15 Important Questions to Ask When Viewing a Care Home

Touring care homes in Bolton? Use our checklist of questions to ask managers and staff to ensure you choose the best environment for your loved one.

Visiting a care home for the first time can feel overwhelming. There is a lot to take in, and it is easy to forget the things that actually matter once you are standing in the building.

Going in with a prepared list of questions changes that entirely. It shifts the dynamic from passive tour to informed conversation, and it gives you a far clearer basis for comparison when you are deciding between homes.

These are the 15 questions worth asking on every visit.

1. What Is the CQC Rating, and When Was the Last Inspection?

Every care home in England is regulated by the Care Quality Commission (CQC), which inspects homes and publishes ratings across five areas: safe, effective, caring, responsive, and well-led. Ratings range from Outstanding to Inadequate.

Ask to see the most recent report, not just the headline rating. Read the detail. A home that is Good overall with a weak score in one area tells you something specific.

You can also check any home's current rating independently at cqc.org.uk before you visit.

"We always encourage families to read our CQC report before coming. If there is anything in it they want to discuss, we would rather talk about it openly than have them wondering." - Abafields

2. What Are the Staff-to-Resident Ratios During the Day and at Night?

There is no legally mandated minimum ratio in the UK, which makes this one of the most important questions to ask directly. A higher ratio means more time per resident, quicker responses to needs, and more meaningful daily interaction.

Ask specifically about:

Daytime staffing levels
Evening and night cover
Weekends and bank holidays

Also ask how long most staff have been with the home. High turnover is a significant warning sign. Continuity of staff means residents are known, not just managed.

3. How Are Care Plans Created and Updated?

A care plan is the document that governs everything about how a resident is supported day to day. It should be specific, personalised, and reviewed regularly.

Ask whether the person moving in will be involved in creating their own plan. Ask how often plans are reviewed, and what happens when someone's needs change. A good home will have a clear, consistent answer. A vague one is worth noting.

Also ask whether families can access care records. At Abafields, families have access to digital care records, which means they can stay informed without needing to call the home every time they have a question.

4. How Does the Home Handle Medical Emergencies?

Find out what happens when a resident has a fall, a sudden health deterioration, or a medical emergency out of hours.

Ask about:

How the home contacts families and how quickly
Whether a GP visits regularly or whether residents are taken to appointments
The process for hospital transfers if needed
How the team is trained for medical situations

A care home that is confident in its emergency procedures will answer this without hesitation.

5. What Happens If Care Needs Increase?

Needs change over time. Someone admitted for residential care may eventually require a higher level of support. Ask honestly whether the home can accommodate that progression, or whether a move elsewhere would become necessary.

This question is particularly important for anyone with a dementia diagnosis. Understanding how the home responds to advancing dementia, and whether there is a point at which they would no longer be able to support someone, avoids a very difficult conversation further down the line.

At Abafields, we offer residential care, dementia care, and palliative care, which means most residents can be supported through significant changes in need without having to move.

6. What Are the Weekly Fees and What Do They Include?

Care home fees vary significantly, and what is included in the headline figure is not always obvious. Ask for a full written breakdown.

Questions to ask:

What is included in the weekly fee?
What is charged as an extra? (Hairdressing, outings, chiropody, toiletries)
How and when are fees reviewed or increased?
Is there a top-up arrangement if local authority funding does not cover the full amount?

Surprises on the invoice months after admission cause real friction. A good care home will give you complete clarity upfront.

Our care funding guide for Bolton explains how fees interact with local authority funding, NHS Continuing Healthcare, and self-funding arrangements.

7. What Does a Typical Day Look Like for a Resident?

This question reveals more about a home than almost any other. Ask staff, not management. Better still, ask a resident if you have the opportunity.

A good answer will include:

What time residents typically get up and what the morning routine looks like
When meals are served and what the dining experience is like
What activities are available and how participation is encouraged
What evenings look like
What happens at weekends

Look for a home that describes a day with genuine rhythm and choice, not a rigid institutional schedule.

"One family asked a resident directly what she did yesterday. She told them she had been to a music session in the morning, had a proper sit-down lunch, and watched a film in the afternoon with a friend she had made on the same corridor. That answer told them more than we ever could." — Abafields

8. How Are Meals Prepared and Can Dietary Needs Be Accommodated?

Food is one of the most consistent sources of resident satisfaction or dissatisfaction. Ask whether meals are cooked on site or delivered. Ask to see a sample weekly menu.

Find out whether the home can accommodate:

Specific dietary requirements (diabetic, low sodium, soft or pureed diets)
Cultural or religious food preferences
Snacks and drinks outside of main mealtimes

Ask whether residents have any input into the menu, and whether they can eat in their room if they prefer.

9. Can the Room Be Personalised?

A person's room becomes their home. Ask whether residents can bring their own furniture, hang pictures, and personalise the space with familiar objects.

Some homes have restrictions on what can be brought in for insurance or health and safety reasons. Understanding these upfront helps with the practical planning of a move, and also tells you something about how the home thinks about individual identity.

At Abafields, we actively encourage residents to bring personal items, photos, and small pieces of furniture. Familiar surroundings help people settle and feel genuinely at home.

10. What Is the Visiting Policy?

Restricted visiting hours are increasingly rare following the COVID-19 pandemic, but it is still worth asking directly. Ask whether there are any limitations on when family can visit, and whether there are private spaces available for longer visits or family meals.

Also ask about the home's approach to community involvement: can grandchildren visit, can residents receive pets, can families join for activities or celebrations?

The answer to this question tells you a great deal about how a home views the relationship between residents, families, and the outside world.

11. How Does the Home Communicate With Families?

Ask how you would be kept informed about your loved one's day-to-day wellbeing. Is there a key worker or named contact? How are families notified if something changes, even something minor?

Good care homes proactively communicate, rather than leaving families to chase updates. Some, like Abafields, offer regular online family meetings and digital care record access so that families remain genuinely informed rather than being given brief verbal updates on visits.

Ask what the home's approach is when something goes wrong, and how complaints are handled.

12. How Does the Home Support Residents' Mental Wellbeing and Social Connection?

Loneliness is one of the most significant risks for older adults, including those living in care homes. Ask what the home does specifically to support social connection, purpose, and mental wellbeing.

Questions to consider:

What activities are available and how are residents encouraged to participate?
How are residents with limited mobility or communication supported socially?
Is there access to outdoor space?
What happens if a resident becomes withdrawn or low in mood?

Ask to see an activities calendar. A varied and consistent programme is a good sign. A laminated notice listing three activities a week is less so.

13. How Does the Home Approach Dementia Care?

Even if the person you are caring for does not currently have a dementia diagnosis, this question is worth asking. Dementia affects a significant proportion of care home residents, and the way a home approaches it says a great deal about its culture of care.

Ask whether staff receive specific dementia training. Ask how the environment has been designed to support orientation and reduce distress. Ask how the home responds to behaviours that can accompany dementia, such as anxiety, sundowning, or resistance to personal care.

14. What Do Existing Residents and Families Say?

Ask the home manager directly about their most recent family satisfaction feedback. Ask whether you can read reviews or speak to an existing resident's family member.

You can also check independently reviewed feedback on carehome.co.uk before or after your visit. Consistent themes in reviews, both positive and negative, are more reliable than individual comments.

"We have a 9.5 out of 10 review score from families. We are proud of that, but we also read the ones where we fell short. Those are the ones that help us improve." — Abafields

15. What Does the Home Do Differently?

This is the question most families forget to ask, and often the most revealing. Every care home will tell you their staff are caring and their food is good. Ask what makes this home different from every other one you have visited.

A home with a genuine identity, a strong team culture, and a clear sense of what it is trying to do will have a confident, specific answer. A home that gives you a generic response is telling you something too.

At Abafields, the honest answer is that we are small, independent, and deliberately so. With a maximum of 52 residents and many staff who have been here for 15 years or more, the relationships here are different from what you will find in a larger, corporate setting. That continuity shapes everything about how care is delivered.

What Else Should You Look For During a Visit?

Questions are important, but observation matters just as much. While you are walking around, notice:

Whether the building smells clean and fresh
Whether staff acknowledge residents they pass in corridors
Whether residents seem engaged and comfortable, or withdrawn and unstimulated
Whether the manager answers your questions directly or deflects
Whether the home feels lived-in and warm, or institutional and quiet

Trust your instincts. You will often sense whether something is right or wrong before you can articulate why.

Useful Resources

Ready to Visit Abafields?

We welcome families to visit any time, with no obligation. Come during the day, meet the team and the residents, and ask us anything on this list.

Book a home viewing or call us on 01204 399414.

If you are earlier in the process and still weighing up your options, our guide to how to arrange care with Abafields explains exactly what happens from first contact to moving in. Our care funding guide for Bolton covers the financial side in full.

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