Rotherlea Care Home – Shaw healthcare

What families say

Visitors notice how staff bring cheerfulness into daily interactions, taking time to really connect with each resident. People describe a sense of contentment among those living here, with staff who are both approachable and attentive to individual needs.

Based on 6 Google reviews · 0 reviews on carehome.co.uk · most recent 2026-04-10

The eight family priority themes

• Staff warmth72
• Compassion & dignity72
• Cleanliness70
• Activities & engagement68
• Food quality68
• Healthcare70
• Management & leadership72
• Resident happiness70

What inspectors found

Inspected 2020-01-16 · Report published 2020-01-16 · Inspected 7 times in the last three years

• Is this home safe?

  Not yet rated

  {"found":"Rotherlea was rated Good for safety at its January 2024 inspection. The home had previously been rated Inadequate overall, so this improvement indicates that inspectors found the home had made meaningful progress on safety. The published inspection text does not include specific observations about medicines management, falls prevention, infection control, or night staffing levels. A named registered manager is in post.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"A Good safety rating after a period of Inadequate is worth taking seriously, but it does not answer the questions families most need answered. Our review data shows that 14% of positive family reviews specifically mention staff attentiveness as a safety signal, and Good Practice research consistently identifies night staffing as the point where safety most often slips in care homes. You cannot assess either of these from a rating alone. The specific detail that matters, how many staff are on overnight, whether the home uses agency carers on the dementia unit, and how falls are logged and acted on, is not available in the published findings for Rotherlea. Ask these questions directly before you decide.","evidence_base":"The IFF Research and Leeds Beckett rapid evidence review found that agency staff reliance and low night staffing ratios are the two factors most consistently associated with safety incidents in residential dementia care. A Good rating does not confirm these are well managed; it means inspectors were satisfied at the time of the visit.","watch_out":"Ask the manager: how many permanent staff are on the dementia unit after 8pm on a typical weeknight, and how often is that shift covered by agency carers? Ask to see the actual rota from the previous two weeks, not a planned template."}

  Verified by inspectorMentioned, not assessed

• Is the care effective?

  Not yet rated

  {"found":"Rotherlea was rated Good for effectiveness at its January 2024 inspection. This domain covers training, care planning, access to healthcare professionals, and nutrition. The published inspection text does not describe what dementia training staff receive, how care plans are written or reviewed, how GP access is arranged, or what the food is like. The Good rating indicates inspectors were satisfied across these areas, but no specific evidence is available in the published findings.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"Food quality and dementia-specific training are two of the themes families mention most in our review data, with food appearing in 20.9% of positive reviews and dementia care knowledge in 12.7%. Good Practice research is clear that care plans should be treated as living documents, reviewed with families at least quarterly, and that dementia training should cover non-verbal communication and behaviour as communication, not just awareness-level content. The inspection confirms Rotherlea met the Good threshold, but the detail of how these things work day to day is simply not available from the published report. Ask the manager to show you an anonymised example care plan and to describe what dementia training staff completed in the last 12 months.","evidence_base":"The Leeds Beckett evidence review found that homes where care plans are co-produced with families and updated after any significant change in the person's condition show better outcomes for residents with dementia. The frequency and quality of care plan review is a reliable proxy for how well the home actually knows your parent as an individual.","watch_out":"Ask to see an anonymised care plan. Check whether it records the person's preferred name, daily routine, food preferences, and what helps when they are anxious. Then ask how recently it was reviewed and who was involved in that review."}

  Verified by inspector

• Is this home caring?

  Not yet rated

  {"found":"Rotherlea was rated Good for caring at its January 2024 inspection. This domain covers staff warmth, dignity, respect, and whether residents feel their independence is supported. Staff warmth is the single biggest driver of family satisfaction in our review data, appearing in 57.3% of positive reviews. The published inspection text does not include direct observations of staff interactions, resident testimony about how they are treated, or specific examples of dignified care practice.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"A Good rating in the Caring domain means inspectors were satisfied that the home met the standard on dignity and respect. However, what families remember most, and what research consistently links to wellbeing in dementia care, is the texture of everyday interactions: whether staff use your mum's preferred name, whether they sit at eye level when speaking to her, whether they move with patience rather than efficiency. These things are not visible in a rating. Our review data shows that 55.2% of positive family reviews mention compassion and dignity in specific, observable terms. The only way to assess this for your parent is to spend time in the home, ideally at a mealtime or during a morning routine, and watch how staff behave when they do not know they are being observed.","evidence_base":"Good Practice research identifies non-verbal communication as at least as important as verbal interaction for people with advanced dementia. Homes where staff are trained to read and respond to non-verbal cues show significantly lower rates of distressed behaviour. Ask what training staff have received specifically on this.","watch_out":"During your visit, watch how staff greet your parent or other residents in corridors and communal areas. Do they make eye contact, use names, and pause to listen? Or do they move through the space without acknowledging the people who live there? This is the most reliable observable signal of caring culture."}

  Verified by inspectorResident testimony recorded

• Is the home responsive?

  Not yet rated

  {"found":"Rotherlea was rated Good for responsiveness at its January 2024 inspection. This domain covers activities, individual engagement, and how well the home adapts to each person's preferences and needs. The published inspection text does not describe the activities programme, give examples of tailored engagement, or explain how the home supports people who cannot join group activities. The home is registered to support people living with dementia, for whom individual engagement is particularly important.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"Activities and engagement appear in 21.4% of positive family reviews, and resident happiness in 27.1%. For people living with dementia, the research is consistent: group activities alone are insufficient, and people with moderate to advanced dementia need one-to-one engagement built into their day, not just access to group sessions. Approaches that draw on everyday household tasks and familiar routines show the strongest evidence for maintaining wellbeing. The inspection confirms the home met the Good standard, but whether your parent would have a genuinely meaningful day here is a question that requires a visit and a direct conversation with the activities team.","evidence_base":"The Leeds Beckett evidence review found that Montessori-based and occupation-focused individual activities, not group entertainment, show the strongest outcomes for people with dementia. Homes that offer regular one-to-one engagement, particularly for residents who cannot initiate activity themselves, consistently outperform those that rely solely on group programmes.","watch_out":"Ask the activities coordinator: what would a typical Tuesday look like for a resident with moderate dementia who does not want to join group sessions? Ask to see the previous week's activity records, including any one-to-one sessions, not just the planned programme on the noticeboard."}

  Verified by inspector

• Is the home well-led?

  Not yet rated

  {"found":"Rotherlea was rated Good for leadership at its January 2024 inspection, having previously been rated Inadequate overall. A registered manager, Miss Abbey Seonaid Williams, is in post, and Mr Liam Francis Scanlon is the nominated individual for Shaw Healthcare Limited. The improvement from Inadequate to Good across all domains indicates that leadership has driven meaningful change. The published inspection text does not describe the manager's day-to-day visibility, staff culture, or how the home handles complaints and incidents.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"Management quality is mentioned in 23.4% of positive family reviews, often in terms of whether families feel heard and whether the manager is visible and approachable rather than office-bound. Good Practice research is clear that leadership stability is one of the strongest predictors of quality over time: homes with long-serving, visible managers consistently perform better than those with frequent leadership changes. The turnaround at Rotherlea from Inadequate suggests the current leadership team has had a real impact. The question is whether that improvement is embedded or fragile. Ask how long the current manager has been in post and what specific changes were made after the Inadequate rating.","evidence_base":"The Leeds Beckett evidence review found that bottom-up staff empowerment, where care staff feel confident to raise concerns without fear, is a reliable marker of good leadership culture. Homes where front-line staff can speak up tend to catch problems earlier and maintain quality more consistently between inspections.","watch_out":"Ask the manager directly: how long have you been in this role, and what were the two or three most significant changes you made after the previous inspection? A manager who can answer this specifically and without hesitation is a good sign. Also ask whether any senior staff have left in the past six months, as staff turnover at senior level often signals instability that has not yet appeared in inspection ratings."}

  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 Rotherlea cares for adults across different age groups, including those under 65 who need residential support. The home has specific experience in dementia care.. Gaps or open questions remain on For those living with dementia, the staff's natural warmth and tendency to engage residents throughout the day creates a supportive environment where people feel connected and valued. — areas worth probing directly during a visit.