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Welcome to our latest news page! Here you'll find updates on everything happening at Chestnut Lodge Nursing Home. Be sure to check back regularly to keep up with all the latest news!
PAMMS Inspection November 2025
We’re proud to share that Chestnut Lodge has once again received a ‘Good’ rating following our most recent PAMMS inspection, which took place on 10th November 2025 and was officially published on 24th November 2025.
PAMMS (Provider Assessment and Market Management Solution) is a quality monitoring process carried out by Stockton Borough Council. It looks at how well care services are operating, focusing on areas such as safety, leadership, staffing, and the overall experience of residents.
Receiving another ‘Good’ rating reflects the continued commitment, dedication, and teamwork of everyone at Chestnut Lodge. We’re delighted that the care we provide has been recognised once again and would like to thank our staff for their hard work and our residents and families for their ongoing support.
We remain committed to maintaining high standards and continuously improving the care and support we offer.
Oral Health Training
On Monday 8th December 2025, Chestnut Lodge was pleased to host an oral health training session delivered by the Tees Community Dental Service, part of North Tees and Hartlepool NHS Foundation Trust.
Good oral health is essential for overall wellbeing, particularly for older adults and people living in care homes. Poor oral health can affect comfort, nutrition, speech, confidence, and general health, which is why keeping our staff informed and confident in this area is so important.
The training covered the importance of daily mouth care, recognising early signs of oral health concerns, and how staff can best support residents with varying needs. It also reinforced best practice guidance in line with NHS recommendations on caring for teeth and oral health:
NHS guidance on oral health and dental care: https://www.nhs.uk/live-well/healthy-teeth-and-gums/how-to-keep-your-teeth-clean/
NHS advice on caring for teeth: https://www.nhs.uk/live-well/healthy-teeth-and-gums/take-care-of-your-teeth-and-gums/
Sessions like this help ensure our team continues to deliver safe, high-quality, person-centred care, supporting residents’ comfort and dignity every day.
We would like to thank the Tees Community Dental Service for visiting the home and sharing their expertise. You can find out more about their work and services here:
https://www.nth.nhs.uk/services/dental-services-community/
Infection Control Training Session
On Thursday 6th December 2025, we were pleased to welcome the Gill Infection Prevention & Control (IPC) back to Chestnut Lodge for another insightful and practical training session.
The session was highly informative and engaging, helping our staff refresh and strengthen their knowledge of best practices in infection control. From everyday hygiene measures to outbreak prevention, the training reinforced the importance of keeping our residents, visitors, and team members safe.
We truly value our ongoing partnership with Gill, and this session once again highlighted the benefits of our strong working relationship. Our staff always appreciate her visits — not only for the expertise she brings, but also for the ongoing support she gives our Home.
Chestnut Lodge would like to give a huge thank you Gill for their continued guidance and support. We look forward to future sessions as we keep working together to maintain the highest standards of safety and care at Chestnut Lodge.
Person Centered Approach to Dementia
This month, we were delighted to welcome the lovely Lesley to Chestnut Lodge for a dedicated training session as part of our ongoing commitment to becoming a truly dementia-friendly care home.
The session, titled “Person-Centred Approach to Dementia,” explored what dementia is, how it affects people in different ways, and the importance of tailoring care to the individual. Lesley guided our team through a variety of strategies to support residents with dementia in a way that is respectful, understanding, and focused on what matters most to each person.
The training was incredibly useful, insightful, and engaging, giving our staff valuable tools to help ensure every resident feels safe, understood, and supported.
We would like to extend a heartfelt thank you to Lesley for delivering such an informative and meaningful session. Learning opportunities like this help us continue strengthening the high-quality, person-centred care we strive to provide every day at Chestnut Lodge.
11.25
In loving memory of Karon
It is with the deepest sadness and heavy hearts that we share the news that Karon, our beloved friend and colleague, passed away on Monday 3rd November 2025.
Karon was so much more than a part of our team - she was the heart of the Home. Her warmth, kindness and compassion touched everyone she met - from residents and families, to staff and visitors alike. She had a gift for making people feel seen, valued and cared for and her dedication to ensuring our home was filled with love and laughter will never be forgotten.
We will miss her strength and unwavering care for others more than words can express. Our thoughts and deepest condolences are with Karon’s family during this incredibly difficult time. We ask that everyone keeps them in their hearts.
Karon’s legacy will live on in every act of kindness and every moment of care shared within our home. She will forever remain a part of our family.
Health Innovation North East and North Cumbria
In August, the Home was kindly invited to take part in a pilot with 12 regional care homes to support the adoption of digital technologies in care homes to improve care for residents. This includes a specific focus on introducing and improving the use of GP Connect to access resident medical records.
What is GP Connect?
GP Connect is an NHS England program that allows authorised health and social care professionals share and view information between systems to improve patient care, enabling better corodination between care settings and allowing patients to access their records and much more!
For more information on GP Connect, head to the NHS England website: https://digital.nhs.uk/services/gp-connect
We're really excited to be part of this pilot and the opportunities it brings to enahance the care we provide. By embracing digital technologies like GP Connect, we can improve communication between healthcare professionals, reduce delays and ensure our residents receive the right support at the right time.
At Chestnut Lodge, we're always looking for ways to innovate while keeping our care personal and homely, and this project is another step forward in achieving that.
09/25
ICLS Training Session
This July, we were delighted to welcome ICLS (Integrated Care Learning Services) into Chestnut Lodge for a fantastic in-house training session focused on Dementia and Delirium.
The session provided valuable insights and practical strategies for our team, helping us deepen our understanding of how to support residents living with dementia and recognise and manage signs of delirium effectively.
Ongoing training like this is a key part of how we maintain high standards of care and ensure our team feels confident, well-informed, and prepared. We’re grateful to ICLS for their engaging and informative session and would like to give them a huge thank you for visiting us. We are also very proud of our staff for always being eager to learn and grow!
Keep an eye out for more updates on training and development across the home.
07.25
NEWS Scores - What that means and why it matters
We’re pleased to share that our National Early Warning Score (NEWS) for July reached an impressive 188%!
If you’re not familiar with NEWS, it’s a clinical tool used in healthcare settings — including care homes like ours — to help detect early signs of physical deterioration in residents. It involves regular monitoring of key health indicators such as heart rate, respiratory rate, blood pressure, oxygen levels, and temperature.
Why does this matter? A high NEWS completion rate shows that we’re actively monitoring our residents’ wellbeing, enabling our team to identify any potential issues early and respond quickly. It’s all part of providing safe, proactive, and personalised care.
We’re proud of our team for their commitment to keeping our residents well and safe — and we’ll keep aiming high every month!
Food Hygiene at Chestnut Lodge - July 2025
At Chestnut Lodge, we take food hygiene seriously – and proudly! Mealtimes are a central part of life here, and we do everything we can to ensure every dish is prepared safely, hygienically, and with care. That's why, throughout July our training focus for our staff was on food hygiene!
All our staff involved in food preparation and handling receive regular, up-to-date training in food hygiene, including allergen awareness and safe kitchen practices. Our kitchen keeps detailed records every day to ensure everything is running to the highest standard — from temperature checks to cleaning schedules.
In fact, our dedication paid off again this June, when we were awarded another 5-star food hygiene rating — something we’re extremely proud of!
If you haven't already, have a look at our display board for more information. Whilst you're looking, play a game and see how many of the 15 major food allergens you can name. You can check your answers on our display board below!
Food Hygiene Rating - June 2025
We're proud to announce that Chestnut Lodge has once again been awarded a 5-star food hygiene rating following our latest inspection in June from the Food Standards Agency!
This continued achievement reflects the consistent hard work and dedication of our team. A special thank you and huge congratulations goes to our brilliant head cook, who with the support of our equally fantastic weekend cook, has ensured our residents enjoy safe, high-quality and nutritious meals every day, because of their continued hard work and dedication.
This is not the first time we have received this top rating and we're incredibly proud to have maintained such high standards year after year.
Equality and Diversity
This month's training focus - Equality and Diversity!
At Chestnut Lodge, promoting an inclusive and respectful environment for both residents and staff is at the heart of everything we do. Following our support for Pride Month , we are continuing our commitment to inclusivity with this month’s training campaign focusing on Equality and Diversity.
This training helps ensure our team continues to provide care that respects the values, backgrounds, and individual needs of every resident. It covers topics such as recognising unconscious bias, inclusive communication, and understanding the importance of cultural, religious, and lifestyle differences in care.
We believe that care should be as unique as the individual receiving it — and that starts with understanding and respecting what makes each person who they are.
If you'd like to learn more about how we support equality and diversity within our home, feel free to get in touch or speak to a member of our team.
06.25
Pride Month 2025
June is pride month and here at Chestnut Lodge Nursing Home, we proudly stand in support of equality, inclusivity and respect for all.
As a care home, we believe that everyone deserves to feel safe, valued and accepted - regardless of their background, identity or who they love. We're committed to creating a welcoming and inclusive environment where diversity is celebrated and each resident, visitor and staff member is treated with kindness and dignity.
At Chestnut Lodge, love, respect and understanding are always at the heart of the care we provide. Happy pride month from all of us!
Welcome to our new website!
We’re excited to announce that the Chestnut Lodge Nursing Home website is now live—and we’re so pleased to finally share it with you!
As a small, family-run home, we know how important it is for families to feel connected and informed. Our new website is here to help us do just that. Whether you’re looking to find out more about our care, stay in touch with what’s happening day to day, or simply get a feel for the warm, homely environment we’re so proud of, this space is for you.
We’ll be using the Latest News section—right here—as a way to share everything from seasonal events and celebrations to activity highlights, garden projects, and updates from our team. It’s our way of bringing the life of the home online for families, future residents, and anyone interested in learning more about who we are and what we do.
We hope the new site gives you a clear and welcoming look at Chestnut Lodge, and makes it even easier to stay connected, ask questions, and learn more about the care we provide.
Thank you for visiting—we’re so glad you’re here!
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