Prince Of Wales House

What families say

What strikes families most is how staff see each resident as someone with their own story and preferences. People notice the steady patience that helps new residents find their feet, particularly those living with dementia who might have had difficult experiences elsewhere. There's a real sense that contentment here comes from being understood as an individual.

Based on 13 Google reviews · 0 reviews on carehome.co.uk · most recent 2026-04-10

The eight family priority themes

• Staff warmth85
• Compassion & dignity90
• Cleanliness72
• Activities & engagement82
• Food quality65
• Healthcare72
• Management & leadership75
• Resident happiness82

What inspectors found

Inspected 2023-11-28 · Report published 2023-11-28 · Inspected 2 times in the last three years

• Is this home safe?

  Good

  {"found":"The Safe domain was rated Good at the October 2023 inspection. This means inspectors were satisfied that risks were being managed, medicines were handled appropriately, and staffing was sufficient to keep people safe. The published report does not provide specific detail on night staffing ratios, falls management, or how the home responds to safeguarding concerns. There is no mention of agency staff reliance in the available text.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"A Good rating for safety is a solid baseline, but it does not tell you what happens at 3am when your parent needs help and the day team has gone home. Good Practice research from the IFF Research and Leeds Beckett University rapid evidence review (61 studies, March 2026) identifies night staffing as the point where safety most commonly slips in otherwise well-run homes. The inspection did not record specific night staffing numbers, so you need to ask this directly. Agency staff usage is equally important for people with dementia, who depend on consistent familiar faces to feel secure. Ask how many of the shifts over the last month were covered by agency staff rather than the regular team.","evidence_base":"The Good Practice evidence base identifies night staffing ratios and agency staff reliance as two of the strongest predictors of whether a home's daytime quality is sustained around the clock. A Good Safety rating does not guarantee either is at the level you would want.","watch_out":"Ask the manager to show you the actual staffing rota for a recent week, not the planned template. Count how many night shifts were covered by permanent staff versus agency staff, and ask what the minimum number of carers on the dementia unit is overnight."}

  Verified by inspectorMentioned, not assessed

• Is the care effective?

  Good

  {"found":"The Effective domain was rated Good. This covers training, care planning, healthcare access, nutrition, and how well the team understands and responds to individual needs. The home specialises in dementia care, which implies a training expectation above the baseline. The published summary does not include specific detail on dementia training content, GP access arrangements, or how care plans are written and reviewed. Food quality and dietary support are also not described.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"Good in Effective means the fundamentals are in place, but for a home that specialises in dementia, you want to know more than that the basics pass inspection. The Good Practice evidence base identifies care plans as living documents that should be updated as a person's needs change, not filed and forgotten. In our review data, food quality features in 20.9% of positive family reviews, often as a proxy for how much the home genuinely cares about day-to-day comfort. The inspection did not record specific detail on either point. When you visit, ask to see an anonymised example of a care plan and note whether it reads like a real person or a form that has been filled in.","evidence_base":"The IFF Research and Leeds Beckett rapid evidence review found that dementia-specific training, including non-verbal communication and behavioural understanding, is one of the most significant factors in the quality of daily life for people with dementia. A general Good rating for Effective does not confirm the depth of that training.","watch_out":"Ask the manager what dementia-specific training staff complete, how recently it was updated, and whether it covers non-verbal communication and responding to distress. Ask how often your parent's care plan would be formally reviewed and whether you would be invited to contribute."}

  Verified by inspector

• Is this home caring?

  Outstanding

  {"found":"The Caring domain was rated Outstanding at the October 2023 inspection. This is the highest possible rating and is given only when inspectors find strong, specific evidence of kindness, dignity, and respect in practice, not just in policy. An Outstanding Caring rating typically includes direct observations of staff interactions, testimony from residents and relatives, and evidence that people are treated as individuals. The published summary does not reproduce the specific observations or quotes that earned this rating, but the rating itself is a meaningful signal.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"Staff warmth is the single biggest driver of family satisfaction in our review data, mentioned by name in 57.3% of positive reviews. Compassion and dignity feature in 55.2%. An Outstanding Caring rating means inspectors saw these qualities in practice, not just described in documents. This is the domain that matters most to families choosing a home for a parent with dementia, and it is where Prince of Wales House performed best. What you should look for on a visit is whether what you see matches what the rating implies: staff addressing your parent by their preferred name, interactions that are unhurried, and a team that notices and responds to small signs of discomfort or anxiety.","evidence_base":"The Good Practice evidence base highlights that non-verbal communication matters as much as verbal communication for people living with dementia. Staff who move without hurry, make eye contact, and respond to body language rather than waiting for words are demonstrating the kind of person-centred care that Outstanding Caring ratings are built on.","watch_out":"When you visit, watch how a staff member greets your parent or another resident in a corridor or common room. Do they stop, make eye contact, use the person's name, and give them time to respond? Or do they keep moving? That interaction, unscripted and unrehearsed, tells you more than any rating."}

  Verified by inspectorResident testimony recorded

• Is the home responsive?

  Outstanding

  {"found":"The Responsive domain was also rated Outstanding. This domain covers how well the home tailors its support to each person as an individual, including activities, daily routines, end-of-life planning, and how complaints are handled. Outstanding here means inspectors found evidence that the home goes beyond a standard offer and genuinely adjusts to each person's preferences, history, and needs. Specific detail on what activities are provided, how individual engagement is managed for people with advanced dementia, or how end-of-life planning is approached is not reproduced in the available report text.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"Resident happiness features in 27.1% of positive family reviews and activities in 21.4%. An Outstanding Responsive rating is the most encouraging possible signal on both counts. For people with dementia in particular, Good Practice research points to the importance of one-to-one activity for individuals who cannot easily join group sessions, and to the value of familiar everyday tasks, such as folding, sorting, or simple cooking, as a source of continuity and comfort. The inspection did not record whether the home provides this kind of individual engagement, so it is worth asking directly. Outstanding is a strong starting point, but you want to know what a typical Tuesday afternoon looks like for someone at your parent's stage of dementia.","evidence_base":"The Good Practice evidence base, drawing on 61 studies, identifies Montessori-based approaches and meaningful one-to-one engagement as particularly effective for people with moderate to advanced dementia. Group activities alone are not sufficient for everyone.","watch_out":"Ask the activities coordinator to describe what they would offer your parent on a day when they could not or did not want to join a group session. Ask to see the actual activity records from the past month, not the planned schedule, and note whether individual sessions are recorded alongside group ones."}

  Verified by inspector

• Is the home well-led?

  Good

  {"found":"The Well-led domain was rated Good. The home is operated by The Partnership In Care Limited and has a registered manager, Mrs Annalies Claire Gaskell, and a nominated individual, Mrs Rachel Fitton. Good in this domain means inspectors found that governance, accountability, and staff support were in order. The published summary does not include specific detail on how long the current manager has been in post, how the home learns from incidents, or how the team culture supports staff to raise concerns.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"Management quality features in 23.4% of positive family reviews, and communication with families in 11.5%. Good Practice research identifies leadership stability as one of the strongest predictors of whether a home's quality is sustained over time. The presence of a named registered manager is a positive sign, but manager tenure matters too: a home that has had several managers in quick succession often shows instability in its staff team and culture. The inspection did not record how long Mrs Gaskell has been in post. Ask this directly on your visit, and pay attention to whether staff speak about their manager with familiarity and confidence.","evidence_base":"The IFF Research and Leeds Beckett rapid evidence review found that leadership stability and a culture where staff feel able to speak up are among the most reliable predictors of sustained care quality. A Good Well-led rating confirms the foundations; manager tenure and staff morale confirm whether those foundations are holding.","watch_out":"Ask Mrs Gaskell or a senior member of the team how long the current manager has been in post and whether there have been significant changes to the leadership team in the past two years. Then ask a carer, separately, how they would raise a concern if they were worried about something. The answers together will tell you more than the rating."}

  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 welcomes adults both under and over 65, including those living with dementia. This mixed age range brings variety to daily life while ensuring everyone receives support matched to their needs.. Gaps or open questions remain on For residents with dementia, the patient approach helps them settle even after difficult moves from other homes. Families describe seeing their loved ones find genuine contentment here, participating in activities that match their interests and maintaining their sense of self. — areas worth probing directly during a visit.