Shared Care Starts with Understanding: Reflections from a Care Home Pilot Site
Parallel 5
18 November, 2026 2:10 – 3:20 pmCultivating Champions: Staff Development and Compassionate Support in Care Homes
Ruth Eley
Director & Chair
tide
Cathrina Moore
Admiral Nurse
Director Chapel House Care & Clinical Lead Dementia Resource Community
Summary
hared Care Is a Process, Not a Policy – Early Learning from Co‑Producing Practice with Care Homes and Carers
This session explores early learning from tide’s national Shared Care project, highlighting why shared care must be understood as an ongoing practice rather than a policy statement. Drawing on insights from carers, frontline staff and care home leaders, Ely from tide will outline how the Shared Care resources were co‑produced in response to widespread concerns about communication, role loss and inconsistent involvement following a move into residential care. Findings from questionnaires across carers and staff revealed a significant perception gap, particularly around inclusion, expectations and day‑to‑day collaboration — echoing established evidence on the dementia care triad and the fragility of trust.
Cathrina Moore, Director of Chapel House Care and one of the six pilot sites, will share a care‑home perspective on implementing shared care in real‑world conditions. Her contribution will focus on the importance of starting with process, building psychological ownership among staff, and modelling shared care through leadership behaviours. She will also reflect on practical initiatives developed through the pilot, including structured carer engagement approaches such as “Welcome Wednesday”.Together, the presenters will demonstrate how co‑production with carers and care homes can strengthen relational practice, improve communication, and support more consistent partnership working — offering a model for embedding shared care across the sector.