Springfield House Care Home
At a Glance
The information you need to decide whether this home warrants a closer look.
Residential homes
Staff warmth score
of reviewers answered yes
Good to know
- Registered beds25
- SpecialismsCaring for adults over 65 yrs, Caring for adults under 65 yrs, Dementia, Physical disabilities
- Last inspected2023-05-27
- Activities programmeThe home keeps things clean and bright, with spaces that families say feel fresh and well-looked after. There's mention of residents enjoying their meals here. Activities are structured to encourage participation, with staff putting visible effort into making sure everyone who wants to join in can do so.
- Visit Website
The Evidence
What the review data, the inspection reports, and the dementia-care evidence base tell us about this home.
What families say
Families often mention how welcoming the atmosphere feels when they visit. The staff seem to know everyone by name, and there's a real effort to include residents in activities that matter to them. People notice the cleanliness too — bright spaces that feel well-maintained and comfortable.
Based on 18 Google reviews · 0 reviews on carehome.co.uk · most recent 2026-04-10
The eight family priority themes
- Staff warmth72
- Compassion & dignity72
- Cleanliness70
- Activities & engagement55
- Food quality55
- Healthcare65
- Management & leadership75
- Resident happiness68
What inspectors found
Inspected 2023-05-27 · Report published 2023-05-27 · Inspected 3 times in the last three years
Is this home safe?
{"found":"The safe domain was rated Good at the April 2023 inspection, an improvement from the previous Requires Improvement rating. This indicates that inspectors were satisfied with staffing arrangements, medicines management, and safeguarding practices at the time of the visit. No specific concerns were raised in the published findings. The published report does not include staffing ratios, night staffing numbers, or detail about how medicines are administered and checked. The improvement from the previous rating suggests that earlier safety issues have been resolved.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"A Safe rating that has improved from Requires Improvement is reassuring, but it is important to go beyond the headline. Good Practice research consistently identifies night staffing as the point where safety in care homes most often slips: fewer staff, less oversight, and slower response to falls or distress. The published report gives no information about how many staff are on overnight for the 25 residents, or whether a senior is always present. Our family review data shows that attentiveness of staff (referenced in 14% of positive reviews) is one of the clearest signals families use to judge safety on a visit. Ask specifically about night staffing before you decide.","evidence_base":"The IFF Research and Leeds Beckett rapid evidence review found that agency staff reliance undermines the consistency of care that people with dementia need, as unfamiliar faces increase anxiety and reduce the likelihood that subtle changes in condition are spotted early.","watch_out":"Ask the manager: how many staff are on duty overnight for the 25 residents, and what proportion of shifts in the last month were covered by agency workers rather than permanent staff? Request to see the actual rota, not a template."}
Is the care effective?
{"found":"The effective domain was rated Good, covering care planning, staff training, healthcare access, and nutritional support. The home lists dementia as a specialism, which implies inspectors expected and assessed specific dementia care competencies. No detail about the content of dementia training, how often care plans are reviewed, or how GPs and other health professionals are involved is included in the published findings. The improvement from the previous rating suggests training and care planning were areas that were strengthened before this inspection.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"For families choosing a home for someone living with dementia, a Good Effective rating matters most when it is backed by specific detail about training and care planning. Our family review data shows that dementia-specific care is referenced in 12.7% of positive reviews, often in comments about staff knowing how to respond to agitation or confusion without escalating distress. The Good Practice evidence base identifies care plans as living documents that should be updated after any significant change in health or behaviour, not just at fixed annual intervals. The inspection does not confirm how frequently plans are reviewed here, so this is worth asking directly.","evidence_base":"The IFF Research and Leeds Beckett rapid evidence review found that regular, structured involvement of families in care plan reviews is one of the strongest predictors of whether care plans actually reflect the individual person rather than a standard template.","watch_out":"Ask to see a sample care plan (anonymised if necessary) and find out how often plans are formally reviewed. Specifically ask whether families are invited to take part in reviews, and what happens to the plan after a fall, a hospital admission, or a noticeable change in mood."}
Is this home caring?
{"found":"The caring domain was rated Good, covering staff warmth, dignity, respect, and support for independence. This is the domain most closely connected to the day-to-day experience of your parent. The published report includes no specific inspector observations of staff interactions, no resident quotes, and no relative feedback to illustrate what caring looks like in practice at Springfield House. A Good rating in this domain means inspectors were satisfied, but the absence of detail makes it impossible to assess the quality of individual relationships between staff and residents.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"Staff warmth is the single biggest driver of family satisfaction in our review data, referenced in 57.3% of positive reviews and closely followed by compassion and dignity at 55.2%. Families consistently describe the same observable signals: staff using preferred names rather than 'dear' or 'love', moving without hurry, and noticing when someone is unsettled without being told. The Good Practice evidence base underlines that non-verbal communication matters as much as verbal interaction, particularly for people with advanced dementia who may not be able to say when something is wrong. None of these qualities can be confirmed from the published inspection text alone; you need to observe them on a visit.","evidence_base":"The IFF Research and Leeds Beckett rapid evidence review found that person-led care requires staff to know the individual's history, preferences, and communication style, not just their clinical needs. Homes where staff can describe each resident's personality and past life tend to score consistently higher on dignity indicators.","watch_out":"On your visit, watch a corridor interaction between a staff member and a resident. Does the staff member stop, make eye contact, and use the resident's preferred name? Or do they pass by with a brief comment? This takes less than two minutes to observe and tells you more than any document."}
Is the home responsive?
{"found":"The responsive domain was rated Good, covering activities, individual engagement, and responsiveness to changing needs. The home's specialism in dementia and physical disabilities implies that activities and engagement should be adapted to a range of abilities and communication levels. The published report includes no description of specific activities, no information about one-to-one engagement for people who cannot join groups, and no mention of how the home responds when a resident's preferences or needs change. The improvement from the previous rating suggests this was an area of earlier weakness that has been addressed.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"Activities and engagement are referenced in 21.4% of positive family reviews, but the detail in those reviews matters: families value meaningful, tailored engagement rather than a television on in the corner or a group session that not everyone can access. The Good Practice evidence base highlights that for people with moderate to advanced dementia, one-to-one activities, including familiar household tasks, sensory activities, and reminiscence, are often more beneficial than group programmes. Resident happiness, referenced in 27.1% of positive reviews, is closely tied to whether your parent has purposeful moments in their day. The inspection gives no detail about how this is achieved at Springfield House, so this is worth exploring on a visit.","evidence_base":"The IFF Research and Leeds Beckett rapid evidence review found that Montessori-based and task-led individual activities, where a person with dementia is given a meaningful role rather than just entertained, significantly reduce agitation and improve observed wellbeing, particularly in the afternoon hours when distress often peaks.","watch_out":"Ask the manager what happens between 2pm and 4pm on a typical weekday, when group activities have often finished and formal mealtimes have not yet started. This is when boredom and distress are most common. Find out whether a staff member is specifically assigned to individual engagement during quieter periods."}
Is the home well-led?
{"found":"The well-led domain was rated Good, an improvement from the previous Requires Improvement. The home is led by a named registered manager, Ms Kylie Amanda Ely, and a nominated individual, Mr Richard Kitchen. This accountability structure is clearly documented. The improvement across all five domains from the previous inspection suggests the leadership team identified what needed to change and acted on it, which is a positive indicator of governance quality. The published report contains no further detail about management visibility, staff culture, or how the home collects and acts on feedback from residents and families.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"Management and leadership are referenced in 23.4% of positive family reviews, often in comments about a manager who knows residents by name and is visible on the floor rather than only in the office. The Good Practice evidence base identifies leadership stability as one of the strongest predictors of care quality over time: homes where the registered manager has been in post for more than two years tend to maintain or improve their ratings. The improvement from Requires Improvement to Good is encouraging, but it is worth asking how long the current manager has been in post and whether the team that achieved this improvement is still in place.","evidence_base":"The IFF Research and Leeds Beckett rapid evidence review found that bottom-up empowerment, where frontline staff feel able to raise concerns without fear and where their feedback is visibly acted upon, is a stronger predictor of sustained quality than inspection ratings alone.","watch_out":"Ask the registered manager directly: how long have you been in post, and how long have most of the senior care staff been with the home? If there has been significant turnover in the last 12 months, ask what drove it and what has changed since."}
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 cares for adults both over and under 65, including those with physical disabilities. Their dementia care forms a significant part of what they do.. Gaps or open questions remain on Families with loved ones living with dementia report that residents feel secure and valued as individuals throughout their time here. The stable staff team seems particularly beneficial for dementia care, where familiar faces and consistent routines matter so much. — areas worth probing directly during a visit.
The DCC Verdict
Our editorial view, built from the three lenses: what families tell us, what inspectors record, and how the home sits against good dementia-care practice.
DCC Family Score
Springfield House Care Home improved from Requires Improvement to Good across all five inspection domains, which is a meaningful and encouraging turnaround. However, the published report contains very limited specific detail, so many scores reflect the overall rating rather than direct inspector observations or testimony.
Homes in South East typically score 68–82.The three-lens summary
What families tell us
Families often mention how welcoming the atmosphere feels when they visit. The staff seem to know everyone by name, and there's a real effort to include residents in activities that matter to them. People notice the cleanliness too — bright spaces that feel well-maintained and comfortable.
What inspectors have recorded
What stands out here is staff retention — team members who've been here for years, suggesting a workplace where people feel valued. Families describe staff as responsive to questions and compassionate during difficult times. During COVID, some found the visiting arrangements flexible within the restrictions.
How it sits against good practice
While one family raised serious concerns about end-of-life care access, the broader picture suggests a home where staff genuinely invest in the people they support.
Worth a visit
Springfield House Care Home, at 95-97 Portsmouth Road, Southampton, was rated Good at its most recent inspection in April 2023, across all five domains: safe, effective, caring, responsive, and well-led. This is a significant improvement from its previous Requires Improvement rating, and it indicates that the leadership team identified problems and addressed them. The home is run by a named registered manager and a nominated individual, suggesting an accountable structure is in place. It is registered for 25 beds and supports people with dementia, physical disabilities, and a mixed age range. The main limitation of this report is that the published findings are very brief and contain no specific inspector observations, resident quotes, or family testimony to illustrate what day-to-day life actually looks like. A Good rating tells you the home met required standards at the point of inspection, but it does not tell you whether staff are warm, whether food is appetising, or whether your parent would have a meaningful day. Before making a decision, visit at a mealtime or mid-morning when activities typically run, ask the manager to show you the actual staffing rota for a recent week (including nights), and find out what one-to-one engagement is available for someone who cannot easily join group sessions.
The three questions to ask when you visitSave this home. Compare it against your shortlist.
Let our analysis show you how Springfield House Care Home measures up against the other homes you’re considering. Free account.
In Their Own Words
How Springfield House Care Home describes itself — collected from its own website. DCC has not edited or independently verified the content in this tab.
Where long-serving staff create genuine comfort in dementia care
Springfield House Care Home – Expert Care in Southampton
For families facing dementia's challenges, Springfield House Care Home in Southampton offers something increasingly rare — a stable team who've chosen to stay year after year. This care home supports adults both over and under 65, with particular experience in dementia care and physical disabilities. Their bright, clean spaces have become the backdrop for what many describe as genuinely compassionate care.
Who they care for
The home cares for adults both over and under 65, including those with physical disabilities. Their dementia care forms a significant part of what they do.
Families with loved ones living with dementia report that residents feel secure and valued as individuals throughout their time here. The stable staff team seems particularly beneficial for dementia care, where familiar faces and consistent routines matter so much.
Management & ethos
What stands out here is staff retention — team members who've been here for years, suggesting a workplace where people feel valued. Families describe staff as responsive to questions and compassionate during difficult times. During COVID, some found the visiting arrangements flexible within the restrictions.
The home & environment
The home keeps things clean and bright, with spaces that families say feel fresh and well-looked after. There's mention of residents enjoying their meals here. Activities are structured to encourage participation, with staff putting visible effort into making sure everyone who wants to join in can do so.
“While one family raised serious concerns about end-of-life care access, the broader picture suggests a home where staff genuinely invest in the people they support.”
DCC does not edit or curate content in this tab. For independently curated information, see The Evidence and DCC Verdict.
