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Gloucestershire Business News

Simply the best – Flexicare Home Services wins “outstanding” rating

A county care company is celebrating after being awarded a rare outstanding rating for the standard of service it provides.

Flexicare Home Services was given the top stamp of approval by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) after an inspection - one of only two per cent in the country to be awarded 'outstanding'.

Founded in 1997 by Jeanette Phillips and run by her and her two daughters, Anna Macey-Michaels and Jenna Macey-Brown, the company has offices in Gloucester and Stroud, with 120 staff delivering a variety of care, including palliative and end of life, live-in and specialist.

Working alongside them for 18 years is manager Sarah Zielinski, whose role includes being accountable to the CQC, providing documents and answering questions for the inspectors.

Anna said: "It's the first time we've been given this in 20 years. The inspector told us what a massive achievement this is.

"We've always had outstanding qualities but to get an overall outstanding rating you have to match in two areas and we did that this year in 'caring' and 'responsive'.

"There is so much bad press about home care so it's nice to hear something positive and we are so happy with this achievement."

The report highlights comments from clients, who praised the company for providing "brilliant" care from "kind and caring" staff.

"Our staff also told us that they felt valued and appreciated by the manager and providers," said Anna.

Anna joined the business after her 17-year-old brother, Christopher, died following a motorbike accident. "It was the catalyst that brought me here and also made a difference in the type of care we offered because he was so young."

Indeed, Flexicare have found that these days they are caring for as many younger clients as older ones, with conditions such as spinal and brain injuries. "We look after adults over the age of 18, and that includes people who have been involved in accidents," explained Anna.

"When people can bring their loved ones home they are so happy and to be able to get good care at home makes everything so much easier.

"We have such a wonderful team from everyone in head office to all our outstanding carers. They are the reason we have been named outstanding," said Jenna.

When registered nurse Jeanette started the company 21 years ago, she saw a gap in the market, sold her house and put all the money into the project. A few years later, when her brother died, Anna returned from London where she was working, to join the business. "Mum is an entrepreneur and quite impulsive, but Jenna and I are the complete opposite, so we complement each another, and it works well," she said.

"We are all very involved in the day to day running of the business. We really look at the person and their needs and try to find ways to make things happen. We don't like to say no to anything.

"We've grown organically bit by bit. We could have gone really big, really quickly, but I think our reputation would've gone down and I don't think we would've been able to offer such a good service.

"My mother is one of the most important people in my life and I'd want her to have the best care possible and I think everyone thinks that about their loved ones. When we take on staff, our emphasis is whether they have a big heart as we can train them in everything else."

She added: "When families have to start considering care for their loved ones, it's the start of a massive journey and a daunting time to go through, and we are here to make it as easy as possible for them and to take a little bit of the stress away."

Flexicare is based in The Steadings Business Centre, Maisemore Court, Maisemore. To find out more, visit www.flexicareuk.co.uk  or ring 01452 306925. The telephone number is 01452 306296

Picture caption: L2R Flexicare staff, Lynne Hughes, Dylan Stroud, Lucy Ingram, Sue Matthews and Jenna Macey-Brown, Founder Jeanette Phillips, Anna Macey-Michael, Tricia Stroud, Caroline Nel, Julie Daniels and Sarah Zielinski.

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