News Hamptons announces partnership with Birchgrove


Leading estate agent Hamptons has announced a strategic partnership with Birchgrove, the specialist provider of retirement properties. The collaboration aims to offer a unique proposition for those seeking quality senior rental living within the communities around the M25.


Birchgrove’s retirement communities


boast a range of 1, 2, and 3 bedroom self- contained apartments, with on-site facilities such as club rooms, libraries, restaurants, bars, and wellness suites. Smart technology is integrated into each apartment, ensuring help is readily available at the touch of a button. Birchgrove’s current portfolio includes


Queensgate Apartments in Sidcup, Woodbank Apartments in Hook Heath, and Lower Mill Apartments in Ewell, with additional


dedication to providing exceptional solution for independent senior living but with tailored support within a community and in a beautiful setting offering retirement living solutions aligns perfectly with our ethos of delivering outstanding service and support to our clients. This partnership will allow us to expand our offerings and continue to drive innovation in the senior living retirement property market.”


communities under construction and more in the planning stages.


Karen Standing, head of build to rent at Hamptons, said: “We are immensely proud to be joining forces with Birchgrove. Their


Guild Care announces 12 per cent pay increase


Worthing-based social care charity Guild Care has announced a 12 per cent pay increase for its carers and support workers. From April, all care rates of pay at Guild Care will be set at a minimum of £12.00 per hour. This is above the government’s compulsory National Living Wage, which rises by 9.8 per cent to £11.44 per hour when it comes into force in April. Overall, this will benefit more than 240 employees in a care role or support role and represents a significant investment for the charity. Guild Care provides a comprehensive


range of training initiatives, delivered both in-person and virtually, to support individuals’ learning and development at every stage of their career. Apprenticeships are also available for staff looking to gain more formal qualifications, an initiative developed last year. A diverse range of benefits is offered to all staff to support the wellbeing of employees and their families. The increased pay rate will apply to


everyone at Guild Care in a care role, including new employees once they have passed their probationary period. It will also include support workers in the diverse range of day services provided by Guild Care for people living with dementia and children & adults with learning disabilities. Guild Care CEO Alex Brooks-Johnson said: “Our priority whilst setting the budget this year was to increase our care pay rates as much as possible. While Guild Care is a not-for-profit charity, we firmly believe


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the value of the work of our carers should be reflected in their pay packets as far as we are able.


“In recent months we have been working closely with our highly experienced Board of Trustees to enable this investment in our care employees. These new, higher rates of pay for care and support workers would not have been possible without the continued hard work of the whole organisation as we recover post-Covid and get this amazing charity back on our feet financially. “Government funding for social care continues to decline, and despite the headline grabbing announcements about investment in social care, we do not see any impact of this. But thanks to the innovation, drive, and determination of our team, we are able to make this investment in our people.” Leanne Jones, HR director at Guild Care,


added: “We appreciate that pay, amongst other things, is an important part of employee’s terms and conditions so it was important for us to do the best we can to improve this element, particularly given the rising cost of living. “As well as increasing pay, we are also


reviewing all financial and non-financial benefits for the people who do so much to care for others across our charity. We hope that through continued improvements and growth, along with hopefully a fairer level of funding from Government, we will be able to make a similar investment in our housekeeping roles in the near future.”


Marcus Hodges, chief operations officer from Birchgrove, added: “Our collaboration with Hamptons represents a significant milestone for Birchgrove. Their expertise in the real estate sector complements our vision of offering top-tier retirement living experiences. Together, we are set to enhance the lives of many more individuals in their later years.”


Class of 2023 graduate from Barchester


Chef Academy Twenty head chefs – the Class of 2023 - have completed one year’s training to graduate from the Barchester Chef Academy. The Academy is the brainchild of Barchester’s hospitality development and standards manager, Mervyn Knights, who joined Barchester 21 years ago as a kitchen assistant and worked his way up through the ranks to head chef and then to his current position as part of the team overseeing hospitality training across the whole of Barchester. Along with the rest of the hospitality team, Mervyn’s role is to ensure that the food being produced in Barchester’s 258 care homes and private meets Barchester’s high standards of quality, taste, nutrition, and presentation, and that dishes are being prepared to the exact requirements of our individual residents.


The Barchester Chef Academy helps chefs to both hone their skills and learn new ones, covering many different modules including cooking for residents living with dementia, budgeting, balancing flavours, minimising wastage, and presentation skills. Mervyn Knights said: “I am absolutely


delighted at how well the Academy has been received by everyone who attended the course.”


www.thecarehomeenvironment.com April 2024


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