They're ladies who lunch, aged 101 and 103

They have a combined age of 204, and were born when electricity was a novelty and corsets were in fashion.
But Mrs Phyllis Beatty, aged 101, and Mrs Betty Grazebrook, aged 103, had a spring in their step when they were invited to a lunch in their honour by Corinium Care in Nailsworth.
The live-in care agency hosted the event at its offices in George Street as part of Good Care Week which celebrates and promotes excellence in social care, and to toast two of the company’s most senior clients.

Managing Director Clare Janik (centre) with lunch guests

“It’s a great pleasure for us when clients come and meet the staff in our head office,” said Managing Director of Corinium Care, Clare Janik.
Mrs Beatty studied Classics at Oxford University and trained as an architect before she married in 1946 and had two children, now aged 65 and 62. She came to lunch with her Corinium carer Hilary Scheepers.
Mrs Grazebrook married in 1937 and has a son, aged 70, and a daughter, aged 62. She attended with her carer Clare Lester.
“It’s very kind of Corinium Care to invite us to lunch,” she said. “They always send us a photo of the staff at Christmas, so it’s nice to put names to all those faces.”
Corinium Care and its 17 staff provide 24-hour care for elderly and vulnerable people in their own homes. It has clients all over the UK, and particularly in Gloucestershire and the South West.
In the last five years, the Corinium Care team has scooped a clutch of awards including a National Training Award, Business of the Year award, and a triple accolade in the Great South West Care Awards.

New Managing Director for Corinium Care

Corinium Care has appointed a new Managing Director.

Clare Janik, previously the Director of Care Services, succeeds Camilla Miles as Managing Director from the beginning of April.

Camilla, who founded Corinium Care in 1995, becomes Chief Executive.

Clare (pictured), who joined the company in 2003, said she is “immensely proud” to take over as MD.

“I am passionate about the care business and about Corinium Care. My aim is to continue to provide our clients with the very best service whilst ensuring our training provides us with the highest quality carers,” she said.

Also promoted is Amanda Butler, who relinquishes her role as Director of Operations to become Commercial Director of the company.

Amanda will put her past skills in newspaper sales to use in her new role. “I’m looking forward to supporting Clare to take the business to new heights,” she said.

Camilla Miles thanked Clare and Amanda for their loyalty and support and wished them well.

“After nearly 20 years nurturing the company and forging one of the most successful live-in care agencies in the industry, it is the right time to build on the management team.

“I have every confidence that Clare and Amanda will continue to take Corinium Care forward, bringing new ideas that will keep the company ahead in such a rewarding industry.”

The company, based in Nailsworth, has been a continuing success story since Camilla launched the agency from her kitchen table in Bisley. Amanda Butler was recruited as her first member of staff.

Since then, the business has gone from strength to strength, becoming a market leader in the live-in care industry.

There are now 17 staff in George Street, Nailsworth, along with more than 800 registered carers, and offices in Zimbabwe and South Africa.

In the last five years, the Corinium team has scooped a clutch of awards including a National Training Award, Business of the Year award, and a triple accolade in the Great South West Care Awards. It has twice been rated ‘Excellent’ by the Care Quality Commission.

Computers are on their way to schools in Africa

Computer equipment from Nailsworth is on its way to Africa, thanks to staff at Corinium Care.

When the live-in care agency bought a new IT system, the staff didn’t want to send its redundant kit to landfill.

Enter IT Schools Africa: a charity based in Cheltenham, which has shipped more than 35,000 refurbished computers to schools on the African continent since 2006.

Ron Pearce, Donations Coordinator from IT Schools Africa, was delighted with Corinium’s six computers, monitors and keyboards.

“Without people like Corinium Care, we wouldn’t be able to bring IT knowledge to many thousands of children in Africa.

“A computer can open up the whole world to them. It gives them an opportunity to learn a new skill that will have work implications, and helps break the poverty circle.”

The charity’s mission struck a chord with Corinium Care because many of its registered live-in carers come from South Africa and Zimbabwe.

“Our carers tell us what the situation is like in some parts of Africa, so we’re glad to be able to give something back,” said Corinium Care MD Camilla Miles.

The award-winning company, based in George Street, provides 24-hour care for elderly people, those with dementia and young adults with physical and learning disabilities. Founded in 1995, it has 17 staff and 800 registered carers.

IT Schools Africa collects IT equipment which is less than six years old for refurbishment at its HQ in Leckhampton. Some kit is also sent to five prison workshops in the UK supporting restorative justice. It’s then sent to schools in Zambia, Zimbabwe, Malawi, Tanzania, Kenya and Madagascar.

“We need desktop computers, laptops, keyboards, screens, mice and cables. There is tons of it going to waste in the UK which has the ability to transform lives in Africa,” said Mr Pearce.

www.itschoolsafrica.org

Join our training course for carers

Our next training course for people who would like to join our team of registered carers takes place from March 18-22.

The five-day course is free and takes place at our head office in Nailsworth, Gloucestershire.

If you think that becoming a live-in carer is for you, please get in touch.

We specialise in introducing carers to the elderly and adults with disabilities who need live-in care in their own homes.

Our award-winning training is second to none. During the five-day course, you will learn about moving and handling, medication, personal care, First Aid, how to cope with dementia and a general introduction about best practice as a carer.

Course participants are also interviewed during this period, and successful applicants are subsequently considered for suitable placements with a client.

Applicants to become carers don’t necessarily need care experience, although it’s preferred.

What we seek most in applicants are excellent communication skills and a full, clean UK driving licence.

You should be a competent cook, and being an animal-lover is an advantage because many of our clients have much-loved pets.

If you’d like to be considered for the training course, please call Getta Sutton on 01453 839731, or apply by filling in the application form.

Completed application forms should be sent with your CV to gettasutton@coriniumcare.com

Alternatively you can post your application to Recruitment, Corinium Care Ltd, George Street, Nailsworth, Gloucestershire GL6 0AG.

For more information, click here.

Welcome to Getta, Sarah and Carly

Three new staff have joined Corinium Care as the company continues to expand.

Getta Sutton, 53, is the new Recruitment and Training Co-ordinator. She has spent most of her career in customer services for companies such as Harrods and Reader’s Digest. A trained counsellor, she has also worked as a complaints manager in the NHS.

“After working most of my life for big corporations, witnessing the personal touch in action here astounds me. It’s a complete contrast.”

Getta first came across Corinium Care when she registered as a live-in carer in 2011.

“Because I was a carer myself, it makes it easier to understand how recruitment and training work,” she said.

Carly Lines, 23, joins as Administration Assistant. “I’ve always been interested in the admin side of the care business so this is perfect. I absolutely love it,” she said.

Sarah Parris, 38, is the new Bookings Assistant. A former pupil of Stroud High School, she has spent most of her career in tourism.

“I’m still learning about live-in care – it’s totally different from talking to travel operators all day,” she said.

Managing Director of Corinium Care, Camilla Miles, welcomed Getta, Carly and Sarah. “Given the sensitivity of the work we do, it’s really important to find the right staff. All three have already become invaluable members of the team,” she said.

Corinium supports Sandi Toksvig at Literature Festival

Dame Joan Bakewell thanked Corinium Care for its support and its work with the elderly when she hosted an event at the Cheltenham Literature Festival.

Dame Joan, appointed the Government’s voice for older people in 2008, was chairing a discussion panel, sponsored by Corinium Care.

It featured the family of the author Jennifer Worth who wrote the book upon which the TV series Call the Midwife was based, starring Jenny Agutter and Miranda Hart.

Corinium also sponsored a packed Literature Festival talk by Sandi Toksvig about her latest book, Valentine Grey, as well as her life as a comedian and broadcaster. The novel tells the story of a woman who went to fight in the Boer war, disguised as a man, in place of her cousin Reggie.

“With our roots firmly in Gloucestershire, we try to support local enterprise whenever we can, and we are therefore very proud to be associated with the Literature Festival,” said Managing Director of the live-in care agency Camilla Miles.

“It is also significant that Jennifer Worth wrote a final book about the importance of absolute dignity at the end of life which struck a chord with our values at Corinium Care.”

The Cheltenham Literature Festival is one of the largest in the UK and relies on sponsorship for its survival.

Corinium scoops award for best customer care

Corinium Care has won a prestigious award for its exceptional customer care.

At a glittering ceremony, attended by 260 people, it won the Customer Care and Service category in the Stroud Life Business Awards, set up to celebrate business excellence.

Editor of the Stroud Life Jason Chare said competition was tough as big names went head to head with small and medium-sized businesses.

He and the other judges praised Corinium Care for its high standards, saying: “The business takes pride in exceeding its customers’ expectations and nothing is too much trouble for its carers. They will even clean out the hen house and walk the dog.”

Director of Care Services at Corinium, Clare Janik, was thrilled to be a winner.

“When they announced we were the winners, it was marvellous. I was so proud of the company. Everything we do is definitely a team effort and I’m really proud to be part of it.”

The award sought to commend a business which is passionate about customer care and service and could show that it is an integral part of the company.

MD of Corinium Care, Camilla Miles congratulated her team. “Exceptional customer care and service is at the heart of everything we do. The personal touch is key, and all the staff and registered carers live and breathe that philosophy,” she said.

“The company provides proof that ‘caring’ and ‘business’ can and do go hand in hand. That concept is the cornerstone of Corinium Care’s continued success since its formation in 1995.”

Corinium Care, based in George St, Nailsworth, provides 24-hour care for frail and elderly people in their own homes. It has 17 staff at its head office and 800 registered carers worldwide.

It has twice been rated Excellent by the Care Quality Commission. Last year it won the title Business in the Year in the Gloucestershire Media Women in Business Awards. It was also a finalist in three categories of the Great British Care Awards.

The Stroud Life Awards ceremony took place at the Old Lodge in Minchinhampton.