Senior Management Team

Tim Lee - BSc (Hons) Econ Dip.RSA

CEO

I joined Helping Hands formally in 1996; I say ‘formally’ because I’ve been involved in our family business since my mother, Mary Lee, founded the company in 1989. In the early years I helped out when I was home from University; helping with telephone calls and customer visits – anything to help really, gaining experience from the ground up.

As CEO, I’ve seen a lot of a change in the home care industry and I’ve overseen a lot of change within Helping Hands. I really believe in the potential of home care and what it can do for peoples’ quality of life; our customers have the opportunity to stay at home and live as independently as possible, and that can only have a positive effect on the quality of their life and the lives of their families. I passionately believe that our company must strive to exceed our customers’ expectations from the first time they call and throughout the care delivery service.

In addition to my Degree, I hold the Registered Manager's Award NVQ 4 and have completed NVQ4 in Care.

Ben Lee - BSc (Hons) Stats 

Chief Operating Officer

I came to work at Helping Hands full time in 1999; like my brother Tim, I had been ‘unofficially’ involved in our family business long before that. In fact I used to help out with payroll when I was at school, obviously destined to be involved in Finance from an early age!

I became Company Secretary in 2003 and looked after all aspects of our accounts and payroll with my team in the accounts department including a payroll for over 900 employees. My role now as Chief Operating Officer involves me overseeing the day to day running of all operational departments within Helping Hands looking for the best efficiencies and systems for these departments. I strongly believe that if we are to continue to offer our customers the very best in home care service, we need to remain the employer of choice for all care and office staff. By being the company that the very best people in our industry want to work for, we can offer our customers the very best carers and service in their own homes.

Lindsey Edgehill - C.I.M & BA (Hons)

Marketing Director

I have worked for Helping Hands for over 5 years now and during that time have seen a huge increase in demand for information and our service.  The current social and economic climate means that now, more than ever, people need to be aware of all of their options to allow them to make an informed decision. Its key to my role therefore  to build awareness of the live-in service and keep pace with the opportunities that constantly present themselves. I am proud to be part of an organisation that is so passionate about its service and the welfare of its customers and carers. Not everyone gets to go to work and know they have really made a difference to peoples lives, here we get to do just that.

Jonathan Billings

Recruitment Director 

When the opportunity at Helping Hands came along I was delighted to accept the role of Recruitment Director as not only do I have a recruitment background, but I also have personal experience in care. When I was 16 my mother became terminally ill and took I two years out of my education to help look after her along with my older brother.

I love getting up in the morning and getting excited about how I can plan the day ahead. My typical day involves overseeing the long and short term recruitment strategies, ensuring that our recruitment processes are running smoothly and efficiently and that we are attracting and recruiting the right level of applicants.

I get huge satisfaction in watching people develop their skills and reach their potential and I love management of both systems and people

Ilze Careless - Dip.RSA

Registered Manager

My job, as Registered Manager, is to ensure that all aspects of our business comply with the regulations set out by CQC -The Care Quality Commission. I have spent 13 years working within domiciliary care at Helping Hands Homecare and have been involved with all aspects of recruitment, administration, care management, care delivery, training and policies & procedures. I hold the Registered Manager’s Award NVQ 4 and Professional Trainers Certificate CIEH

Alison Bond - BA (Hons) & Dip.RSA 

Director of Live in Services

I started with Helping Hands in 2003, initially working on our Hourly service before becoming a Live-in Care Manager. The experience of working with our customers on a daily basis really helped me understand what makes a good home care agency great in the eyes of its customers.

Having had experience in both the Hourly and Live in sides of the business my role now involves analysing the structure of the Live in Service and challenging current practices to see how we can further improve the service we offer. It is vital that what we do reflects the customer’s needs and wants and supports our carers in their varied roles. 

I am proud of what our service enables our customers to do either within their own home, that of their family or in the wider community, be that at work, university or any chosen social setting.  Greatest satisfaction can be gained when as an organisation we can see the changes that have given one of our customers a quality of life and an independence they may have felt was no longer possible. Positive feedback about our carers and the difference they have made makes the job undeniably worthwhile.

Samantha Grabham - Dip.RSA

Head of Department New Business

I started working with Helping Hands in 1994 as a Live-in Carer. I spent 3 ½ wonderful years working in the homes of some lovely people before I joined the Live-in Care office team, eventually heading up the Live-in Department. Having been a Carer, I understand the responsibility that our customers and their families put in our hands and the trust that they have in us.

I now manage the New Business team, I am responsible for the set up and commencement of all new Live-in Care packages and developing the business. I get great satisfaction from enabling people to get appropriate support and being able to stay in their own home. I hold the Dip.RSA Registered Managers Award and I’m a Qualified Level 2 Assessor. 

Kate Halden - BA (Hons) & NVQ 3 Health and Social Care

Head of Department Live-in  

I joined Helping Hands in 2007 as a Care Manager, I am now Head of the Live-in Department. My role is to over see the Live-in Department, supporting Care Managers, Local Care Service Managers, co-ordinators and the resource team. I get great satisfaction from my role, seeing the difference our service makes to the lives of individuals and their families, allowing people to remain in their homes and maintain maximum independence.  People are interesting and unique and everyone wants something different from care; our service promotes that and treats each service user as an individual meeting their needs in the way that suits them best.  Also seeing the reward that carers get from undertaking their role; I have great respect for anyone who takes up a career in live in care as it is a huge commitment, but we have amazing individuals working for us who each bring something special to their placements

Amy Gillman - BTEC Business and Finance, NVQ 3 Health and Social Care

Head of Department - Hourly

I joined Helping Hands as a Live-in Care Manager but I have now moved across to the Hourly Care side of Helping Hands.  My role now involves ensuring that we constantly provide a quality service by keeping a close eye on our processes and procedues to see how we can further improve the service we offer. I get great satisfaction from ensuring my department are happy and motivated andachieve their goals with my support

Julie Mills

Training Manager

I have worked for Helping Hands for nine years, six of those have been office based and now I am the Training Manager. I am based at our Minerva Mill Training Centre, ensuring the training centre, training programmes and team run smoothly. I love my role at Helping Hands, I joined the training team to pass on my experience and knowledge to new and existing carers. I now manage the induction training programme and I am qualified to provide training on all standards for the Skills for Care Common Induction as well as supporting all carers in their role. To see new carers gain skills, knowledge and experience, enabling them to support their customers is the most rewarding part of my role

Sian Usherwood - ACCA

Head of Accounts Department

Karen Rayfield 

Senior HR Manager