Question 1

Which care providers appear on this Surrey listing?

Accepted Answer

This page collects two hundred and three residential care homes registered with the Care Quality Commission to operate in Surrey. They provide personal care and daily support, including help with washing, dressing, meals and medication, with staff available around the clock. The list ranges from large purpose built homes to small houses supporting only a few residents, including providers such as Shandon, Echelforde and The Cedars Care Home. Each entry shows the current published rating and links to the full inspection report.

Question 2

How does a residential care home differ from a nursing home?

Accepted Answer

A residential care home supports people with the ordinary tasks of daily life and has care staff on site day and night. A nursing home offers that same support alongside clinical care from registered nurses based on the premises, which suits people with complex medication regimes, wounds or conditions needing regular clinical oversight. Every home on this Surrey page is registered for residential care rather than nursing. If someone is likely to need nursing input before long, ask whether the home can bring in community nursing or whether a further move would eventually be necessary.

Question 3

What should I ask on a visit to a care home in Surrey?

Accepted Answer

Ask about staffing first: how many carers are on shift by day and by night, how long the manager has been in post, and how much the team relies on agency cover. Ask to see a recent activity plan and a week of menus, and find out what happens when a resident wants to eat late or refuses a meal. Ask for the weekly fee in writing, together with everything charged separately, the notice period and the policy on annual increases. It is also worth asking how the home tells families when something changes, and how a complaint would be handled.

Question 4

How do I arrange a care needs assessment in Surrey?

Accepted Answer

Contact the adult social care team at Surrey County Council and ask for a care needs assessment. Anyone who appears to need care and support has a right to one whatever their income, and you can make the request for a relative with their consent. The assessment looks at daily living, mobility, medication and how safe someone is overnight, and ends in a written record of the support required. Where a hospital admission is involved, the ward can refer straight through to the council, which usually moves things along faster.

Question 5

Will Surrey County Council pay towards a residential placement?

Accepted Answer

It may, where the person meets both the care eligibility criteria and the financial test. Surrey County Council carries out a financial assessment after the needs assessment, taking account of income, savings and other capital to work out what the person contributes. Anyone with capital above the national threshold is generally expected to pay the full fee, although they can still ask for an assessment and for advice on the options. Where the council contributes, it agrees a personal budget intended to cover the needs it has assessed.

Question 6

How far ahead should a family start looking?

Accepted Answer

Sooner than feels necessary, because good homes in Surrey often hold waiting lists and the best ones rarely have a room free the week you ring. Beginning while the current arrangement still holds gives time to visit unannounced, compare inspection reports and talk to relatives of existing residents. Searches that begin at a hospital discharge date tend to end with whichever home has a bed available rather than the one that suits. Even a shortlist of three or four homes prepared in advance takes much of the pressure out of a sudden decision.

Care Homes in Surrey

209 care homes in Surrey (showing 201–209)