Working at Castle Dene
Freeman Road, Newcastle Upon Tyne, NE3 1SZ
Operated by Newcastle-upon-Tyne City Council
8 bedsResidential homesShared lives
Workplace Score
6.5/10
AI analysis of latest data
Our AI workplace review
PlainSight AI Review
Last updated: 10 February 2026
Score: 6.5/10
Key Finding
"A well-respected manager leads a person-centred culture and supportive team, but training refreshers and staffing flexibility need improvement."
Safety & Risk
7/10
✓
Staff and shared lives carers were aware of safeguarding responsibilities and had confidence in managers to address any concerns. Accidents and incidents were analysed to learn lessons.
Staff Culture
7/10
✓
Staff told us they enjoyed working at the service and felt there was a good, supportive team atmosphere.
Staffing Levels
6/10
✓
Respite staff felt there were generally enough of them to keep people safe but considered that flexibility around people's needs could vary.
Training & Dev
5/10
!
Staff and shared lives carers had attended a variety of training to guide them in their role. However, completion of refresher sessions needed to be improved across different topics.
Management
8/10
✓
The person-centred and empowering culture of the service was led by a well-respected registered manager. Staff comments included, 'I feel I could talk to [registered manager] about anything'
Programmes
6/10
✓
People and shared lives carers told us together, with excitement and positivity, about individual activities, as well as trips they had very much enjoyed.
Points to consider
Training refreshers are not up to date across different topics.
completion of refresher sessions needed to be improved across different topics.
Staffing is generally enough to keep people safe but flexibility around varying needs can be an issue.
Respite staff felt there were generally enough of them to keep people safe but considered that flexibility around people's needs could vary.
AI Generated
CQC Inspection Overview
CQC Inspection
Last inspected: January 2020
Good
Safe
✓
Good
Effective
!
Requires improvement
Caring
✓
Good
Responsive
✓
Good
Management Quality
Well-led: Good
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- Care Quality Commission (CQC) Inspection Data
- PlainSight staff reviews