Midlands Enterprise Awards 2020

43 | Midlands Enterprise Awards 2020 Empowering U is one of the UK’s fastest growing complex care providers, specialising in care and support for children and adults with clinical needs, learning disabilities, autism and behaviours that challenge. Everything they do is underpinned by the belief that they can transform choices through dedicated time and effort to allow the people in their care to lead happy, fulfilled lives that are lived to the fullest extent. Having grown to a staff of over 200 people across the Midlands in just over half a decade, we found out more about how Empowering U is changing lives. Established in 2014, Empowering U is an established complex care provider that has grown organically to provide unparalleled, specialised care and support for adults and children with clinical needs, learning difficulties, autism and behaviours that challenge. Operating across the Midlands, Shropshire and Lincolnshire, and with more than twenty-five years of experience in the health and social care sector, Empowering U aims to promote dignity and choice through excellent staffing. All members of the Empowering U team are dedicated to going above and beyond for those in their care and receive regular training that exceeds national regulatory requirements. Each team has vast experience and expertise that is implemented into each package of care, so as to deliver the highest outcomes. This is why the Empowering U logo is the Tree of Life. It is not enough to do the bare minimum when providing complex care and Empowering U’s Tree of Life encapsulates the company’s commitment to constantly striving towards a positive attitude and perseverance, even in the midst of the bleakest times. As a result, Empowering U ensures its users are able to live their lives to the fullest extent. As a result, Empowering U recruit staff who are resilient and honest, with a strong character and the makings of a role model. Complex care is a fun, weird and wonderful sector to be a part of, but it can at times be hard, and always requires professionalism and a people-centric approach. Recognising the importance of this and continuity in care, Empowering U offers well-led, responsive and caring services thanks to thorough training through theory and physical courses which are regularly reviewed and updated. The management team carries out spot checks, continually supervising its teams and maintaining an open-door policy so as to communicate with staff on the frontlines whenever necessary. Best Homecare Services Provider 2020 Most importantly, Empowering U only recruits people who want to have a long career in care and are always looking to be better. They aim to promote staff internally through the organisation and share a defined career pathway. Those who join are passionate about care, are compassionate and communicate appropriately with vulnerable people. Being in the West Midlands presents a lot of benefits for the complex care provider, namely its excellent transport links and pools of talent within the area. However, lack of public funding in the region often compounds the challenges of working in complex care, and this growing trend is making it harder to attract and retain staff. Fortunately, the organisation was not adversely affected by Covid-19, except for some difficulties in the early months in securing PPE, but having the infrastructure already in place for remote working meant that operation was largely able to continue undisrupted. Indeed, there is now an increased interest in homecare as a more people-centred, undisruptive way of providing care and support for someone who needs it. This means that they are able to live at home or in supported accommodation with continued access to their local community, enabling them to continue living full lives as independently as possible. As Empowering U looks ahead, the team is considering how they can continue to offer the best services in complex care to even more people around the UK. In doing so, they are able to reflect on their ‘Good’ rating that was awarded by the Care Quality Commission to their registered branches. The assessment considered whether the service was safe, effective, caring, responsive and well led. Overall, the feedback was excellent, with comments about how the organisation is ‘passionate’ about supporting people to ‘live their best lives’. It is a source of great pride to Empowering U that they have been officially recognised for achieving what they set out to do. Contact: hello@empoweringu.co.uk Tel: 0330 128 1722 Web Address: www.empoweringu.co.uk Oct20786