Working at Birkin Lodge
Camden Park, Tunbridge Wells, TN2 5AE
Operated by Country Court Care Homes 5 Limited
38 bedsNursing homes
Workplace Score
5.0/10
AI analysis of latest data
Our AI workplace review
PlainSight AI Review
Last updated: 9 February 2026
Score: 5.0/10
Key Finding
"Supportive management and positive culture with engaging activities, but short-staffing in mornings and repeated safety incidents pull it down."
Safety & Risk
4/10
!
Lessons were not always learnt to continually identify and embed good practice. For example, there had been an incident on 18 December 2024 where a person fell... sensor mat unplugged... another incident on 27 December 2024... again sensor mat unplugged.
Staff Culture
6/10
✓
Staff reported a positive open culture where they felt empowered to raise any concerns or make suggestions. Comments included, “There is a good culture, communication is improving, everyone helps each other more”.
Staffing Levels
4/10
!
Staff provided mixed feedback; “Sometimes in the morning we are not able to answer the call bells quickly as we are already helping someone else” and “Sometimes it’s a bit short, it does impact the care because you can’t do what you need to do.”
Training & Dev
4/10
!
The training matrix showed that most staff had completed mandatory training. Staff had not completed epilepsy awareness training, despite supporting people with epilepsy.
Management
6/10
✓
Staff said the management team were supportive and approachable. Staff told us they liked working in the service.
Programmes
6/10
✓
The activities schedule on display showed various exercise classes, knitting, baking, bowls, word games, bingo as well as movie nights. We observed activities staff engaging people in activities, there was lots of laughter, chat and encouragement.
Points to consider
Staff sometimes short-staffed especially mornings, so call bells take time to answer and less time per resident.
Our observations confirmed people sometimes had to wait for staff to respond to their call bells. “Sometimes it’s a bit short, it does impact the care because you can’t do what you need to do. I can only spend a couple of minutes with the residents.”
Gaps in staff training like no epilepsy awareness even though residents have epilepsy.
Staff had not completed epilepsy awareness training, despite supporting people with epilepsy. The registered manager added this to the action plan for improvement.
Repeated falls from same issue like unplugged sensor mats show lessons from accidents not always stuck to.
There had been an incident on 18 December 2024 where a person fell. It was identified that their sensor mat had been unplugged by staff... There was another incident on 27 December 2024 where a person fell, again... sensor mat had been unplugged.
AI Generated
CQC Inspection Overview
CQC Inspection
Last inspected: April 2025
Good
Safe
✓
Good
Effective
✓
Good
Caring
✓
Good
Responsive
!
Requires improvement
Management Quality
Well-led: Good
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- Care Quality Commission (CQC) Inspection Data
- PlainSight staff reviews