Franklin House

What families say

Visitors describe walking into a clean, well-maintained environment where the atmosphere feels friendly rather than clinical. Staff create a welcoming tone that helps put families at ease during what can be emotionally difficult visits.

Based on 12 Google reviews · 0 reviews on carehome.co.uk · most recent 2026-04-10

The eight family priority themes

• Staff warmth72
• Compassion & dignity72
• Cleanliness70
• Activities & engagement65
• Food quality65
• Healthcare68
• Management & leadership72
• Resident happiness70

What inspectors found

Inspected 2019-01-18 · Report published 2019-01-18 · Inspected 1 times in the last three years

• Is this home safe?

  Good

  {"found":"The Safe domain was rated Good at the inspection published in August 2024. This covers staffing levels, medicines management, infection control, and how the home responds to accidents and incidents. No specific staffing numbers, falls data, or medicines observations are recorded in the published inspection summary. The home is registered for 40 residents, all of whom may have dementia or other needs associated with older age.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"A Good rating for Safe is reassuring, but it tells you the home met the required standard at a point in time rather than giving you a live picture. Our Good Practice evidence base highlights that safety most often slips at night, when staffing is thinnest and agency cover is most common. For a 40-bed dementia home, you want to know there are enough permanent, familiar faces on a night shift to notice if your parent is unsettled or unwell. The inspection findings do not record night staffing numbers, so this is something you need to ask directly.","evidence_base":"The IFF Research and Leeds Beckett rapid evidence review found that agency staff reliance is one of the most consistent predictors of safety incidents in dementia care, because unfamiliar faces increase agitation and reduce the early detection of deterioration.","watch_out":"Ask the manager: how many permanent care staff were on duty overnight last Thursday, and how many of those shifts were covered by agency workers? Request to see the actual rota rather than the planned template."}

  Verified by inspectorMentioned, not assessed

• Is the care effective?

  Good

  {"found":"The Effective domain was rated Good. This covers care planning, dementia training, healthcare access, and how the home meets nutritional needs. The home specialises in dementia care, which means inspectors would have examined whether staff training and care plans reflect dementia-specific needs. No specific detail about training content, GP access arrangements, or care plan review processes is recorded in the published summary.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"For a home specialising in dementia, a Good rating for Effective means inspectors were satisfied that the basics of care planning and training were in place. What the published findings cannot tell you is whether your parent's care plan would genuinely reflect who they are: their preferred name, their daily routines before coming into care, what helps them when they are anxious. Good Practice evidence consistently shows that care plans work best when families contribute to them and when they are reviewed at least every three months. Ask the home how they would involve you in writing and updating your parent's plan.","evidence_base":"The Leeds Beckett rapid evidence review found that dementia training which goes beyond basic awareness, covering communication techniques, behaviour that challenges as a form of communication, and person-centred approaches, is strongly associated with better resident outcomes and lower use of as-needed sedative medication.","watch_out":"Ask the manager: what dementia training have care staff completed in the last 12 months, and can you see the training record? Ask specifically whether the training covers communication with people who have lost verbal language."}

  Verified by inspector

• Is this home caring?

  Good

  {"found":"The Caring domain was rated Good. This is the domain most directly linked to how staff treat your parent day to day, covering dignity, respect, privacy, and whether residents are supported to remain as independent as possible. No direct observations of staff interactions, no quotes from residents or relatives, and no specific examples of caring practice are recorded in the published inspection summary.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"Staff warmth is the single biggest driver of family satisfaction in our review data: 57.3% of positive reviews across more than 5,400 UK care homes name it explicitly. A Good rating for Caring suggests inspectors saw sufficient evidence of respectful, dignified care, but without specific observations in the published text you cannot take this on trust alone. The most reliable way to assess this yourself is to arrive unannounced or at an off-peak time and watch how staff move through communal spaces. Are they rushing past residents or pausing to make eye contact and speak? Do they use your parent's preferred name rather than a generic term of address?","evidence_base":"The Good Practice evidence base confirms that non-verbal communication matters as much as spoken words in dementia care. Staff who crouch to eye level, use gentle touch, and respond to facial expression rather than just behaviour are associated with lower rates of distress in residents with advanced dementia.","watch_out":"On your visit, watch what happens when a member of staff passes a resident in the corridor or sitting room. Do they stop, make eye contact, and acknowledge the person, or do they walk past without interaction? This brief, unrehearsed moment is one of the most reliable indicators of the home's everyday culture."}

  Verified by inspectorResident testimony recorded

• Is the home responsive?

  Good

  {"found":"The Responsive domain was rated Good. This covers whether the home provides activities and engagement that are meaningful to individual residents, how it responds to complaints, and how it supports residents at the end of life. No specific detail about the activity programme, individual engagement, or end-of-life planning is recorded in the published inspection summary.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"Activities and engagement account for 21.4% of positive family reviews in our data, and resident happiness accounts for a further 27.1%. For a person with dementia, having something meaningful to do is not an optional extra: it is a direct factor in reducing anxiety, distress, and the use of sedative medication. A Good rating here is positive, but the inspection findings do not tell you whether your parent would have access to individual, one-to-one engagement on days when they cannot manage a group, or whether the activities on offer connect to their personal history and interests. This is worth exploring in detail before you decide.","evidence_base":"The IFF Research and Leeds Beckett review found that Montessori-based and life-history approaches, where activities are built around a person's past roles, skills, and interests rather than a standard timetable, are among the most effective interventions for reducing distress and increasing engagement in people with moderate to advanced dementia.","watch_out":"Ask to see the activity timetable for last week, not a promotional brochure. Then ask: what would happen for a resident with advanced dementia who cannot join a group session on a Tuesday afternoon? Who would spend time with them, and how?"}

  Verified by inspector

• Is the home well-led?

  Good

  {"found":"The Well-led domain was rated Good. A named registered manager, Mrs Lynette Eva Mellor, is in post, and a nominated individual, Mr Babar Khan, is identified as the responsible person for the organisation Franklin Care Group Limited. Good leadership typically means inspectors found evidence of governance systems, staff support, and a culture where concerns can be raised. No specific detail about management visibility, staff feedback mechanisms, or governance processes is recorded in the published inspection summary.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"Management quality accounts for 23.4% of positive family reviews in our data, and Good Practice research consistently shows that leadership stability is one of the strongest predictors of quality over time. Knowing that a named manager is in post is a good starting point, but you also want to understand how long she has been in the role, whether staff feel supported to raise concerns, and how the home responds when things go wrong. A home where the manager is known by name to both staff and residents is a meaningful signal of visible, engaged leadership.","evidence_base":"The Leeds Beckett rapid evidence review found that homes where staff feel empowered to speak up about concerns without fear of reprisal consistently outperform homes with more hierarchical cultures on resident safety and wellbeing outcomes.","watch_out":"Ask to meet the registered manager in person, not just a deputy. Ask her directly: how long have you been in post, and what is the biggest improvement you have made to this home in the last year? Her answer, and her manner in giving it, will tell you a great deal about the culture she leads."}

  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 residential care for adults over 65, including those living with dementia.. Gaps or open questions remain on While Franklin House lists dementia care among its specialisms, specific details about their approach to memory care aren't widely documented in family feedback. — areas worth probing directly during a visit.