caring rating reflects current practice."}

  Verified by inspectorResident testimony recorded

• Is the home responsive?

  Outstanding

  {"found":"The Responsive domain was rated Outstanding in May 2018, meaning inspectors found strong specific evidence that the home adapts meaningfully to individual needs, preferences, and life histories. For a home supporting people with dementia, this typically covers personalised activity programmes, individual engagement for those who cannot join groups, meaningful occupation linked to a person's background and interests, and thoughtful end-of-life support. The home supports a broad range of needs including physical disabilities and sensory impairments, which places additional demands on how the home tailors its response. The published summary does not reproduce the specific activities, care stories, or processes that supported this rating.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"Whether your parent will have a real life here, not just a safe one, is the question families most often tell us they wished they had pressed harder on before choosing a home. Our review data shows that activities and engagement appear in 21.4% of positive reviews, and resident happiness or contentment in 27.1%. An Outstanding Responsive rating means inspectors were satisfied that Monkscroft goes beyond group bingo and a weekly film afternoon. Good Practice research is clear that for people with advanced dementia, one-to-one engagement, simple household tasks, sensory activities, and moments of genuine connection matter far more than a busy activity calendar. The six-year gap since inspection means you should verify the current activity offer directly.","evidence_base":"The Leeds Beckett rapid evidence review found that Montessori-based and household-task approaches to activity, where people with dementia participate in familiar, purposeful actions rather than passive entertainment, are associated with measurably reduced agitation and improved mood.","watch_out":"Ask the activities coordinator to describe what a typical Tuesday looks like for a resident who cannot reliably join group sessions because of their dementia. Press for specifics: who visits that person one-to-one, for how long, and what do they do together? If the answer is vague, that is an important signal about current practice."}

  Verified by inspector

• Is the home well-led?

  Good

  {"found":"The Well-led domain was rated Good in May 2018. The home has a named registered manager and a nominated individual on record. A Good Well-led rating indicates that governance systems are functional, that the manager is known to staff and residents, and that the home has processes for monitoring quality and acting on concerns. The published summary does not describe leadership style, manager tenure at the time of inspection, or how staff are supported to raise concerns. The inspection was carried out more than six years ago, and leadership stability is one of the strongest predictors of sustained quality in a care home.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"Good Practice research is unambiguous on this point: the stability and character of the home's leadership is the single best predictor of whether quality holds over time. A manager who knows staff by name, who walks the floor regularly, and who responds quickly when a family raises a concern makes an enormous practical difference to your parent's daily life. Our review data shows that management and leadership appear in 23.4% of positive family reviews, often describing a named manager who families felt they could call directly. The key question here is not what the 2018 rating said, but who is running the home now and how long they have been in post.","evidence_base":"The IFF Research rapid evidence review found that homes with stable, empowering leadership, where staff feel confident to raise concerns without fear, consistently outperform those with high management turnover, even when other resources are equivalent.","watch_out":"Ask the current manager how long they have been in their role and, if they are relatively new, who held the post before them and why that person left. Then ask how they find out when something has gone wrong on a night shift. The answer will tell you a great deal about the culture of accountability in the home right now."}

  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 specialist support for physical disabilities, including complex rehabilitation needs and appropriate mobility equipment. They care for both younger and older adults, with experience supporting people through post-trauma recovery alongside more traditional care needs.. Gaps or open questions remain on Monkscroft has dedicated dementia facilities, though some aspects of specialist dementia care have faced scrutiny. The home works with families whose relatives have varying stages of dementia, from early diagnosis through to advanced needs. — areas worth probing directly during a visit.