Iris Care Group

13/11/2025

Iris Care Group is delighted to be supporting the Restraint Reduction Network’s Annual Conference today ⬇️

This year’s topic – “The art of the possible: paving the way towards a restraint-free future” - is centred on the power of relationships and compassion in transforming care, exploring what is possible when proactive, needs-based support and genuine relational engagement is made a priority.

Dr Andrew Hider, our Clinical Director, will also be in attendance and holding a workshop – “Responding to the data – individualising restraint reduction in complex care settings” – outlining the use of novel processes to target restraint reduction interventions for individual service users.

You can learn more about the Restraint Reduction Network and this year’s conference here: https://restraintreductionnetwork.org/event/restraint-reduction-network-conference-2025/

The art of the possible: paving the way towards a restraint-free future We are delighted to announce that this year’s Restraint Reduction Network Conference wil

05/11/2025

Please join us in congratulating Marcus Allen, winner of the Exceptional Training and Development Program award at this year’s Neurological and Complex Care Awards 🎉

Marcus is our Security Lead at Heatherwood Court Hospital, and he has been recognised with this national award for the exceptional work he has done to develop and deliver staff training that has enabled the team to provide safe and outstanding care to the individuals that they support.

The team at the Neurological and Complex Care Awards said:

“Marcus demonstrated professionalism and insight, clearly articulating the development and delivery of the service and the significant impact training has had on staff confidence and capability, enhancing service user safety. Marcus stood out for providing concrete examples that directly linked the programme to measurable improvements in practice.”

All of us at Iris Care Group are incredibly proud of Marcus, and it is fantastic to see him being celebrated for his contributions to Heatherwood Court – a big congratulations to Marcus!

04/11/2025

This week we’re celebrating our teams at the Great British Care Awards in the South West and Wales regional finals 🎉

The team at Beech House, a community residential service in South Wales, has been selected as finalists for the Care Home Team Award. Two staff members from Beech House have also been chosen as finalists, including Molly Sheehan (Assistant Manager) for the Frontline Leader Award, and Masakazu Takahashi (Support Worker) for the Care Home Worker Award.

We’ll also be celebrating Bethel Nnadi Odia (Senior Support Worker) from the Fieldview team in Gloucester, who has been nominated for not one, but two awards this year – the Putting People First Award, and the Frontline Leader Award.

We’re incredibly proud of our teams, and it’s an honour to see their work and achievements recognised on a national scale – all of us at Iris Care Group are wishing them the best of luck on the awards night!

01/11/2025

For yet another year, Ty Mynydd has received an excellent report following the home’s latest inspection from Care Inspectorate Wales – well done team!

The report highlighted the meaningful goals and positive outcomes that the Ty Mynydd team supports people to achieve, as well as the home’s strong and effective leadership and high-performing team.

Congratulations to Rhia Mills (Ty Mynydd’s Home Manager) and her entire team for this outstanding result!

Based in Treherbert in South Wales, Ty Mynydd provides 24/7 care and support for adults with mental health needs in the community: https://www.iriscaregroup.co.uk/home/ty-mynydd/

28/10/2025

We’re proud to share that several outstanding team members from our specialist hospitals have been selected as national finalists at this year’s Neurological and Complex Care Awards 🎉

St Peter’s Hospital has been shortlisted for the Best Multidisciplinary Team Award, recognising the team’s person-centred and collaborative approach to complex neuropsychiatric care.

We’re also thrilled to share that Amy Dymond, the service’s Hospital Director, has been recognised for her exceptional leadership as a finalist for Manager of the Year Award.

At Heatherwood Court Hospital, Marcus Allen, Security Lead, has also been recognised as a finalist for the Exceptional Training and Development Programme Award, celebrating the incredible work Marcus has done to deliver training that improves both patient and staff safety at the hospital.

These nominations reflect the excellence, dedication and commitment to person-centred care that defines our teams at Iris Care Group, and we’ll be cheering them on at the official awards tonight!

04/08/2025

At our latest Whispers Forum meeting we were delighted to welcome Lucy from Healthwatch Gloucestershire, who joined the people we support for an open conversation about health and social care services in the local area, accessibility in the community, and their lived experiences.

The session sparked thoughtful discussion and insightful feedback about how we can make communities more accessible and inclusive for people with complex needs.

Following this great discussion, the group held their first round of voting for their new official logo. The designs - all submitted by talented students from Kingsweston School in Bristol – were thoughtfully designed and full of creativity. The forum is excited to unveil their new official logo soon - stay tuned!

A big thank you to Lucy from Healthwatch Gloucestershire for coming to speak with us at the Whispers Forum, and to the students at Kingsweston School for your fantastic logo submissions.

03/08/2025

Episode 1 of the new Leading Through Crisis podcast explores the role of leadership during crisis management in social care, including the crucial 48-hour period after a serious incident, and communicating effectively and respectfully with families, staff, and regulators.

Hosted by Iris Care Group’s Chairman, Peter Kinsey, and Laura Jordan, Partner at Anthony Collins, this new series was created to help social care professional navigate common and emerging challenges in the sector - listen to episode 1 below:

https://www.iriscaregroup.co.uk/blog/leading-through-crisis-podcast-e1/

Listen to episode one of Leading Through Crisis, a new podcast series for social care professionals hosted by Peter Kinsey and Laura Jordan.