The Knells Country House

Houghton, Carlisle CA6 4JG
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9.5 14 Reviews
  • The Knells Country House, Carlisle
The Knells House, with over 25 years’ experience in caring for older people, are proud to offer the highest standard of residential and dementia care in a warm and welcoming environment. They provide residents with an engaging setting to socialise, dine, enjoy favourite activities and explore the large beautifully gardens and the outstanding views of the Fells.

The Knells House is a vibrant and active community where residents are enabled to live life to the fullest. A community where older people are supported to carry on enjoying all the little things that make them happy in a safe and comfortable environment.

Encouraging a high quality of life is at the heart of the culture and ethos at Knells House. They aim to provide the best-in-class care for their residents. The highly trained and dedicated team approach every day with professionalism and compassion, delivering a service that’s unique to each individual’s needs. They always look at ways to continuously improve their service by listening to residents, families and professionals.

The Knells House was built in 1824. An impressive Grade II Listed former Home to the Dixon family, it is beautifully refurbished to retain its original features, character, and charm. Yet modernised throughout to provide the latest tools to support an outstanding team deliver first class care.
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Care Provided

Primary Care Categories

  • Older Person Care
  • Dementia

Length of Stay

  • Permanent Care
  • Respite Care

Care Types Provided

  • Residential Care
  • Dementia Residential Care
  • For a maximum of 24 Service Users

Dementia Care Types

  • Mild Dementia
  • Moderate Dementia

Other Care Provided

  • Parkinson's Disease
  • Stroke
  • COPD/Pulmonary Disease

Facilities

  • Own Furniture if required
  • Pet Friendly (or by arrangement)
  • Smoking not permitted
  • Near Public Transport
  • Minibus or other transport
  • Lift
  • Stairlift
  • Wheelchair Access
  • Gardens
  • Phone Point in own room
  • Television point in own room
  • Residents Internet Access

Funding & Fees

Weekly Charges per Person

  • Self-Funded Residential Care: £1050 – £1350
  • Self-Funded Residential Dementia Care: £1150 – £1350
  • RESPITE Self-Funded Residential Care: £1300 – £1300
  • RESPITE Self-Funded Residential Dementia Care: £1300 – £1300

These prices are only a guideline, please contact The Knells Country House to find out the exact price for your requirements.

Funding Types Accepted

  • Self Funding (Private)
  • Local Authority with Top Up
  • Local Authority
  • NHS Continuing Healthcare (CHC)

Good to Know

Person in charge

  • Gary Jones (Manager)

Admission Criteria

  • Ages 50+

Care Home Design/Build

  • Purpose Built: No
  • Last Refurbishment: 2015
  • Number of floors: 2

Room Information

  • Single Rooms (24)
  • Couples/Companion Rooms (0)

Visiting

  • The only restrictions on visiting are protected meal times between 11.45 and 13.15 and 16.15 and 17.00

Parking

  • On site parking

The Knells Country House Reviews (14)

9.5

The Knells Country House has a Review Score of 9.5 (9.456) out of 10, based on 8 reviews in the last 2 years.
Over all time The Knells Country House has 14 reviews.

Overall Experience
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Date Published
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Reviewer Connection to The Knells Country House
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Total of 14, showing 1-14
Review from Jean D (Daughter of Resident) published on 6 May 2025 Submitted via Postal Card • Report
Overall Experience 5.0 out of 5
My dad passed away on the 14th of March this year, he was a resident for eight years at The Knells. First he was a resident with my mum, who died six years ago. My dad was 101 years old, in his time at The Kenlls he was treated with respect, dignity and love from the lasses! and the lads in all his
time there. He was as happy as he could be without my mum. His great age was celebrated many times with parties and cakes etc. I believe he lived so long due to being so well looked after at The Knells.
Reply from J.M, Provider at The Knells Country House

We all really miss your Dad he was a true legend a great man, the staff even now talk very fondly of him and the lovely memories we have. the team will really appreciate the kind words. Please pop by for a cuppa and cake ;-)

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Review from Beverley F (Daughter of Resident) published on 2 May 2025 Submitted via Website • Report
Overall Experience 4.0 out of 5
The Knells has 2 activity coordinators. Since they took up their roles in January 2025 the change in the residents well being has been amazing!
Every day there are 1 to 1 sessions with residents plus planned activities & entertainment throughout the day.
The activities are stimulating & enjoyable
& have improved the physical & mental welfare of the residents.
My mum is so much more engaged with others in the home & us when we visit.
It has transformed the home into a more relaxed happy place for visitors also.
Reply from J.M, Provider at The Knells Country House

Appreciate your feedback, am really happy to see the activities team have injected a new lease of life into the Residents filling their days with individual and group activities which have enriched there day to day, there is more really cool things to come :-)

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Review from J H (Daughter of Resident) published on 2 May 2025 Submitted via Website • Report
Overall Experience 5.0 out of 5
The Knells is a lovely care home where every resident is viewed as an individual and treated with kindness, compassion and dignity. Cannot praise the staff highly enough - all go above and beyond. The activities' team is first class bringing endless cheer and laughter to their packed rota of events
designed to stimulate, entertain and help residents make the most of every day. Food at The knells is also great and plentiful and residents feel very at home here.
Reply from J.M, Provider at The Knells Country House

Many thanks for you kind review the teams always strive to the do their best to keep our wonderful residents happy, stimulated and safe. really appreciate the feedback :-)

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Review from Brenda L (Daughter of Resident) published on 30 April 2025 Submitted via Website • Report
Overall Experience 5.0 out of 5
I am very pleased with the care my mother is receiving. She is very happy at The Knells with lots of interesting activities going on. The staff are all very friendly and helpful and nothing is too much trouble for them. She enjoys the meals and the staff make sure they have a varied choice of food according
to their tastes. She has a very comfortable room where she enjoys her privacy in the mornings. Then joins everyone for lunch and stays for the afternoon activities.
Visitors are also made very welcome.
Reply from J M, Provider at The Knells Country House

Many thanks for the review we all really appreciate your lovely feedback on the service we provide

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Review from Stephen B (Son of Resident) published on 29 April 2025 Submitted via Website • Report
Overall Experience 5.0 out of 5
My mother receives excellent care at the Knells . The carers are without exception attentive and look after her with humour and respect. at all times.
Staff are aways helpful when I visit Iand always feel she is safe in their care.
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Review from L S (Daughter of Resident) published on 14 April 2025 Submitted via Website • Report
Overall Experience 5.0 out of 5
Very very happy with the care my Mother's has recieved since being in The Knells. The atmosphere as soon as you walk in the front door is Friendly and Homely. Truely one of the better homes. Thank you to everyone.
Reply from J.M, Provider at The Knells Country House

Many thanks for the review the team will really appreciate your lovely feedback on the service they provide

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Review from O A (Daughter of Resident) published on 6 November 2024 Submitted via Postal Card • Report
Overall Experience 5.0 out of 5
The care is excellent, the carers are all very compassionate and understanding of our mother's needs and personality, treating her with dignity and respect. They always have a ready smile and are upbeat which helps to lift her spirits. The manager and all the staff are very warm and welcoming. The handyman
and cleaner who pop in to say hello and maybe share a joke perks her up. The food which she really enjoys is excellent both in quality and preparation. We cannot fault the care she is receiving in this lovely, warm, safe and friendly environment.
Reply from J.M, Provider at The Knells Country House

Thank you so much for your positive comments. They are greatly appreciated.

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Review from L F (Daughter of Resident) published on 27 October 2023 Submitted via Postal Card • Report
Overall Experience 4.0 out of 5
There always seems to be staff and managers leaving after a short time, this causes instability among residents as just as they learn to trust a staff member, then they leave. The current staff are excellent I may add.
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Review from R A (Friend of Resident) published on 9 January 2023 Submitted via Postal Card • Report
Overall Experience 4.0 out of 5
I have visited a resident, at her family's request, for several years and have always been impressed by the staff's warmth of welcome. The Knells Country House is one of the most caring and understanding of residents' needs and abilities being fully met. Staff are hard-working, professional and genuinely
caring, essentially they are kind.
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Review from Jane B (Daughter of Resident) published on 27 June 2022 Submitted via Website • Report
Overall Experience 5.0 out of 5
I’m very pleased with the care my mother is receiving, I feel she is treated with respect, kindness and good humour from all involved. She tells me that everyone is very kind and she feels loved. Whenever I need to contact the home by phone, whoever the staff member I speak to is usually up to date
with the issue, or if not, immediately checks with someone who is - there seems to be a very good system in place to share information with all staff.
I feel I can contact the home at any time.
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Review from J T (Daughter of Resident) published on 21 June 2022 Submitted via Website • Report
Overall Experience 5.0 out of 5
Great levels of care and consideration for my relative throughout. COVID and lockdowns have been draining on all concerned, but the Knells is coming out at the other side with activities on the up and volunteers coming in again. A wonderful Jubilee garden party showed how we are all able to gather together
again; one of many social occasions to come, I hope. Major congratulations to the kitchen staff for their superb food this Sunday.
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Review from Gerald L (Son of Resident) published on 20 June 2022 Submitted via Website • Report
Overall Experience 4.0 out of 5
As this is mainly a dementia care home it feels like all residents are treated the same. i.e. when a resident asks for a coffee it takes ages to arrive or does not arrive. Staff can be a bit abrupt sometimes.
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Review from E G (Daughter of Resident) published on 8 June 2022 Submitted via Website • Report
Overall Experience 4.0 out of 5
The standard of care is excellent. All staff treat residents with dignity and compassion. Very good ethos in the home. Some lack of consistency re requirements of visitors during the pandemic, eg sometimes asked to wear apron, gloves and mask, other times just mask. Always asked to provide the result
of the lateral flow test, which is reassuring. Considering extreme pressure on staff during the pandemic, I am very grateful for the consistently good care my mother receives.
Reply from Jamil, Provider at The Knells Country House

Thank you for appreciating our service to the residents. We will use your feedback to continuously improve the service we provide to our Residents

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Review from R R (Daughter of Resident) published on 17 September 2021 Submitted via Postal Card • Report
Overall Experience 5.0 out of 5
Activities have been poor during the pandemic. Satisfactory otherwise, but room for improvement.
Reply from J.M, Provider at The Knells Country House

Many thanks for your kind feedback. We take on board your comment about activities. It's been identified as an area we need to really improve, especially after this awful pandemic. We are in the process of implementing a plan to significantly improve activities inside and outside the home, bringing some much needed physical and mental stimulation to the residents.

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Current Review Score: 9.5 (9.456)

Overview of Review Score

The Review Score of 9.5 (9.456) out of 10 for The Knells Country House is based on a) the Average Rating and b) the number of positive Reviews.

  1. The Average Rating is 4.7 out of 5 from 8 Reviews in the last 24 months.
  2. The score for the number of positive Reviews is 4.8 out of 5 from 8 positive Reviews in the last 24 months.

Detailed Breakdown of Review Score

The maximum Review Score for a Care Home is 10, which is made up from the Average Rating of Reviews (maximum of 5 points) and the Number of Reviews (maximum of 5 points) in the last 24 months:

  1. 5 Points are available for the Average Rating from all Reviews in the last 24 months. The Average Rating of 4.656 for The Knells Country House is calculated as follows: ( (64 Excellents x 5) + (26 Goods x 4) + (3 Satisfactorys x 3) ) ÷ 93 Ratings = 4.656
  2. 5 Points are available for the number of Positive Reviews in the last 24 months. A Positive Review is defined as any Review with an 'Overall Experience' of '4' or '5' (out of a max rating '5'). The 4.8 Points relating to the number of positive Reviews for The Knells Country House is based on 8 positive Reviews in the last 24 months and is calculated as per below:

    The 5 points available are broken down as follows:

    1. 4 points are available for the first 10 Positive Reviews in the last 24 months; 3 points for the first Positive Review, and then 0.125 Points for each of the next four Positive Reviews and then 0.1 Points for the next five Positive Reviews. (1st = 3.000, 2nd = 0.125, 3rd = 0.125, 4th = 0.125, 5th = 0.125, 6th = 0.100, 7th = 0.100, 8th = 0.100, 9th = 0.100, 10th = 0.100) 3 + 0.125 + 0.125 + 0.125 + 0.125 + 0.1 + 0.1 + 0.1 = 3.8
    2. 1 point is available for the number of Positive Reviews reaching 20% of the registered maximum number of service users in the last 24 months. If this number is partially reached, then that proportion of 1 point is given. eg a Care Home registered for a maximum of 50 service users has to reach 10 Positive Reviews to receive 1 point, if it has 7 reviews it will receive 0.7 points. 20% of the 24 registered maximum number of service users is 4.8, which has been reached with 8 Positive reviews. Points = 1
  3. When a Review is submitted by someone who has previously submitted a Review, only the latest Review will count towards the Review Score.
  4. If a Care Home does not have a review in the last 24 months, then it will not have a Review Score.

Regulatory Rating

Care Quality Commission (CQC) Rating

Date: 13 Jun 2023

Overall Good

  • Caring Good
  • Effective Good
  • Responsive Good
  • Safe Good
  • Well-led Good
Care Quality Commission is responsible for the registration and inspection of social care services in England. View Latest Report

Bed Vacancies

Please contact us for latest vacancies.

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Awards / Recognitions (0)

Meet the Team (0)

There are no team members posted.

Frequently Asked Questions about The Knells Country House

What types of Care is The Knells Country House registered for?

Older Person Care & Dementia are the registered (by the Care Quality Commission) categories of Care.

How many Rooms does The Knells Country House have?

There are 24 Single Rooms.

What are the Facilities & Services at The Knells Country House?

Own Furniture if required, Pet Friendly (or by arrangement), Smoking not permitted, Near Public Transport, Minibus or other transport, Lift, Stairlift, Wheelchair Access, Gardens, Phone Point in own room, Television point in own room & Residents Internet Access are some of the Facilities & Services.

How far is The Knells Country House to the centre of Carlisle?

2.9 mile(s) as the crow flies, distance by road may be significantly further.

Information on this page is displayed without responsibility for its accuracy on the part of carehome.co.uk. Please contact The Knells Country House to verify any information. View our terms and conditions. The Knells Country House has an Enhanced Service - more info.