A Big Achievement!

Meet Our Bluebird family superhero: The Rachael, Head of care

Not all superheroes wear a cap, but our Rachael deserves one. She has won Women Achieving Greatness in Social Care 22(WAGS). 

Rachael Benn, our Head of Care, joined us during the first year of Covid in august 2020. Her CV was impressive, as she had worked in various areas of care. Originally trained as a nurse, she diverted her career into teaching at colleges in Health and Social Care department. She moved up the ladder and oversaw the running of the education program for year groups 9- 11 at the college. With this expertise in assessing, mentorship, and investing time in people’s training and development, Rachael moved into the volatile world of Domiciliary care. Originally, she also was responsible for the training of the care assistants, but Rachael worked in the field doing hands-on care in the community as well. Rachael is a big believer in building teams to support you as a manager. She herself leads by example, and she often empowers her staff to take ownership of their roles. As owners of 5 branches and 180 staff, we saw how well-organised, driven, and engaged she is with all her staff. She is positive-minded. No job is too much. Combined with her astute intellect, we quickly realised that we had a Head of Care in the making which is responsible for making sure that managers are running smooth and compliant businesses. She is well respected for her gung-ho attitude. Firm but fair. At home, Rachael is a big family person. She has her own three children, and she used to be a foster mum of many children in the past. Supported by her patient husband, she is helping us firefight all the headwinds we are dealing with and constantly coming up with new ways to change our business in the new era. 
As a part of the Bluebird care family, she supports us in providing high-quality domiciliary care, which supports you to keep safe and comfortable and live independently in your own home. Rachael has 30 years of experience in the Health and Social Care sector, working in hospitals and residential and domiciliary care. Rachael is a Qualified Teacher Status (QTLS), Assessor and Trainer. In her spare time, Rachael likes to spend time with her family and loves to read and travel. Rachael is responsible for the overall day-to-day running of Care Operations across all branches.
She is a social care superwoman, without a doubt.

About Award- Care Talk magazine and Kent Integrated Care Alliance (KICA) came together and collaborated to introduce Women Achieving Greatness in Social Care Awards (WAGS). Over 85% of the social care workforce is female. Many of these hard-working, dedicated and talented women juggle the challenges of family life with their careers. The purpose of the WAGS is to promote gender equity and promote and celebrate the incredible achievements of our female workforce.