Olly Carter, Managing Director, and Founder of Kingsway Care brings his endless positivity, energy, leadership, and joy to the Home Care sector.
A Big-Hearted Boss
Today, I’m catching up with Olly, the Managing Director of Kingsway Care. He is definitely not one to blow his own trumpet, so I shall do it for him.
Born to be Kind
Even in his 20s, Olly was kind and thoughtful and would always go out of his way to help anyone in need. And every day felt like a treat day! Weekends with friends would often involve surprise day trips, such as, camping, theatre, picnics, and more. Nights in would usually include playing Balderdash or other board games – always accompanied by huge amounts of indulgent snacks!
I vividly remember him saying that when we (lots of friends) get old, we should buy a big house by the sea so we could all live together and continue enjoying treats, fun events, and cabaret! I was sold.
Vocational Calling
We haven’t reached that stage yet but Olly’s desire to improve the quality of life for older people and the vulnerable accelerated during the Covid pandemic. So much so, that he decided to take the plunge and give up his comfortable career in IT to set up Kingsway Care.
Olly had always balanced his work life by volunteering to help others and was a primary carer to his late Great Aunt Lily. He says, “As her primary carer, I witnessed first-hand how difficult it was to find quality respite care to provide the support that myself and Great Aunt needed.”
Vision for Care at Home
Olly tells me, “I’ve always thought that Clients should expect bright, friendly, competent professional CareGivers that turn up on time with a smile and take great pride in their jobs. They should intuitively understand what would make the Client happy and spend quality time getting to know them rather than just doing a set of tasks and leaving.’
“I’ve always thought that Clients should expect bright, friendly, competent professional CareGivers that turn up on time with a smile and take great pride in their jobs.”
He continues, “I want Clients to have more choice and control over what they could do during the care visits. For me, it’s so important to get people out of their homes if they are willing and physically able.” He laughs, “I took my 92-year-old Aunt Lily for little local surprise trips out every week because I knew she loved it so much! Gravity 3D at the cinema, followed by her first McDonalds at the age of 91 is a fun memory.”
From Complex Care to Companionship
“I ask the team to always treat Kingsway Care Clients exactly as they would want their Mum, Dad or relative to be treated.”
Kingsway Care’s goal is to consistently offer the highest quality of care to all our Clients in their own homes. Olly says, “The health and wellbeing of Kingsway Care Clients are paramount. Some Clients have complex care needs, others need temporary support, and some benefit from companionship and encouragement to remain independent.”
“I’m fully aware caring can’t always be fun. It’s a humbling part of the job that we can be there during worrying times for the recovery, decline, or passing of a loved one. Our experienced team is dedicated to supporting Kingsway Care Clients and their families with kindness and compassion.”
He continues, “Besides delivering outstanding care, we look for ways to raise our Clients’ spirits and to combat any loneliness or isolation, especially post the Covid pandemic. Basically, and I say this to our team, I ask them to always treat Kingsway Care Clients exactly as they would want their Mum, Dad, or relative to be treated.”
Imaginative Care
“I love to encourage my colleagues to make work fun by sharing their own hobbies and interests with Kingsway Care Clients. For example, Kerry, our Head of Welfare, loves to bake cakes so spent a three-hour care visit helping one of our Clients bake his first ever cake!” (You can see how much fun they had in this article).
If I’d known you were coming, I’d have baked a cake, baked a cake …
Challenging the Care Stereotypes
Olly says, “I have been fed up with the constant negative press about Carers being one of the lowest-paid, most undervalued workforces in society.” Kingsway Care challenges these stereotypes by offering top rates of pay and providing a host of benefits unheard of in the Care industry.
For example, he says, “we believe we are the first home care provider to offer an employee share scheme to every full-time, part-time, and contract employee”. He continues, “We have worked hard to create a happy, motivated team of professionals so that they can deliver outstanding care. Introducing the share scheme was a no-brainer. We should all share in the success of Kingsway Care.”
Leading by Example
Kingsway Care is an organisation full of positive energy, a supportive working environment, and lots of opportunities for career progression. Olly chooses to do care visits every day because he finds it so rewarding. It also means he stays connected to the business, Kingsway Care Clients, and employees.
His endless positivity cascades through the company motivating everyone to reach their full potential. Both Clients and CareGivers are valued and treated with respect and rewarded with thoughtful little treats.
Kingsway Care Team Spirit
We are able to attract and keep top talent by recruiting people from all walks of life, providing continuous training and support, great working conditions, and flexible working hours. He says, “care is a people business so it’s obvious employees at the front line of delivering top-quality care should be looked after too.“
Olly reflects, “It’s been a tough year working through the pandemic and ‘pingdemic’ but I’m really happy with how far we have come. I’m surrounded by like-minded, big-hearted professionals that care about each other and our amazing Kingsway Care Clients.“
“We have already created forty rewarding employment opportunities across Sussex for people of all ages (18 – 75 years old) and abilities. Whether at the beginning, middle, or end of their working life we can offer hours to suit them and roles to maximize their talents.”
The Future is Bright (Yellow!)
“Every day, I’m grateful to witness what a positive difference Kingsway Care is making not only to our Clients’ lives and their families but also to our CareGivers’ lives. I’m so proud we receive nothing less than five-star reviews. It’s a credit to the team that according to Homecare.co.uk, Kingsway Care is the top-rated care at home provider in Brighton & Hove!
Celebrating a Kingsway Care Client’s 75th birthday at Wagamamas. Geoff and his wife hadn’t been out since pre-covid times. With our encouragement they are now going to make it a weekly habit. We love improving our Client’s quality of life.
Contact Us
If you or a loved one need support at home please contact our friendly team on 01273 077444 or click on the ‘live chat’ in the right-hand corner of the website and talk to Olly directly!
