A new service specialising in caring for older people in their own homes has opened its doors this week and hopes to create 40 new jobs in the area. Home Instead Senior Care is based in Shrivenham and will serve clients across East Wiltshire, Swindon and the Vale of the White Horse.
For owner John Kirk from Shrivenham, this new venture has been inspired by his own career and personal experiences, he has the perfect background to care for people and in particular the elderly. John has a lifetime in caring and serving others, having spent 23 years in the Royal Air Force, rising to the rank of Wing Commander. John saw service across the world in places such as the Middle East, The Falklands and the Balkans. Following full service John left the RAF in 2002, he then joined Waitrose through the John Lewis Partnership management trainee scheme, a company with service top of their list. In 2005, he went to work for a private provider of residential nursing care where he spent 7 years developing the business and again rose through the ranks to become Vice President of Operations before deciding to set up his own business.
He commented: “I feel that my greatest pleasure and proudest moments have been serving and helping others, delivering something for someone else. Military service gives you the ethics and values to do just that. For the past 10 years I have worked in a business environment and I had begun to realise that I really wanted to be able to make a difference in my own community. I knew there had to be a better way to provide care for older people which would allow them to remain independent in their own homes.”
John had been thinking of starting his own company and in particular caring for older people when he discovered Home Instead Senior Care. Having learnt about the company’s reputation for providing high quality, at-home care, John felt this was the perfect opportunity. He comments: ‘I was very aware that no one really wants to have to leave their own home but often residential care is all that people think is available, but now there is an excellent and viable alternative. We will provide the type of care which I would want for myself and my loved ones. I am thrilled to be delivering a service in the community where I live and also to be able to create local jobs for local people and I am keen to talk to kind, compassionate and like-minded individuals who may be interested in joining the company.”
John is married and has 2 sons, Josh and Toby. Outside work he is a keen cook and a huge sports fan, in particular football and really enjoys watching when his sons are playing.
Home Instead Senior Care is changing the way care is delivered in the UK. Their service is tailored to the needs of individual clients and ranges from companionship, meal preparation, light housekeeping, post-discharge care, personal care, medication reminders, shopping and errands. The service is totally flexible to meet clients’ needs and is available from as little as 1 hour to 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
For more information on joining the team or on the services provided, please call the Swindon office on 01793 232585/01367 887696 or visit www.homeinstead.co.uk/swindon
