Dementia Care Home

Burrell Mead

47 Beckenham Road, West Wickham, Kent, BR4 0QS

Residential homes

At a Glance

The information you need to decide whether this home warrants a closer look.

DCC Family Score
72/ 100
Weighted from family reviews
Dementia SpecialismConfirmed

Residential homes

Families Rate The Staff72 / 100

Staff warmth score

“Well Looked After”68%

of reviewers answered yes

Good to know

  • Registered beds22
  • SpecialismsCaring for adults over 65 yrs, Dementia
  • Last inspected2020-01-24

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The Evidence

What the review data, the inspection reports, and the dementia-care evidence base tell us about this home.

Section 01

What families say

What strikes families most is how staff remember not just the residents but their visitors too, greeting them warmly whenever they arrive. Residents appear content and engaged, with families noting how settled their relatives seem in their daily routines.

The eight family priority themes

  • Staff warmth72
  • Compassion & dignity72
  • Cleanliness70
  • Activities & engagement65
  • Food quality65
  • Healthcare68
  • Management & leadership72
  • Resident happiness68
Section 02

What inspectors found

Inspected 2020-01-24

  • Is this home safe?

    Good
    The Safe domain was rated Good at the February 2021 inspection. This means inspectors were satisfied with how the home managed risks, medicines, staffing, and infection control at the time. The home is small, with 22 beds, which can support closer monitoring of individual residents. No specific details about staffing ratios, falls management, or medicine records are included in the published summary. The rating was reviewed in July 2023 and no concerns were identified that required reassessment.
    Verified by inspector
  • Is the care effective?

    Good
    The Effective domain was rated Good. This domain covers whether staff have the right training, whether care plans are detailed and kept up to date, whether residents have regular access to GPs and other health professionals, and whether food meets individual needs. The home specialises in dementia care, which means inspectors would have looked at whether dementia-specific training and care approaches were in place. No specific findings about training content, GP access frequency, or food quality are included in the published summary.
    Verified by inspector
  • Is this home caring?

    Good
    The Caring domain was rated Good. This domain is the most direct measure of whether staff treat your parent with kindness, respect, and patience. Inspectors assess whether dignity is protected during personal care, whether residents are addressed by their preferred names, whether privacy is respected, and whether staff interactions feel warm and unhurried. No specific inspector observations, resident comments, or family quotes from this domain are included in the published summary. The rating alone confirms the standard was met but does not describe what caring looks like day to day at Burrell Mead.
    Verified by inspectorResident testimony recorded
  • Is the home responsive?

    Good
    The Responsive domain was rated Good. This domain covers whether the home tailors its care to individual needs and preferences, whether activities are meaningful and varied, whether residents who cannot join group activities receive one-to-one engagement, and whether complaints and end-of-life wishes are handled well. As a dementia-specialist home, responsiveness to changing needs and individual histories is particularly important. No specific detail about the activities programme, complaint handling, or end-of-life planning is included in the published summary.
    Verified by inspector
  • Is the home well-led?

    Good
    The Well-led domain was rated Good. This domain assesses whether the manager is visible and known to residents and staff, whether the home has effective governance systems for monitoring quality and safety, whether staff feel supported to speak up, and whether the home learns from incidents and complaints. The home is run by Westwood Housing Association, with a named registered manager and a nominated individual in place. No specific observations about the manager's visibility, staff culture, or governance systems are included in the published summary.
    Verified by inspector
  • Source: CQC inspection report →

    Section 03

    What the evidence base says

    The home cares for adults over 65, with particular experience in dementia care. For those considering dementia care, it's worth discussing the home's assessment process to ensure it suits your relative's communication needs. All areas worth probing directly during a visit.

The DCC Verdict

Our editorial view, built from the three lenses: what families tell us, what inspectors record, and how the home sits against good dementia-care practice.

72/ 100

DCC Family Score

Burrell Mead was rated Good across all five inspection domains, which is a positive foundation, but the published report contains limited specific detail, so scores reflect a solid baseline without the specific observations, quotes, or examples that would push them higher.

Homes in London typically score 68–82.

The three-lens summary

Lens 01

What families tell us

What strikes families most is how staff remember not just the residents but their visitors too, greeting them warmly whenever they arrive. Residents appear content and engaged, with families noting how settled their relatives seem in their daily routines.

Lens 02

What inspectors have recorded

Staff here show the kind of emotional investment that can't be taught — visiting residents in hospital on their own time and showing genuine grief when someone passes away. This depth of caring, combined with low staff turnover, creates real continuity in residents' lives.

Lens 03

How it sits against good practice

The Christian ethos here shapes a caring environment where emotional bonds between staff and residents develop naturally over time.

DCC Recommendation

Worth a visit

Burrell Mead, on Beckenham Road in West Wickham, was rated Good across all five inspection domains following an inspection carried out in February 2021, with the rating reviewed and confirmed in July 2023. The home is a small residential care home with 22 beds, specialising in dementia care for adults over 65, and is run by Westwood Housing Association with a named registered manager in place. A Good rating across every domain is a genuinely positive finding, covering safety, the quality of care planning and training, staff kindness, how well the home responds to individual needs, and the quality of leadership. The main limitation of this report is that the published inspection summary contains very little specific detail. There are no inspector observations, no resident or family quotes, and no breakdown of what was found in each domain. This makes it difficult to give you a confident picture of what daily life actually looks like for your parent at Burrell Mead. Before visiting, prepare a list of specific questions covering night staffing ratios, agency use, dementia training content, how care plans are reviewed with family input, and what one-to-one activities are available for residents who cannot join group sessions. A Good rating is a useful starting point, but your own visit and those conversations will tell you far more.

The three questions to ask when you visit

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In Their Own Words

How Burrell Mead describes itself — collected from its own website. DCC has not edited or independently verified the content in this tab.

What Burrell Mead says about itself

Where long-serving staff create genuine bonds with residents

Burrell Mead – Expert Care in West Wickham

Families visiting Burrell Mead in West Wickham often comment on something that's increasingly rare — seeing the same caring faces year after year. This stability seems to create an atmosphere where residents feel genuinely settled and families feel truly welcomed.

Care & specialisms

Who they care for

    The home cares for adults over 65, with particular experience in dementia care.

    How they describe their dementia care

    For those considering dementia care, it's worth discussing the home's assessment process to ensure it suits your relative's communication needs.

    “The Christian ethos here shapes a caring environment where emotional bonds between staff and residents develop naturally over time.”

    DCC does not edit or curate content in this tab. For independently curated information, see The Evidence and DCC Verdict.

    Free download – Dementia Stage 4

    Not sure if it's dementia or just ageing? Here's the checklist your GP will use.

    Twelve signs to observe. A simple scoring framework. A printable, one-page record you can take to your next GP appointment, so you go in with specifics, not anxiety.

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    Related:

    What Real Families Say About Dementia Care Homes: The Eight Things That Matter Most

    A Which? Report for Care Homes: Real Family Reviews, Not Just Official Inspections

    Step-by-Step Guide to Finding a Care Home for Your Mum in the UK

    What Does 'Dementia Specialist' Actually Mean? How to Tell If a Care Home Really Is One

    Best UK Website for Comparing Dementia Care Homes (Beyond CQC Ratings)

    Dementia care gifts that help

    The Thoughtful Gift That Makes a Difficult Day Easier

    The things that make the greatest difference to someone living with dementia are rarely the most obvious ones. They are the things that ease the day — that give a carer a moment to breathe, or give the person they care for a moment of calm or quiet joy. Every item here was chosen because it works, and because it reduces stress for everyone in the room.

    Comforting Memories

    Britain 1940 to 1970: Memory Lane

    Card Game

    The Card Game That Turns Familiar Phrases Into Open Doors

    Memory Box

    The Box That Holds a Life

    Digital Photoframe

    The Frame That Brings the Family Into the Room

    Digital Calendar

    The Clock That Knows What Day It Is

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