Stone Cross Care Home

What families say

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 & engagement65
• Food quality65
• Healthcare70
• Management & leadership70
• Resident happiness70

What inspectors found

Inspected 2023-10-31 · Report published 2023-10-31 · Inspected 6 times in the last three years

• Is this home safe?

  Not yet rated

  {"found":"The Safe domain was rated Good at the February 2025 inspection. This is an improvement on the previous inspection, where the home received an overall Requires Improvement rating. The published report does not include specific detail about what inspectors found in relation to medicines management, falls prevention, infection control, or night staffing. A Good rating in this domain means inspectors were satisfied with the overall safety picture, but the evidence base available to families is thin.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"A Good safety rating is reassuring, but the published findings give you very little to go on in specific terms. Our Good Practice evidence base, drawn from 61 studies, identifies night staffing as the single most common point where safety slips in residential care homes. The inspection findings do not tell you how many staff are on duty after 8pm in this 32-bed home, and that is a question you should ask directly before making a decision. Agency staff usage is another area where consistency of care can be affected: staff who do not know your parent well may miss early signs of deterioration or distress. The previous Requires Improvement rating means this home has had to make improvements, and the recovery to Good is positive, but it is worth asking the manager what specifically changed.","evidence_base":"The IFF Research and Leeds Beckett rapid evidence review found that night staffing ratios are a reliable early indicator of safety risk in care homes, and that homes with higher agency reliance show measurably less consistent care for people living with dementia.","watch_out":"Ask the manager: how many permanent staff were on duty on the dementia unit last Tuesday night, and how many of those were from an agency? Ask to see the rota rather than receiving a verbal estimate."}

  Verified by inspectorMentioned, not assessed

• Is the care effective?

  Not yet rated

  {"found":"The Effective domain was rated Good at the February 2025 inspection. This domain covers whether staff have the right training and skills, whether care plans are kept up to date, whether your parent's health needs are monitored, and whether food and nutrition are well managed. The published inspection text does not include specific observations about any of these areas. A Good rating indicates inspectors were broadly satisfied, but no particular strengths are described in the available findings.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"Effectiveness in a dementia care home is about whether staff genuinely know your parent as an individual and whether care plans are treated as living documents that change as your parent's needs change. Our Good Practice evidence base identifies care plan quality as one of the most important markers of effective dementia care: plans that include personal history, preferred routines, communication preferences, and food likes and dislikes produce measurably better outcomes. The inspection found this domain to be Good, but did not confirm any of these specifics. Food quality is mentioned in 20.9% of positive family reviews in our data, often as a proxy for how much genuine care and attention goes into daily life. Ask to see a sample menu and find out how dietary preferences are recorded and acted on.","evidence_base":"The Leeds Beckett rapid evidence review found that care plans functioning as living documents, reviewed at least monthly and co-produced with the person and their family, are associated with better wellbeing outcomes for people living with dementia.","watch_out":"Ask to see a care plan for a current resident (with permission). Check whether it contains the person's life history, preferred name, food preferences, and what calms them when they are anxious. If it reads like a medical form rather than a portrait of a person, that is worth noting."}

  Verified by inspector

• Is this home caring?

  Not yet rated

  {"found":"The Caring domain was rated Good at the February 2025 inspection. This domain covers whether staff are kind, whether residents are treated with dignity and respect, and whether people's independence is supported. The published text does not include direct observations of staff interactions, quotes from residents about how they feel, or specific examples of dignified care. A Good rating means inspectors were satisfied that the home met the standard, but the detail behind that judgement is not available in the published findings.","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 are cited in 55.2%. These are the things families notice most, and they are the things that are hardest to assess from a report alone. What you are looking for on a visit is unhurried interaction: staff who use your parent's preferred name without being prompted, who crouch to eye level rather than talking down, and who respond calmly when a resident is anxious or confused. The Good Practice evidence base confirms that non-verbal communication is as important as what staff say, particularly for people living with more advanced dementia. The inspection gives you a positive headline here, but the only way to verify it is to spend time in the communal areas and watch.","evidence_base":"The IFF Research rapid evidence review found that person-led care, where staff know individual histories and preferred communication styles, produces significantly better emotional wellbeing outcomes than task-centred approaches, particularly for people living with dementia who have reduced verbal communication.","watch_out":"When you visit, sit in a communal area for 20 minutes without announcing yourself as a prospective family member. Notice whether staff make eye contact with residents, use names, and respond to signs of distress or agitation without hurrying past."}

  Verified by inspectorResident testimony recorded

• Is the home responsive?

  Not yet rated

  {"found":"The Responsive domain was rated Good at the February 2025 inspection. This domain covers whether the home offers meaningful activities, whether care is tailored to individual needs and preferences, and whether complaints are handled well. The published text includes no specific detail about activities, individual engagement, or how the home responds to complaints or requests. A Good rating is positive, but the absence of specific observations means it is not possible to assess depth of provision from the published findings alone.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"Activities and engagement are cited in 21.4% of positive family reviews in our data, and resident happiness in 27.1%. For people living with dementia, the evidence is clear that activities need to be tailored to the individual rather than relying solely on group sessions. People with more advanced dementia often cannot participate in group activities but respond well to one-to-one engagement, including everyday household tasks, music, or sensory activities. The Good Practice evidence base specifically identifies Montessori-based and occupation-based individual activities as producing better outcomes than group entertainment models. The inspection does not tell you whether Stonecross offers this level of individual tailoring. This is one of the most important questions to ask on a visit, particularly if your parent is at a later stage of dementia.","evidence_base":"The Leeds Beckett rapid evidence review found that individual, occupation-based activities, including familiar household tasks and sensory engagement, reduce agitation and improve wellbeing in people living with dementia more effectively than group activity programmes alone.","watch_out":"Ask the activity coordinator: what would you do to engage my parent if they could not join the group session? Ask to see the activity records for a resident with similar needs to your parent. If the answer is vague or the records are blank on quiet days, that is a concern."}

  Verified by inspector

• Is the home well-led?

  Not yet rated

  {"found":"The Well-led domain was rated Good at the February 2025 inspection. Mrs Gulbar Patankar is listed as Registered Manager and Mr Paul John Barker as Nominated Individual, indicating a clear registered leadership structure. The published text does not include observations about the manager's visibility on the floor, staff culture, how the home handles complaints, or whether staff feel supported to speak up. The home was previously rated Requires Improvement overall, which means leadership has overseen a meaningful improvement in quality. The published report does not describe what drove that improvement.","quotes":[],"family_meaning":"Management quality is cited in 23.4% of positive family reviews in our data, and communication with families in 11.5%. Our Good Practice evidence base identifies leadership stability as one of the strongest predictors of sustained quality: homes where the registered manager has been in post for more than two years and is known personally to staff and residents consistently outperform those with frequent management changes. The fact that this home recovered from Requires Improvement to Good is encouraging, and suggests the current leadership made meaningful changes. What you want to understand is how long the current registered manager has been in post, and what specific changes were made following the previous inspection. That conversation will tell you a great deal about the culture of accountability in the home.","evidence_base":"The IFF Research rapid evidence review found that leadership stability, combined with a culture where staff can raise concerns without fear, is the single strongest predictor of sustained quality improvement in care homes over a 24-month period.","watch_out":"Ask the manager directly: how long have you been registered manager here, and what were the two or three most significant changes you made after the previous inspection? A confident, specific answer is a good sign. A vague or deflective answer is worth noting."}

  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 team at Stonecross has experience caring for residents with dementia, alongside providing general residential care for older adults. They support people aged 65 and over who need help with everyday tasks.. Gaps or open questions remain on For residents living with dementia, the home provides specialist support tailored to individual needs. The team works to create a structured environment that helps residents feel secure and maintain their daily routines. — areas worth probing directly during a visit.