Meet the team

I started Bluebird Care Shropshire in 2009 having left my employment as Managing Director of a successful chain of Garden Centres shortly before.  At that time I felt that my commercial skills and experience was well suited to the Bluebird Care franchise model and decided to be my own boss for the first time.  It was a big step for me and a bit scary,  but I was confident that I could make a difference in the Care Sector and wanted us to be the best in the county. 

I had recently been very poorly myself having had kidney failure over a number of years  and  then needed a kidney transplant in 2007. My sister very kindly gave me one of hers, it is still going strong so must have been a good one!!  I will always be very grateful to her for giving me such a precious gift, but also to the numerous people in the NHS and the care sector who helped me when I needed it. To be honest that care has never stopped and continues today. 

So in starting Bluebird Care Shropshire I had an opportunity to repay some of the help and kindness that I was shown and set out to provide a high standard of care to the people of Shropshire who needed it.  It was my chance to give something back.  Through Bluebird Care I am passionate about providing excellent care and that passion has not diminished over the years.  

The culture of my business is about delivering excellent care to people in their own homes and to go the extra mile for the people we support.  A culture that is shared by the senior team in Shrewsbury and Oswestry and filters down to all of our care staff.  That has enabled us to grow our service rapidly over the last 10 years. We have established a good reputation and work hard to maintain it.  We are not perfect and things do go wrong from time to time, but we try hard to improve and learn.  I am proud of what we have achieved together and look forwards to the next 10 years.

I have lived in Shropshire with my wife Rosanna for the last 37 years, raising our 2 young children here. They are both grown  now:  Gemma is a qualified Social Worker and manager with Action for Children and is mum to my two granddaughters Mia & Evie;  Chris works in Bluebird Care managing our payroll and has recently started his own property development business. 

I am a keen golfer and play at Church Stretton most weeks weather permitting and I enjoy spending time with my two granddaughters.  

My journey in social care began in 1989 when I started working evenings in a local care home after my first child was born. My love for working in the care sector took off from there.
I found that I really enjoyed working with people who had an acquired brain injury and in 2009 I became an outreach worker for Headway Shropshire and progressed to Care Coordinator (Care Manager) whilst completing my level 5 in health and social care. In July 2013 I joined Bluebird Care Shropshire as the Registered Manager and whilst here I completed my level 7 in management. 
I love my job as Registered Manager. As a team we strive to find solutions and make things work, adapting to the needs of our customers and the organisation. I have such a fantastic team around me and that makes a world of difference – understanding each other and having a good working relationship is key to our growth and development. 
In my spare time, I love running and I have completed a few half marathons and several 10k’s. I also enjoy mountain biking and climbing mountains. I met my husband in 1987 and we have two grown-up children and 3 wonderful granddaughters. We also have a rescue dog called Molly and love long weekends away in our campervan exploring our beautiful countryside with her.

I have been working in the care sector since 2010. My journey stared in domiciliary care and continued into residential and nursing homes, hospitals and one to one support packages working with challenging behaviour and brain injury.

 My passion continued to be in domiciliary care so in August 2014 I applied for a position as a care worker for Bluebird Care. In December 2014 I was promoted to a care supervisor and completed my NVQ level 3 in Health and Social care. 

My role is mainly customer focussed however I do also support new staff in their 12 week probation period. I complete supervisions and observations weekly to support them to complete their care certificate. The areas I supervise include Church Stretton, Bayston Hill, Meole Brace, Hanwood and Ford. I complete reviews and reassessments of current customers. I also support customers with daily challenges they face such as ordering their medication or being unwell and needing a doctors visit. I working closely with other health professionals to ensure that customers have care suited to their needs and to the highest standard.

I keep active by going to the gym and also enjoy walking in the Shropshire countryside and hills. I am very close to my family and spend a lot of time with friends. I love to see different parts of the world and like to have a couple of holidays each year if I can. 

I started with Bluebird Care in October 2018. I moved to Shrewsbury in 2008 and have worked in care for the past 6 years working with a wide range of people with learning disabilities, mental health, old age, to palliative care. I have obtained a level 3 health and social care diploma and a level 5 NVQ in leadership and management in health and social care.  I am always looking to help people and make myself approachable at all times by fellow colleagues, customers, and others from the community. 

I started in the care industry in 2013  working for Bluebird Care Shropshire as a Care Assistant, then became a Supervisor for the Shrewsbury area. Within my supervisory role, I did some training for other staff and decided that this was something I was passionate about.  In April 2016, I got promoted to Training Officer and my role consists of induction and ongoing training for new and existing members of staff.  I have completed my Level 5 in Health and Social Care and continue to develop new skills.

I am the Finance Assistant for Bluebird Care, which involves maintaining the company sales and purchase ledger accounts.  I have 30 years of experience in accounts, working in a variety of industries. 

I am a mum to two boys and we also have a dog called Harrison.  In my spare time I enjoy walking my dog, music festivals and reading.

What I love most about working at Bluebird Care is being part of a team that all work and support each other every day to make someone else's life better in every way we can. 

Before I joined Bluebird Care Shropshire I worked for Tesco’s for several years while my children were growing up. I joined bluebird care in January 2022, and it was the best decision I made for myself. I loved being a carer going out and meeting and caring for our customers.

I recently got promoted to field care supervisor. This involves me looking after the staff and making sure that they are happy at work, I do observations and supervisions to make sure that everyone is wearing the correct PPE and that we are always giving high standards of care.

In my spare time, I love nothing more than to spend time with my partner and our four children, this usually involves taking our three dogs for a walk, visiting new places, or being outside in the garden.

I also love a cheeky gin and tonic on a weekend too!

In 2012 Sammie started her journey in the care industry as a care assistant. Not knowing where her interests would lead she soon discovered an interest for care. In February 2014 Sammie joined Bluebird Care as an Apprentice, completed her LV3 NVQ in Business & Administration, and was then promoted to Manager's Assistant. Over the years Sammie developed a real enthusiasm for working with people in the care sector and therefore wanted to further her knowledge and in January 2018 Sammie completed her LV5 QCF in Health & Social care.

Having been at Bluebird Care for almost nine years, she has seen the business grow considerably and says that the best thing about her job is: “Seeing the people you recruit make a real positive impact to the company and the day-to-day lives of the vulnerable people we support.”

Her passion for the industry led Sammie to become the Recruitment Officer in March 2021 and she now uses that experience at Bluebird Care to attract the best possible carers to the company.

I first joined Bluebird Care in 2020 as a Care Assistant I quickly fell in love with this role and the positive impact I could see I was making on the people I would visit.

Weather or not it was making a cup of tea for a customer, having a chat or supporting them in palliative care and being there for their families through some of the hardest moments of their lives,

I am endlessly proud to have been able to help in those situations.  To have laughed and cried with customers and their families/ friends knowing that you have eased a worry or made someone a little less lonely.

The work we all do within the care sector is never endlessly meaningful and impactful I always go home knowing I have contributed to people’s lives being a little better.

I see myself as very lucky to work within a team of such lovely people who genuinely care to support others and each other.

I have been able to work child friendly hours giving me a fabulous work, life balance. I have also been given great opportunities to further progress my career, with abilities to take courses, seek further qualifications and knowledge with plenty of support and guidance to achieve this.  

Currently I now undertake a different role of HR/ Admin and I am very thankful for the opportunities to be able to grow within the business.

I really enjoy working for Bluebird Care and am proud of the work we all do to support those we care for and the ripple effects that has to their loved ones and the community we live in.

I joined Bluebird care in 2012 as a care assistant. This is when I truly found my passion within the care industry, enabling people to live fulfilled and enriched lives in the surroundings that they felt most comfortable. I feel very privileged to have been part of my many customers lives. Whether it is after a hospital stay, to assist with frailty or towards the end of their lives. I followed the Bluebird Care career pathway and this saw me become an assistant supervisor, supervisor and then care manager. This progression allowed me to complete several qualifications to enrich and develop my skills, the latest being a level five in health and social care management.

In 2017 I had my beautiful son and on my return from maternity leave I started a new challenge as specialist care coordinator. This role currently sees me leading the live in care team. I am truly blessed to able to work very closely with my care team and customers in this role, developing person centred care plans which not only meet our customers daily care needs but allow for further enrichment from visits out and fully flexible, ‘no day is the same’, holistic support.

Growing and progressing through the ranks here at Bluebird care has given me unique insight into the care worker role. This allows me to support the care team to meet their personal development milestones, and to deliver the best possible care to our much valued customers.

Outside of work I love to spend time with my husband and son, engaging in local events and walking our little dog Winnie. I have a keen interest in conservation and wildlife and have spent time volunteering in a wildlife hospital. I have a wide circle of friends and we like nothing more than attending Folk festivals and listening to music along with little get a ways in our caravan.