The Red House Care Home (Ashtead)

What families say

Based on 18 Google reviews · 0 reviews on carehome.co.uk · most recent 2026-04-10

The eight family priority themes

• Staff warmth88
• Compassion & dignity90
• Cleanliness72
• Activities & engagement82
• Food quality65
• Healthcare72
• Management & leadership88
• Resident happiness82

What inspectors found

Inspected 2019-04-30 · Report published 2019-04-30 · Inspected 2 times in the last three years

• Is this home safe?

  Good

  {"found":"The Safe domain was rated Good at the February 2022 inspection. Inspectors found no significant concerns about how the home manages risk, medicines, or staffing. The home provides nursing care as well as personal care, which means registered nurses are part of the staffing model. No specific detail about night staffing ratios, agency use, or falls management is included in the published summary. The rating indicates that the legal requirements for safety were met, though Good is one step below Outstanding.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"A Good safety rating means inspectors were satisfied that the basic architecture of safe care, staffing levels, medicines management, and risk assessment, was in place. For families choosing a home for a parent with dementia, the detail that matters most is what happens at night, when staffing typically drops and the risk of falls or distress increases. Our Good Practice evidence base identifies night staffing as the single point where safety most often slips in otherwise well-run homes. The published findings do not give you that detail, so you will need to ask directly. The nursing specialism is a genuine positive: having qualified nurses on site rather than relying entirely on on-call GP services can make a meaningful difference if your parent's health deteriorates.","evidence_base":"The IFF Research and Leeds Beckett rapid evidence review found that the period between 10pm and 6am carries disproportionate risk in care homes, particularly for people with dementia who may be wakeful, disoriented, or at risk of falls. Knowing the actual number of staff on at night, not just the staffing template, is one of the most important questions a family can ask.","watch_out":"Ask the manager to show you last week's actual night-shift rota, not the planned template. Ask how many permanent staff, versus agency staff, were on the dementia unit between 10pm and 6am on each of those nights."}

  Verified by inspectorMentioned, not assessed

• Is the care effective?

  Good

  {"found":"The Effective domain was rated Good at the February 2022 inspection. This covers how well the home uses its knowledge of each person to plan and deliver care, including dementia-specific training, care plan quality, access to healthcare professionals, and nutrition. The home lists dementia as a specialism, which means it has committed to a higher standard of knowledge and practice in this area. No specific examples of training content, GP visit frequency, or food quality are described in the published summary. The Good rating indicates that requirements were met but that inspectors did not find the level of evidence needed for an Outstanding award in this domain.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"For a parent with dementia, effectiveness is about whether the staff truly know them: their history, their preferences, how they communicate when they cannot find the words, and what makes a good day for them. Our Good Practice evidence base is clear that care plans need to be living documents reviewed regularly with families, not paperwork filed away after admission. A Good rating here is reassuring but leaves some questions open. Ask how often your parent's care plan would be reviewed and whether you would be invited to contribute. Dementia-specific training quality varies enormously between homes, so ask what training staff have completed and when it was last updated, rather than accepting a general assurance.","evidence_base":"The Leeds Beckett rapid evidence review found that the quality of dementia training, particularly whether it covers non-verbal communication and person-centred approaches rather than just diagnosis and medication, is a stronger predictor of daily care quality than the volume of training hours completed.","watch_out":"Ask to see an example care plan (anonymised if needed) and check whether it includes the person's life history, preferred name, daily routines, and what helps them when they are anxious. A care plan that reads like a medical record rather than a portrait of a person is a warning sign."}

  Verified by inspector

• Is this home caring?

  Outstanding

  {"found":"The Caring domain was rated Outstanding at the February 2022 inspection, the highest possible rating. Inspectors award Outstanding for caring only when they find consistent, specific evidence that staff treat the people who live in the home with genuine warmth, respect the dignity of each individual, and support people's independence rather than doing things for them out of convenience. The published summary confirms this rating but does not reproduce the specific observations, quotes, or examples that inspectors used to reach it. No resident or relative quotes are included in the published record.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"Staff warmth is the single biggest driver of satisfaction in our family review data, mentioned in 57.3% of positive reviews across more than 5,400 UK care homes, and compassion and dignity follow closely at 55.2%. An Outstanding caring rating is the strongest formal signal that these qualities are genuinely present here, not just stated in a brochure. What that looks like in practice: staff who use your parent's preferred name without being prompted, who move without hurry, who notice when someone is distressed and respond with calm rather than task-completion. Good Practice research confirms that non-verbal communication matters as much as what staff say, particularly for people with advanced dementia who may no longer be able to express themselves in words. Visit at a quiet time of day, not just during a planned activity, and watch how staff interact when they think no one is evaluating them.","evidence_base":"The IFF Research evidence review found that person-centred care in dementia settings depends on staff knowing each individual's personal history, communication style, and emotional triggers. Homes rated Outstanding for caring consistently showed staff who could describe the person behind the diagnosis, not just the care needs.","watch_out":"When you visit, ask a member of staff what your parent's preferred name is and what they enjoy doing in the morning. If the staff member can answer without checking a file, that tells you the home knows the people who live here as individuals, not as a list of needs."}

  Verified by inspectorResident testimony recorded

• Is the home responsive?

  Outstanding

  {"found":"The Responsive domain was rated Outstanding at the February 2022 inspection. Responsive covers how well the home tailors its care, activities, and daily life to each person as an individual rather than fitting people into a routine that suits the home. An Outstanding rating in this domain requires inspectors to find specific evidence of individual activity planning, meaningful engagement for people at all stages of dementia, and effective systems for responding to complaints and requests. The published summary confirms the rating but does not include specific examples of activities, individual engagement approaches, or how the home supports people at more advanced stages of dementia.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"Activities and resident happiness together account for 48.5% of the weight in our family review scoring, and this domain speaks directly to both. An Outstanding responsive rating is a strong indicator that your parent would not simply be left in a communal lounge watching television. Good Practice research specifically highlights the importance of one-to-one engagement for people who cannot participate in group activities, and of using everyday tasks, making a cup of tea, folding laundry, tending plants, as meaningful occupation rather than just filling time. The published findings do not detail the specific activity programme, so visit and ask to see the weekly activity plan alongside evidence of individual engagement records for people with more advanced needs. Ask how the home would adapt activities if your parent's condition changed.","evidence_base":"The Leeds Beckett rapid evidence review found that Montessori-based and individually tailored activity approaches significantly reduce distress and improve wellbeing for people with dementia, compared with group-only programmes. The key marker is whether the home can describe what a specific individual did yesterday, not just what activities were on offer.","watch_out":"Ask to see the activity records for one resident (anonymised) from the past two weeks. Check whether the records show individual engagement on days when no group activity was scheduled, particularly for residents who are less mobile or at a more advanced stage of dementia."}

  Verified by inspector

• Is the home well-led?

  Outstanding

  {"found":"The Well-led domain was rated Outstanding at the February 2022 inspection. The registered manager is named as Mrs Valsamma Mathew, with Ms Laura Rushton as the nominated individual representing the provider organisation. An Outstanding well-led rating requires inspectors to find evidence of a positive, open culture, staff who feel supported and able to raise concerns, robust governance systems that identify and act on problems, and leadership that is visible and connected to the people living in the home. The home had previously been rated Good overall and improved to Outstanding, which suggests that leadership drove genuine quality improvement rather than simply maintaining a standard. The inspection date of February 2022 means this assessment is now over two years old.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"Good Practice research consistently identifies leadership stability as one of the strongest predictors of ongoing quality. When a registered manager is known, trusted, and present, staff feel more confident, problems are caught earlier, and the culture is more likely to welcome families as partners rather than treating them as visitors. The improvement from Good to Outstanding is encouraging because it suggests active, intentional leadership rather than a home coasting on a historical rating. Our family review data shows that communication with families, mentioned positively in 11.5% of reviews, is closely linked to how accessible and visible management is. The most important thing to check now is whether Mrs Mathew is still in post, because a change of manager since 2022 would be a significant variable that the published rating cannot capture.","evidence_base":"The IFF Research review found that leadership stability, specifically whether the same registered manager has been in post for more than two years, is one of the most reliable predictors of sustained care quality. Homes where managers had left and been replaced showed measurable dips in staff confidence and governance consistency within six months.","watch_out":"Before you visit, call the home and ask whether the registered manager named in the last inspection report is still in post. If there has been a change of manager since February 2022, ask how long the current manager has been in post and how they have maintained the Outstanding culture during that transition."}

  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 care for adults both under and over 65, with particular expertise in dementia support. Their nursing team maintains a strong presence throughout the day, managing complex medical needs while keeping the atmosphere relaxed and welcoming.. Gaps or open questions remain on For residents living with dementia, the team brings patience and understanding to daily care. They work to maintain dignity and connection, helping people feel secure even as their needs change. — areas worth probing directly during a visit.