Bourne Wood Manor Care Home
At a Glance
The information you need to decide whether this home warrants a closer look.
Nursing homes
Staff warmth score
of reviewers answered yes
Good to know
- Registered beds64
- SpecialismsCaring for adults over 65 yrs, Caring for adults under 65 yrs, Dementia
- Last inspected2023-09-13
- Activities programmeThe home offers en-suite bedrooms and inviting communal areas, including a bistro-style dining room where meals become social occasions. Interactive gardens provide peaceful outdoor spaces, while inside, residents gather in comfortable lounges. The physical environment supports both privacy and community.
- 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 describe a place where patience and friendliness shape daily life. The staff take time to learn what matters to each resident — from favourite foods to cultural traditions. Regular activities bring energy to the days, with residents joining in everything from garden visits to special events.
Based on 27 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 2023-09-13 · Report published 2023-09-13 · Inspected 3 times in the last three years
Is this home safe?
{"found":"The home was rated Good for safety at the July 2023 inspection. The published report does not include specific observations about staffing ratios, medicines management, falls prevention, or infection control practices at this home. A named registered manager is in post. No concerns or Requires Improvement findings were recorded in this domain. The lack of specific published detail means the Good rating reflects an overall judgement rather than a picture you can fully interrogate from this report alone.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"A Good safety rating is the minimum you should expect, but it does not answer the questions that matter most for your parent. Our review data shows that families rate staff attentiveness as one of their top concerns, yet the inspection gives no detail on night staffing numbers for the 64 beds, how often agency staff are used, or how incidents like falls are logged and learned from. Good Practice evidence from the IFF Research and Leeds Beckett rapid review (61 studies, March 2026) identifies night staffing as the point where safety most commonly slips in care homes. You cannot assess that risk from this report alone, so ask directly.","evidence_base":"The Good Practice evidence review found that agency staff reliance undermines consistency of care and is a leading indicator of safety risk. Asking about agency use on night shifts is one of the most reliable checks a family can make.","watch_out":"Ask the manager to show you the actual staffing rota for the past two weeks, not the planned template. Count how many shifts were covered by permanent staff versus agency staff, and ask specifically what the overnight staffing ratio is for 64 residents."}
Is the care effective?
{"found":"The home was rated Good for effectiveness at the July 2023 inspection. The published report does not record specific findings about care plan quality, GP access, dementia training, or food and nutrition. The home is registered to provide nursing care and to support people living with dementia, which means effective practice in these areas is particularly important. No concerns were identified in this domain. As with other domains, the published text provides a rating without the supporting detail that would allow a fuller assessment.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"For a home that specialises in dementia care and nursing, effectiveness covers some of the things families worry about most: whether staff understand how dementia changes a person, whether your parent's care plan reflects who they actually are rather than just their diagnosis, and whether healthcare needs are picked up quickly. Food quality is also part of this domain, and our review data shows it features in 20.9% of positive family reviews. None of these areas are specifically addressed in the published findings, so you are working with a positive but unverified picture.","evidence_base":"The Good Practice evidence review identifies care plans as living documents that should be updated regularly and shaped by family input. Homes that treat care plans as administrative forms rather than working tools tend to deliver less personalised care over time.","watch_out":"Ask the manager how often care plans are formally reviewed, who is involved in those reviews, and whether families are invited to contribute. Then ask to see an example of how a resident's personal history and preferences are recorded and used in daily care."}
Is this home caring?
{"found":"The home was rated Good for caring at the July 2023 inspection. No specific observations of staff interactions, resident wellbeing, or dignity in practice are recorded in the published text. The Good rating indicates that inspectors did not find concerns in this domain. For a 64-bed home with a dementia specialism, how staff communicate with residents who have limited verbal communication is particularly important. The absence of specific detail means this domain cannot be verified from the published report.","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 feature in 55.2%. These are the things families notice first and remember longest. The Good Practice evidence review highlights that non-verbal communication matters as much as words when supporting people living with dementia. A Good rating in this domain is encouraging, but you will get a clearer picture in the first five minutes of a visit than from any report.","evidence_base":"The Good Practice evidence review found that person-led care depends on staff knowing the individual, including their history, preferences, and how they communicate when words become difficult. Homes where staff can describe a resident as a person, not just a set of needs, consistently deliver better outcomes.","watch_out":"During your visit, watch what happens in a corridor when a member of staff passes a resident. Do they stop, make eye contact, and use the resident's preferred name without checking a badge or file? That unrehearsed interaction tells you more than any formal tour."}
Is the home responsive?
{"found":"The home was rated Good for responsiveness at the July 2023 inspection. The published report does not include specific information about the activity programme, one-to-one engagement, how individual preferences are acted on, or how end-of-life care is approached. The home supports people living with dementia, for whom meaningful, tailored activity is a significant quality indicator. No concerns were identified in this domain. The detail needed to assess responsiveness in practice is not available from the published text.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"Our review data shows that activities and engagement feature in 21.4% of positive family reviews, and resident happiness in 27.1%. For people living with dementia, the Good Practice evidence review is clear that group activities alone are not enough: one-to-one engagement, everyday household tasks, and Montessori-based approaches that draw on familiar skills all make a measurable difference to wellbeing. A Good rating here is a positive sign, but ask specifically what happens for a resident who cannot join a group session.","evidence_base":"The Good Practice evidence review found that tailored individual activities, rather than group programmes alone, are the strongest predictor of resident wellbeing for people living with dementia. Homes that rely only on group sessions may leave the most vulnerable residents without meaningful engagement for large parts of the day.","watch_out":"Ask the activities coordinator to show you the schedule from last week, including weekends and evenings. Then ask what was offered to a resident who could not join a group activity that day. The answer to the second question is more revealing than the schedule itself."}
Is the home well-led?
{"found":"The home was rated Good for leadership at the July 2023 inspection. A named registered manager, Mrs Cheryl Gaye Williams, is confirmed in post, alongside a nominated individual, Mrs Lisa Sharon Soper. The home is operated by Porthaven Care Homes No 2 Limited. No concerns about governance, culture, or leadership were identified. The published text does not include observations of the manager's visibility, staff culture, or how the home handles complaints and learning from incidents.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"Our review data shows that management quality features in 23.4% of positive family reviews, and communication with families in 11.5%. The Good Practice evidence review identifies leadership stability as one of the strongest predictors of quality over time: homes where the manager is known by name to staff and residents, and where staff feel able to raise concerns, consistently perform better. Knowing the manager's name from the register is a starting point. Knowing whether she is a visible, approachable presence in the home is what matters for your parent.","evidence_base":"The Good Practice evidence review found that a culture where staff can speak up without fear, sometimes called bottom-up empowerment, is one of the clearest markers of a well-led home. Managers who are visible on the floor, rather than office-based, are significantly more likely to sustain quality between inspections.","watch_out":"When you visit, ask to speak briefly with the registered manager rather than just the person who shows you around. Ask how long she has been in post, what she considers the home's biggest current challenge, and how she finds out what residents and families think. Her answers, and her manner in giving them, will tell you a great deal."}
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 welcomes adults both under and over 65, with particular experience in dementia care. This range brings together residents at different life stages, creating a varied community.. Gaps or open questions remain on For those living with dementia, the team provides patient, responsive support that adapts to changing needs. Staff understand the importance of maintaining familiar routines and respecting each person's preferences throughout their journey. — 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
Bourne Wood Manor Care Home received a Good rating across all five domains at its September 2023 inspection, which is a positive baseline. However, the published inspection text contains very limited specific detail, observations, or direct quotes, so scores reflect that positive but unverified picture rather than strongly confirmed evidence.
Homes in South East typically score 68–82.The three-lens summary
What families tell us
Families describe a place where patience and friendliness shape daily life. The staff take time to learn what matters to each resident — from favourite foods to cultural traditions. Regular activities bring energy to the days, with residents joining in everything from garden visits to special events.
What inspectors have recorded
The team works hard to keep families informed and involved. While some operational challenges have been noted — including delays in responding to call buttons and occasional issues with laundry — the overall approach centres on treating each resident as an individual. Communication with families continues to strengthen, with regular updates helping everyone stay connected.
How it sits against good practice
Bourne Wood Manor brings professional care together with genuine human connection in the heart of Farnham.
Worth a visit
Bourne Wood Manor Care Home, on West Street in Farnham, was rated Good across all five domains at its most recent inspection, carried out in July 2023 and published in September 2023. The home is a 64-bed nursing home registered to care for older adults, younger adults, and people living with dementia. A named registered manager and a nominated individual are confirmed as being in post. The Good rating across every domain is a reassuring starting point, particularly for a home of this size and specialism. The main uncertainty here is that the published inspection report contains very limited specific detail. There are no direct observations of staff interactions, no resident or family quotes, and no specific evidence about food, activities, night staffing, or dementia-specific care. A Good rating without supporting detail means you need to do more of the verification work yourself on a visit. Arrive unannounced if you can, watch how staff speak to your parent during a tour, ask to see last week's actual staffing rota, and find out what dementia training every member of staff has completed. The rating tells you the inspection found no serious concerns; it does not tell you whether this home will feel right for your parent.
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In Their Own Words
How Bourne Wood Manor Care Home describes itself — collected from its own website. DCC has not edited or independently verified the content in this tab.
Where kindness meets careful attention to each person's story
Bourne Wood Manor Care Home – Your Trusted nursing home
When families need urgent support, the team at Bourne Wood Manor Care Home in Farnham responds with genuine warmth and efficiency. This established home creates a welcoming environment where residents find both comfort and companionship. The thoughtful approach starts from the very first phone call, helping families navigate difficult decisions with reassurance and practical support.
Who they care for
The home welcomes adults both under and over 65, with particular experience in dementia care. This range brings together residents at different life stages, creating a varied community.
For those living with dementia, the team provides patient, responsive support that adapts to changing needs. Staff understand the importance of maintaining familiar routines and respecting each person's preferences throughout their journey.
Management & ethos
The team works hard to keep families informed and involved. While some operational challenges have been noted — including delays in responding to call buttons and occasional issues with laundry — the overall approach centres on treating each resident as an individual. Communication with families continues to strengthen, with regular updates helping everyone stay connected.
The home & environment
The home offers en-suite bedrooms and inviting communal areas, including a bistro-style dining room where meals become social occasions. Interactive gardens provide peaceful outdoor spaces, while inside, residents gather in comfortable lounges. The physical environment supports both privacy and community.
“Bourne Wood Manor brings professional care together with genuine human connection in the heart of Farnham.”
DCC does not edit or curate content in this tab. For independently curated information, see The Evidence and DCC Verdict.
