How do I arrange a care needs assessment in Caterham?

Contact Surrey County Council adult social care and ask for an assessment of need, which can be requested by the person themselves or by a relative acting with their agreement. It is free and open to anyone who appears to need care and support, whatever their savings. A practitioner will look at daily tasks, mobility, medication and safety, usually at home. The written outcome guides both the funding decision and your search for a home.

Will Surrey County Council contribute towards care home fees?

It may, depending on a financial assessment carried out after care needs have been agreed. Savings and capital above the national threshold mean paying privately, while people below it receive a contribution towards the weekly fee. Property is counted in some circumstances and disregarded in others, for example where a spouse still lives in it. Ask as well about NHS continuing healthcare, which is assessed on clinical grounds rather than on savings.

Which care homes are listed in Caterham?

Ten residential care homes registered with the Care Quality Commission appear on this page, including Bracken Lodge, Westhill Care Home, Hillside Care Home and Cherry Lodge Rest Home. They vary in size and in the kind of support they specialise in. All are registered for personal care rather than nursing. Each profile sets out the registration details and the most recent inspection findings.

What is the difference between a care home and a nursing home?

A care home supports people with everyday living, meaning help with washing, dressing, meals, medication and company, delivered by care staff. A nursing home provides that same support with registered nurses working on site to deliver clinical care. Every home on this page holds residential registration rather than nursing registration. Where someone has a clinical need such as complex wound care or a feeding tube, a nursing home is usually the right starting point.

How soon should a family start looking?

Beginning a few months ahead is considerably easier than deciding in a crisis, particularly where a preferred home has no immediate vacancy. Both assessments take time to arrange. An early start also allows repeat visits, which reveal far more than a single tour. If a hospital discharge is setting the timetable, ask the ward to involve the discharge team.

What should I ask when visiting a care home in Caterham?

Ask how care plans are written and how families take part in reviewing them. Ask about staffing overnight and at weekends and about how much agency cover the home relies on. Ask what an ordinary weekday looks like for someone who no longer joins group activities easily. Ask exactly what the weekly fee excludes, and ask for that answer in writing.

Care Homes in Caterham

Caterham has 10 CQC registered care homes. 8 are rated Good, 2 Requires improvement. 7 of the 10 were last inspected more than three years ago.

Source: Care Quality Commission register, kept up to date as ratings change.

Caterham at a glance

What the local numbers say about care for older people in Caterham, to help you judge the options below.

Surrey County Council pays, residential care: £952 a week. Self-funders are typically asked £1,654 to £1,931, median £1,772
Care home beds filled across Surrey: 88%. The 12 month average is 87%.
Care home beds per 1,000 people aged 75+: 91. Surrey average is 90.
People aged 75 and over: 10,600. Rising to 12,100 by 2035, up 15%
Care homes, last 12 months: 0 opened, 1 closed. 2 changed owner, covering 122 beds.
Who pays, across Surrey (estimate): 32% council, 52% self. The rest is NHS funded or other.
Living with dementia, aged 65 and over (estimate): 1,400. Rising to 1,700 by 2035, up 24%
People aged 85 and over: 3,100. Rising to 4,600 by 2035, up 49%

Powered by Orrery Intelligence. Market model built 22 October 2026 (ONS 2022 based population projections, CQC register), published care home prices, council planning records.

Sorting the assessment and the fees in Caterham

Beginning with an assessment of need

An assessment of need is free and open to anyone who appears to require care and support, whatever their savings. The practitioner will look at washing, dressing, eating, managing medicines, mobility and safety at home, and at how much a relative has been absorbing without help. The written outcome becomes the yardstick for judging whether a home can meet the need, and having it in hand before any visit turns a general worry into a specific list of requirements.

How funded support is decided

Once eligible needs are agreed, a financial assessment establishes who pays. Capital above the national threshold means funding a placement privately, while people below it receive a contribution towards the weekly fee, and a property is set aside in certain circumstances, for instance where a partner continues to live in it. Both assessments are requested through Surrey County Council adult social care, which also commissions funded placements and reviews them. Where health needs are substantial, ask about NHS continuing healthcare, decided on clinical grounds rather than on means.

Understanding the weekly fee

Fees differ between homes and between rooms within the same building, shaped by room size, whether there is an ensuite and the level of support required each day. Ask for a written schedule separating what the fee covers from what is billed on top, since hairdressing, chiropody, outings and newspapers usually sit outside it. Ask how often fees are reviewed, what notice is given of an increase, and what happens if savings fall towards the threshold during a stay.

Choosing between the Caterham homes and what to check

Where a rating stops helping

Nine homes here are rated Good and one is at Requires Improvement. With so little separating them on paper, the reports are where the differences appear. Inspectors describe staffing levels, how people spend the day, how a home responds when someone becomes distressed and how families are kept informed, and homes carrying the same rating often read very differently. Check the inspection dates as well, since a judgement made some years ago may describe a home that has changed hands since.

What a visit adds

Call in more than once and vary the hour, since late afternoon is often the most honest time to see a home. Watch whether staff speak to residents in passing rather than only while carrying out a task, and whether anyone sits without a drink within reach. Ask how long the manager has been in post, what proportion of staff have been there more than a year, and how much agency cover is used, because continuity shapes daily life more than furnishings do.

Matching the home to the person

Once quality is established, practical fit decides whether a placement holds. Consider travel for the relatives who will visit most, whether a busier or quieter household suits better, and whether diet, faith or first language need accommodating. Ask how the home responds when needs increase and what happens if nursing care becomes necessary, since every home listed here is registered for personal care rather than nursing.

10 care homes in Caterham

Hillside Care Home · Caterham, Surrey · CQC Good
Elizabeth Court · Caterham, Surrey · CQC Good
Woodview (Active Prospects) · Caterham, Surrey · CQC Good
The Regard Partnership - Clareville Road · Caterham, Surrey · CQC Good
Cherry Lodge Rest Home · Caterham, Surrey · CQC Good
Longmead House · Caterham, Surrey · CQC Requires improvement
Westhill Care Home · Caterham, Surrey · CQC Good
Bracken Lodge · Caterham, Surrey · CQC Good
Burntwood Lodge · Caterham, Surrey · CQC Requires improvement
Courthill Care Home · Caterham, Surrey · CQC Good

What care costs in Surrey, per week

Type of care	What the council pays	What self-funders are typically asked
Residential care Middle half of prices from 18 Surrey homes. Median £1,772.	£952	£1,654 to £1,931
Nursing care Middle half of prices from 13 Surrey homes. Median £2,025.	£988	£1,920 to £2,155
Residential dementia care Middle half of prices from 14 Surrey homes. Median £1,842.	Not published separately	£1,725 to £2,020
Nursing dementia care South East figure, because too few Surrey homes publish this price. 37 homes. Median £2,050.	Not published separately	£1,975 to £2,226

Published prices are often starting prices, and come from homes that publish fees, so treat them as a guide. Ask the home for its own price. Powered by Orrery Intelligence.

Inspected most recently

Burntwood Lodge, 28 September 2026, Requires improvement
Hillside Care Home, 14 April 2026, Good
Longmead House, 18 August 2025, Requires improvement

Longest since a report

Westhill Care Home, 9 December 2017, Good
Bracken Lodge, 7 February 2018, Good
Cherry Lodge Rest Home, 14 June 2019, Good

Frequently asked questions about care homes in Caterham

How many care homes are there in Caterham?

Caterham has 10 CQC registered care homes: 8 Good, 2 Requires improvement. Counts come from the CQC register and are kept up to date as ratings change.

How much does a care home cost in Caterham?

Surrey County Council pays an average of £952 a week for residential care. Self-funders are typically asked £1,654 to £1,931 a week. Middle half of prices from 18 Surrey homes. Median £1,772. Published prices are often starting prices, and come from homes that publish fees, so treat them as a guide. Ask the home for its own price.

Which care homes in Caterham were inspected most recently?

Burntwood Lodge (28 September 2026), Hillside Care Home (14 April 2026) and Longmead House (18 August 2025) have the most recent CQC reports.

Local care news in Surrey

New 30 bed care home registered with CQC in Waverley: Bridge House Care Home (5 November 2026)
CQC register adds a new care home in Waverley: Cedar Court Care Home (5 November 2026)

More local care news for Surrey