Your shortlist

Are you happy to accept "Functional" cookies?

We use a cookie for this feature.  This is so that the feature continues to work as you navigate the website and to save it so it's still available when you return.

Save your shortlisted homes here.

As you search for a care home, add your shortlisted homes here by clicking the heart icon. You'll find all your choices here for ease of reference.

Find homes

Our team at
Mercia Grange

Trusted to care in
Sutton Coldfield, West Midlands

Scroll

Meet our friendly care team

Mercia Grange is a closely-knit team of managers, carers, nurses and support colleagues – and each of us is dedicated to your loved one’s care, health and wellbeing. We’re all different, but we all share that common aim. Take a look at our colleague profiles to find out more about some of the Mercia Grange team.

Lynn Bennett

Home Manager

Lynn Bennett

I’ve been a Home Manager for nearly 20 years, working my way up from Care Assistant in numerous nursing and residential settings.

I wanted to work for Care UK because I feel it’s a forward-thinking provider looking to make a difference to older people’s lives. Care UK’s ethos of care first, business second, was also important to me.

Previously in my career, I’ve been a Regional Manager and a Support Manager, and I have my Level 2, 3 4, and 5 qualifications. I’m currently about to start my Level 7.

I have a passion for dementia care and ensuring the team deliver a high standard of person-centred care. Each person is different, and as a manager, it’s important that I listen to colleagues, residents and their families.

I enjoy spending time with residents and their families and learning about their lives and achievements. Mealtimes a very important for me. I like to sit with residents at mealtimes as it gives me the opportunity to get to know them better and ensure they have had a high-quality meal, and their choices are always adhered to.

Outside of work, I enjoy listening to music, reading and spending time with my family, especially my granddaughter. I have four dogs and we spend a lot of our spare time walking in the countryside with them.

Andrea Paikkou
Deputy Manager

I’ve been with Mercia Grange since it first opened in 2018 – I wanted to join a beautiful new build with opportunities to progress.

Before joining Care UK, I worked as a Senior Care Assistant. I’ve achieved my Level 3 qualification and am looking at completing my Level 5 next. I’m also completing Future Deputy Manager training. Stepping up to a Deputy Manager role definitely took me out of my comfort zone.

You need to be approachable, kind, caring, hardworking and determined to do this job well. Living at Mercia Grange through Covid-19 at all hours of the day and night was challenging, but it was very rewarding supporting the team and residents.

Seeing Mercia Grange grow and supporting a stable team that'sis more like a family makes Mercia feel even more like a second home.

When I’m not working, I enjoy spending time with family and friends. I enjoy holidays, sun and spa days.

Rachel Mackay
Customer Relations Manager

I’ve worked in the care sector for ten years now, and joined Care UK in 2017.

I’d worked for another care home providers, but I heard good things about Care UK from a colleague.

I think CRMs like me have a very important part to play in a home as we’re helping families in their hour of need, reassuring them that we can care for their loved one in the way they’d want. During my time working in older people’s care, I’ve developed a passion for dementia care. In fact, I’m one of the Dementia Champions at Mercia Grange. I enjoy sparking that passion for dementia care in other people.

I love this job, every day is so varied and rewarding. I enjoy meeting new families and welcoming new residents, and I love spending time with our existing residents, having a chat and a giggle with them.

One of the best parts of working in a care home is being able to help fulfil residents’ wishes. I’ve organised for a horse to visit a resident in their room, and for residents who were keen football fans to have a corporate hospitality box at Aston Villa for the day so they could watch a match and meet ex-Villa players.

Belinda Piovesana
Lifestyle Lead

I trained at art school, and have worked in hospitality, and my background has been incredibly handy for the role I now have at Mercia Grange.

Creativity is important as you need to think ‘outside the box’ to engage the residents. You need to be flexible and to think on your feet.

I love making a difference to older people’s lives, it makes my day to see residents smiling and enjoying themselves. There’s no better feeling than when an activity has gone really well and everyone’s buzzing afterwards. 

I would say that learning about dementia has been one of the biggest challenges for me in my role (and learning to drive the minibus!). But, having said that, I’m very proud that I found a barber who visited the home to pamper our gentlemen. He became a Dementia Friend and now visits other Care UK homes to pamper their gents. Something that I helped to start has had a hugely positive impact on many people’s lives. 

Shelly-Ann Gabbidon
Nurse Manager

I was a Nurse for two years at the Kingston Public Hospital in Jamaica, working on a surgical and orthopedic ward and on an A&E ward, prior to coming to the UK.

 I started Care UK in 2019 at Catherine Court until October 2021 and started Mercia Grange October 2021.

To be a good Nurse, it’s important to show empathy to each resident. You also need to be hardworking, knowledgeable, optimistic, compassionate, even-tempered and flexible. I love that every day here is different. I have an amazing team, and I enjoy taking care of each and every resident.

The best part of working for Mercia Grange is the bond we form with residents and their families. I enjoy spending time with my family when I’m not working, and I listen to Reggae music and meet up with friends to unwind.

Lisa Woodall
Business Administrator

I’ve spent 20 years’ working in offices as a Personal Assistant, Secretary and Business Administrator, and, before joining the Mercia Grange team I was an Administrator in another care home.

I wanted to join Care UK because it is a hugely reputable care provider.

The mornings are always my favourite time of the day because there are lots of happy faces coming through the door, and I look forward to what the day has in store. I get a lot of satisfaction from ensuring that the office is running smoothly. Time management skills are crucial in this busy role, as are good people skills, and having some computer know-how: we use lots of different computer and information systems.

I enjoy conquering new challenges, and I thrive on the fact that every day is different. I’m also proud to be the Colleague Voices Representative for Mercia Grange. I go along to the regular meetings to ensure that the voices of colleagues working in this home are heard within Care UK.

In my free time I like to go walking and travelling and discovering new cultures and places. I enjoy reading too, and spending time with friends and family.

Samantha Jones
Head Housekeeper

My background is in the hotel industry.

I’ve set up a large four-star hotel and have worked as a general manager in a big hotel too. When I fancied a change recently, I was really attracted by the ethos of Care UK. The organisation believes in providing hotel-style levels of quality and comfort to residents. That really appealed to me, and I felt my skills would be a good fit.

Mercia Grange is a beautiful new home - and it’s a pleasure to work here. One of the best parts of the day is when I bring residents’ laundered items back to their rooms. I love seeing all the residents and having a chat. I haven’t been at Mercia Grange long, so I’m still getting to know everyone, and their fascinating life stories. 

Outside of work, I’m a big animal lover: I have a dog, a rabbit and a cockatoo. When I’m not caring for them, I like to unwind with a glass of something and my favourite American boxset!

Peter Aston
Maintenance

I’m an experienced Maintenance Manager and worked in a privately owned nursing home prior to joining the Mercia Grange team.

I heard a lot of good things about Mercia Grange – it has an amazing reputation – and I knew I’d have different and interesting challenges to tackle here working as part of a bigger organisation.

The end of the day is my favourite part of the day because I know all my jobs are completed and I’ve helped to keep Mercia Grange running smoothly. I enjoy working on my own initiative and supporting the residents by ensuring everything’s working well and is safe for them. There are some incredible people who call Mercia Grange ‘home’ and I’m enjoying getting to know them and learning about their lives. 

In my spare time I enjoy riding motorbikes, reading, watching films and playing board games and video games. 

Our experienced teams

Every day Care UK colleagues live our values of passionate, caring and teamwork to empower residents to enjoy fulfilling lives.

Carers

Our hardworking teams always keep individuals and their families at the heart of the care they provide. We work with you to shape the care your loved one receives, the food they’re served, the activities and experiences they want to do – even the ways they prefer to keep in touch with their friends and family. 

Nurses

The nurses at Care UK are highly skilled and receive sector-leading training, which enables them to keep developing expertise in different clinical fields from dementia to palliative care.

Lifestyle

Our dedicated lifestyle teams work hard to organise a range of activities and events at our home. From gardening and baking to quizzes, music sessions and even live entertainment. Above all, we get to know your loved one to make sure our activities are tailored to suit their interests and hobbies.

Home support roles

From catering to maintenance, housekeeping to administration, our home support teams play a crucial part in ensuring individuals enjoy an exceptional and safe service every day.

All our teams get to know each person they care for to ensure they provide a service that’s designed around their unique needs and tastes. 

Infection control

Each of our homes have a trained Infection Control and Prevention Champion – they are responsible for carrying out daily infection control audit and ensuring cleaning protocols are meticulously applied.