do you know which rhododendron it is? some a fully deciduous other evergreen. certainly cut off the dead foliage and the dead leaves but don't prune back if you don't have dead wood.

Thanks Seaburngirl
I don't know which Rhododendron it is (got the spelling)
but it is deciduous

Then, personally I would leave completely alone - it will already have produced new leaf buds and if you do any cutting it is possible you will remove these. Reality is gardens look scruffy in winter and we just need to live with that :)

When rhododendron leaves die they usually fall off on their own so as long as there's no disease you could leave it until the new growth starts if it isn't annoying you.

Are just a few leaves dead? Are all the leaves dead or is the whole bush dead? It could be windburn - not a big deal. Something may be attacking your bush but this doesn't normally happen in winter. Did it set new healthy buds for next spring? Is this a newly planted shrub? Maybe it didn't root in fully and suffered root damage. If you don't get sufficient snow or rain, it could be dehydrated. Even in dormancy you should keep the roots moist. Rhodies must be kept moist esp if its in a windy location.

And most prefer acid soil conditions

Not sure whether to continue on this thread but I have a young rhododendron called red jack. It was planted in a shady moist area at the side of the house last September but the area became a wind tunnel over the past few months with all the storms crossing the north of England. The poor plant looks very sorry for itself. There is 1 flower bud but the leaf buds that were partially open are now brown and shrivelled. Shall I trim off the dead tissue basically 'pinching out'? , put a small cloche over it for the remainder of the winter ? Or transplant it to a more sheltered spot?