Guardian Angel Carers, a franchise-based nationwide home care provider, is a care sector business with a compelling story. Founder Christina Handasyde Dick is both a former Olympian and an MBE, having been recognised for services to Home Care and Charity by the late Queen in her 2022 Birthday Honours List.
Hailing from the UK’s South Coast, Christina is a gifted sailor and crafted her talent with dedication and focus, winning the 420 Ladies World Championships in 2000 and representing Great Britain at the Olympic Games in the 2004 Athens and 2008 Beijing events.
Today, Christina has turned her impressive focus to the care sector, with very personal experiences of how compassion, care and sensitivity can tremendously impact the lives of individuals and their families.
Creating Home Care Services With an Olympic Mindset
The success of Guardian Angel Carers is undeniable, having begun as one Chichester home care business and expanded rapidly to 16 separate territories stretching as far as North Yorkshire, London, South Wales and Lincolnshire.
Christina has explained that, despite the contrasts between Olympic sports and home care, she had long felt drawn to the care sector, having lived with both her grandparents at intervals during her youth following the separation of her parents. Her first experiences in care were during her school years when she volunteered at a local nursing home.
The History of Guardian Angel Carers
Following her retirement from competitive sailing, Christina spent time travelling before deciding that her calling was to return home to the West Sussex coast and turn her attention to the sector she was so passionate about – starting a business from a houseboat on the canal.
Within two years, those seeds of entrepreneurialism transformed into a team of 25 and a conventional office, with Guardian Angel Carers founded in 2012 to address a clear demand for personal, sensitive home care that was about more than practical support, but in helping people live their lives on their terms.
The skills, determination, and drive necessary to become an Olympian enabled Christina to see her vision realised, and she continues to challenge convention, ensuring care is a rewarding, well-paid career option, nurturing and investing in talented carers, and providing outstanding home care to numerous local communities.
The Importance of Values-Based Home Care
Part of the success of Guardian Angel Carers is that the business model is built on a set of 'ten commandments' with an underlying focus on values. Person-centred care allows each branch to develop tailored, wholly personalised care plans based on the individual’s preferences, personality, wishes, independence and needs.
Those commandments are indicative of the Olympian philosophy behind the company and include the following:
- Commitment: giving 100% to everything it does, including the culture, vision and mission of the business, its clients and workforce.
- Ownership: taking responsibility for actions and outcomes and being accountable for personal and professional decisions, results and behaviour.
- Integrity: being truthful and delivering on promises, communicating any inability to achieve something immediately.
Christina says, ‘My guiding question has always been – how can we do things better? By creating a tangible set of commandments, I wanted to solidify the systems and approaches that I feel are vital to upholding my concept of an innovative, compassionate care service that stands for the best possible standards and ongoing progression.’
On being awarded an MBE for her work during the COVID-19 pandemic, as an accolade for outstanding services to the community, Christina was quick to acknowledge her workforce, saying 'I am hugely grateful for this recognition not only for myself but for our team, industry and every care worker that helps people live safely in their homes day in, day out'.
The Guardian Angel Carers leadership team includes Andrew Handasyde Dick, Director and GP, Christina's husband, and equally avid sailor. The couple share three children – when they are not busy running and overseeing their successful business, they still enjoy spending time on the water in Chichester Harbour.
Read more about Guardian Angel Carers - New Franchise Openings From Leading UK Home Care Provider Guardian Angel Carers
About Guardian Angel Carers:
Guardian Angel Carers is a leading home care provider dedicated to delivering compassionate, personalised care services. With a strong focus on independence, dignity, and quality of life, the
company supports individuals in the comfort of their own homes, offering a range of services from companionship to complex care needs.
Media Contact:
Vikki Craig-Vickers
03333 660550
www.gacarers.co.uk
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Source Company – https://www.gacarers.co.uk/
