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Our team at
Mercia Grange

Trusted to care in
Sutton Coldfield, West Midlands

Trusted to care in
Sutton Coldfield, West Midlands|With 40 years’ experience,
Care UK are experts in delivering award winning care|Care UK is the most awarded care home provider for the last three years|Discover why Care UK is trusted to care by over 9,000 families

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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.

Michael McNelis

Home Manager

Michael McNelis

I love being part of Care UK as they value people and has a total focus on delivering outstanding-quality care.

Mercia Grange is a stunning care home with a great team. I joined Care UK after working as an interim manager at a not-for-profit organisation. I received a post-graduate degree in Business Management from Leeds University Business School and a Certificate in Management from Leicester University.

As a Home Manager, you must be totally focused in providing a quality living experience for the residents who we are entrusted to care for. You need to be positive and value the team that delivers care in the home, as well as ensuring any concerns of residents and their families are addressed immediately.

My favourite part of the day is being on the floor with residents and team members when they are enjoying their time together. It’s wonderful to have laughter and smiling faces in the home. The most important part of my role is ensuring all aspects of residents’ daily living experiences are centred around their wishes.

Outside of work, family is my number one priority. As I live on a livery yard, horses are a big part of my interests outside of work. I do the maintenance and leave the horse riding to my wife and daughters. I’m also an animal lover: we have dogs, a cat, five ducks and chickens.

Tsitsi Bondeponde
Tsitsi Bondeponde
Deputy Manager

As the Clinical Deputy Manager at Mercia Grange, my role is to work together with all team members from all the departments in the home to provide a good standard of care to residents. In this role, it’s important to have good communication skills and be empathetic and easy to approach. You also need to be a good team builder and educator.

I love spending time on one-to-one sessions with residents, as it gives me the chance to learn more about their individual interests and tastes and to find ways to improve their experience at Mercia Grange. I take pride in improving the lives of residents in our care.

I enjoy travelling, reading and listening to music when I’m not working. I also love spending time with my family.

Rachel Mackay
Rachel Mackay
Customer Relations Manager
5 Year Service Badge

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.

Sam Ng
Sam Ng
Lifestyle Lead
1 Year Service Badge

I joined Care UK because its values are aligned with my beliefs. Being able to make a positive change in residents’ lives and put a smile on their faces makes me proud of my work.

To do this role well, you need to be passionate, enthusiastic, understanding, responsible and organised.
I love interacting with residents. It’s rewarding to be able to get to know each of them and provide them with a meaningful and fulfilling life.

Outside of work, I’m a Stage 2 Trainee Health Psychologist, doing a professional doctorate course in Health Psychology at Staffordshire University. I previously obtained a BSc Psychology at the University of Sheffield and a MSc Health Psychology at the University of Derby.

I understand the importance of staying physically active, so I exercise a lot outside work. I have been dancing ballet for over 20 years and started pole fitness 1.5 years ago. I enjoy going for a walk and working out as well.

Kim Nicholls
Kim Nicholls
Activities Coordinator
5 Year Service Badge

I worked as a Care Assistant in the community for some years before I decided I was ready for a change. I knew I wanted to stay in care, so I applied for a job at Mercia Grange. On the day of my interview, I had a warm welcome from all the team members and my interview went well, so when I was offered the job I cancelled all my other interviews because I felt this was the right place for me.

In my role as Activities Coordinator, it’s important make sure residents are enjoying a meaningful lifestyle and doing things they like to do. I love helping to fulfil their wishes and supporting them to go places they never thought they would be able to go again. I felt a huge sense of pride when I passed my test to drive the home’s minibus. It means I can fulfil even more residents’ wishes.

In this role, you need to be kind, caring, friendly and energetic. You also need to have a good sense of humour and good ideas. Being able to make residents happy makes me proud of what I do. I enjoy any part of the day when I can engage with residents and see them smile while taking part in activities they enjoy.

I’m a mother of four and I have six grandchildren with two more on the way, so outside of work a lot of my time is spent with them, going on day trips, holidays or just having fun. I really enjoy crochet too, and I make a lot of different things.

Amanda Wassell
Amanda Wassell
Head Chef
1 Year Service Badge

I’ve been cooking for 36 years, and I’ve also worked as a Deputy Manager. I knew Care UK as I had worked for them for four years previous to joining Mercia Grange.

My role is to provide the residents at Mercia Grange with the best possible dining experience I can give.

In this role, patience is very important. You also need to be able to do more than one thing at once! Having a bit of flare to make the food look nice is also a key characteristic. I love mealtimes at Mercia Grange when I can see the residents eating and enjoying what we have produced. It makes me proud to watch them enjoying their food.

Outside of work, I enjoy baking cakes, walking my dog, spending time with family and friends and going on holidays.

Shelly-Ann Gabbidon
Shelly-Ann Gabbidon
Nurse
5 Year Service Badge

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
Lisa Woodall
Business Administrator
5 Year Service Badge

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.

Susan McDarby
Susan McDarby
Head Housekeeper
5 Year Service Badge

Before joining Mercia Grange, I was working as a carer in the community. I was keen to join Care UK because both of my daughters worked there and had good things to say.

Getting the role of Head Housekeeper was the highlight of my career so far. In this role, it's important to be approachable, reliable and organised, and to work well as part of a team. My favourite part of the day is when I’ve come to the end of my shift and I know I’ve fulfilled my job role for that day. I’m proud that the cleanliness of the home is kept up to high standards.

Outside of work, I enjoy spending time with my family, including my grandchildren and my animals.

Mitchell Hampson
Mitchell Hampson
Maintenance

I was working as a wall and floor tiler before joining Care UK. I was keen to work here because they offered good working hours that worked around my family and a challenging role with something different every day.

As Maintenance Manager, you need to be hardworking, hands on and willing to learn. You also need to think outside the box and have good time management and communication skills.

I love that every day I get to meet different contractors and learn new skills to help develop my knowledge and understanding. Fixing problems within the home helps the residents to have a comfortable and enjoyable time here, and that makes me proud of what I do.

Outside of work, I enjoy football, boxing and spending time with my daughter.

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.