Company Background
Way Ahead Care is a family run business providing homecare & support to adults of all ages and disabilities to ensure continued wellbeing and independence. We strive to provide quality and flexible domiciliary care and support services within the comfort of the individual's own home. This can delivered through either private bespoke services purchased directly or through our contracts working in partnership with the Local Authorities, using conventional funding, Direct Payments or an Individual/Personal Budgets.
We are able to offer a wide range of care & support services designed to meet the individual's needs. This can be either a short term arrangement to assist during rehabilitation or reablement, longer term support to meet specific ongoing needs or more specialised 24hr care.
In addition to our ongoing care and support services Way Ahead Care has often been commissioned by Local Authorities to deliver specialist services to meet specific needs or demands. These include a Rapid Response Service operating from Musgrove Park Hospital in Taunton, providing immediate care and support services for those requiring assistance at home upon discharge from hospital, and Out of Hours Service in partnership with Taunton Deane Borough Council and the PCT preventing un-necessary hospital and residential care admissions.
Way Ahead Care not only cares for it Service Users but also its staff and continually invests in its own training division, Step Ahead Training, actively encourages staff to further themselves with continual training and internal pathways. This commitment to training and workforce development is evidenced through its continual Investors in People recognition.
Way Ahead Care is a family run business providing homecare & support to adults of all ages and disabilities to ensure continued wellbeing and independence. We strive to provide quality and flexible domiciliary care and support services within the comfort of the individual's own home. This can delivered through either private bespoke services purchased directly or through our contracts working in partnership with the Local Authorities, using conventional funding, Direct Payments or an Individual/Personal Budgets.
We are able to offer a wide range of care & support services designed to meet the individual's needs. This can be either a short term arrangement to assist during rehabilitation or reablement, longer term support to meet specific ongoing needs or more specialised 24hr care.
In addition to our ongoing care and support services Way Ahead Care has often been commissioned by Local Authorities to deliver specialist services to meet specific needs or demands. These include a Rapid Response Service operating from Musgrove Park Hospital in Taunton, providing immediate care and support services for those requiring assistance at home upon discharge from hospital, and Out of Hours Service in partnership with Taunton Deane Borough Council and the PCT preventing un-necessary hospital and residential care admissions.
Way Ahead Care not only cares for it Service Users but also its staff and continually invests in its own training division, Step Ahead Training, actively encourages staff to further themselves with continual training and internal pathways. This commitment to training and workforce development is evidenced through its continual Investors in People recognition.
Area of Operation
Meet the Directors
Pamela Smith – Managing Director
After working many years in Office Management, Accounts and Administration I decided on a change of direction. After a college course I obtained qualifications in Care Management. I then applied for a post of Community Care Assistant to obtain some “hands on” experience. At the interview the owner of the Nursing Home explained that she wanted to develop a Domiciliary Service, operating from the nursing home. It so happened that one of her residents wanted to return to her home and be cared for by her husband with support from care staff. This was to become the first Service User for Way Ahead. During this discussion the home owner and myself really “jelled” and had very similar views as to how this could work and be promoted to expand the service.
After a two and a half hour interview, I was offered the position of managing and developing this service. That was in January 1994 and by March 1994 I had expanded the service so much we could no longer be accommodated within the nursing home and we moved the service to The Albemarle Centre, where we operated until 2004. It was also in March 1994 that the home owner decided she had to retire and sell the nursing home, and I was asked to take over the domiciliary service as the buyers were not interested in domiciliary care.
I was certain that home-care would be the way forward for care services and that there was a huge potential for this service, but I wanted it to be a really quality service and one that care staff would be proud to be involved in. I remember saying I would like to be “the Marks and Spencer’s of Care” as I felt they had such good staff conditions and training and provided a really good service. I made Way Ahead into a limited company and have not really looked back.
From the very start I used all my skills from my office background and put systems, policies and procedures in place that seemed common sense to me, but I came to realise the care sector at this time, was not used to this way of working. I wanted my staff to be properly trained and the Service Users we supported to have the quality service I would want for any member of my family. I was amazed at the lack of regulation at this time. Anyone could put out a sign that said they were a provider of domiciliary care. They did not need any qualification or training of any kind, and therefore nor did the staff!
One of my first problems was accessing proper training for my staff. Very little training was available for care staff, and what training was available was for nursing home staff, working under the guidance of qualified nurses, and not domiciliary staff, that would be working alone in someone’s home. I decided the best thing would be to run my own training, and developed courses that all my staff had to pass. We had a “Way Ahead Certificate of Competence”, that all our staff had to achieve. As this training developed I realised we could sell this to other providers, and Step Ahead Training Centre was born.
The lack of regulation also concerned me, and I joined a working group for Somerset County Council to compile the criteria for a Voluntary Registration Schemes for Care Providers. This was put in place and many of Way Ahead’s Policies and Procedures were used as a base for the inspection process and Way Ahead was the first company to be inspected under this criteria for Somerset.
As the media picked up on care related issues the Community Care Act came into being and we are now regulated by law by the Care Quality Commission, and, of course Health and Safety became involved and changed the way we had to work. How things have moved on!
I am proud of Way Ahead Care; domiciliary care is not an easy service to provide, it is a service that never stops, twenty four hours a day, seven days a week. Managing this service is a huge challenge that stretches managers to their limits, but one thing is for sure...it is never boring!
After working many years in Office Management, Accounts and Administration I decided on a change of direction. After a college course I obtained qualifications in Care Management. I then applied for a post of Community Care Assistant to obtain some “hands on” experience. At the interview the owner of the Nursing Home explained that she wanted to develop a Domiciliary Service, operating from the nursing home. It so happened that one of her residents wanted to return to her home and be cared for by her husband with support from care staff. This was to become the first Service User for Way Ahead. During this discussion the home owner and myself really “jelled” and had very similar views as to how this could work and be promoted to expand the service.
After a two and a half hour interview, I was offered the position of managing and developing this service. That was in January 1994 and by March 1994 I had expanded the service so much we could no longer be accommodated within the nursing home and we moved the service to The Albemarle Centre, where we operated until 2004. It was also in March 1994 that the home owner decided she had to retire and sell the nursing home, and I was asked to take over the domiciliary service as the buyers were not interested in domiciliary care.
I was certain that home-care would be the way forward for care services and that there was a huge potential for this service, but I wanted it to be a really quality service and one that care staff would be proud to be involved in. I remember saying I would like to be “the Marks and Spencer’s of Care” as I felt they had such good staff conditions and training and provided a really good service. I made Way Ahead into a limited company and have not really looked back.
From the very start I used all my skills from my office background and put systems, policies and procedures in place that seemed common sense to me, but I came to realise the care sector at this time, was not used to this way of working. I wanted my staff to be properly trained and the Service Users we supported to have the quality service I would want for any member of my family. I was amazed at the lack of regulation at this time. Anyone could put out a sign that said they were a provider of domiciliary care. They did not need any qualification or training of any kind, and therefore nor did the staff!
One of my first problems was accessing proper training for my staff. Very little training was available for care staff, and what training was available was for nursing home staff, working under the guidance of qualified nurses, and not domiciliary staff, that would be working alone in someone’s home. I decided the best thing would be to run my own training, and developed courses that all my staff had to pass. We had a “Way Ahead Certificate of Competence”, that all our staff had to achieve. As this training developed I realised we could sell this to other providers, and Step Ahead Training Centre was born.
The lack of regulation also concerned me, and I joined a working group for Somerset County Council to compile the criteria for a Voluntary Registration Schemes for Care Providers. This was put in place and many of Way Ahead’s Policies and Procedures were used as a base for the inspection process and Way Ahead was the first company to be inspected under this criteria for Somerset.
As the media picked up on care related issues the Community Care Act came into being and we are now regulated by law by the Care Quality Commission, and, of course Health and Safety became involved and changed the way we had to work. How things have moved on!
I am proud of Way Ahead Care; domiciliary care is not an easy service to provide, it is a service that never stops, twenty four hours a day, seven days a week. Managing this service is a huge challenge that stretches managers to their limits, but one thing is for sure...it is never boring!
Carol Evans – Company Secretary
After achieving a BSc Hons in Biochemistry at Leeds University Carol served within the Royal Navy as a Lieutenant from 1989 – 1997. Originally joining Way Ahead in 1997 Carol was responsible for the development and implementation of Way Ahead’s own training division Step Ahead Training Centre. After another brief spell in the Navy working within media relations Carol returned to Way Ahead in 2007 as Company Secretary and Manager of Way Ahead’s finance department.
Richard Smith – Company Director
Originally studying Performing Arts and Rock & Popular Music Richard worked briefly as a professional bass player but joined the family business in 1999. Initially working with Way Ahead’s training division, Step Ahead Training Centre; Richard began to work within personnel and contracts. Richard is now responsible for the Image and Marketing of Way Ahead, ensures that the business meets its contractual obligations within the Social Services purchased provision, and explores further developments for the company.
Caroline Bosley – Director of Care & Support Services
Caroline started her career within the industry as an NHS Health Care Assistant before moving into local Residential & Nursing Home as an Activities Co-ordinator. In 1997 Caroline join Windsor Homecare as a Homecare Manager and held both Regional and Operation Manger positions before joining Somerset Care at Home, one of the biggest providers of care in the South West in 2003. As Operations & Development Manager Caroline ensured the company’s strategic objectives were met throughout all its geographical areas. Caroline joined Way Ahead as Director or Care & Support Services in October 2009.
