Meet the Hurstwood View Care Home team

Hi, my name is Sam, and I am the Deputy Manager here at Hurstwood View.

Ever since I was a little girl, I have always wanted to care for people and dreamed about being a nurse for many years. I began studying Nursing at Swansea University in 2006, straight from school and, when I qualified in 2009, my first position was working on an ICU. I worked there for over six years and this helped me to develop my clinical skills. I learnt how to give individualised care and support to patients and families. I always feel a great sense of achievement working as a nurse,  knowing I can make a difference in people’s lives.

I have been at Hurstwood View since May 2017, starting out as a nurse before making the jump to Deputy Manager 6 months later. I love the interactions with all the residents and enjoy singing and dancing with them! I enjoy doing group crosswords too, and we now have a big team of crossword experts.

I have been working in the care sector since 2005. I started off as a care assistant and have worked for many different homes, including a hospital specialising in orthopaedic surgery. During my career, I have gained my NVQ 2 and 3 in Health and Social Care, but my passion throughout my career has always been for looking after individuals who are living with dementia.

I am really enjoying my role on Memory Lane, working alongside a fantastic team and very supportive management. It really is a privilege to be part of the Memory Lane community and to share the journeys with each individual.

Hi, my name is Cathryn, and I joined the team at Hurstwood View in August 2017 as the Administrator. I have worked in care home administration since 2002 and have since gained an NVQ Level 3 in Business Administration.

My role includes managing the financial systems in the home, HR, enquiry management and working closely with the General Manager. My favourite part of the role is interacting with residents and their families. 

I have been working in the healthcare Industry for the past 8 years and joined Barchester in 2012 when Hurstwood View opened. I am employed as an administration assistant. My job includes answering the telephone and keeping up with invoicing as well as other daily administrative roles. The best part of my role is welcoming residents and their family and friends to our lovely home. Each guest receives a smile and offered refreshments.

Hurstwood View is truly a wonderful place to work every day is different and we are a real and growing community. In my leisure time I spend as much time as I can with my 3 grandchildren who are a delight. I also enjoy reading and am currently working my way through Divided Loyalties by Patricia Scanlon. I also enjoy Jigsaws, crosswords and especially scrabble (although, the latter I am not very good at).

I joined the team at Hurstwood View in June 2015 as an Activities Coordinator. I began working within the care industry 12 years ago, beginning as a support worker and outreach coordinator at Headway in Newick. This position paved the way to me attending the University of Northampton to work towards various qualifications within the Acquired Brain Injury field, which I am incredibly proud of.

Most recently, before joining Hurstwood View, I worked with the South East Coast Ambulance service as a full time Emergency Medical Advisor. I was the first point of contact for 999 calls to the ambulance service. This job was incredibly rewarding and fast moving, as you would imagine! In the November of 2013, however, my partner and I had the biggest surprise when we found out that I was pregnant with our first baby, Pippa, who is now fast-approaching the terrible twos. This lead me to find a role which was a little less stressful and allowed me more time to spend with our little girl, and this is how I came to work at Hurstwood View.

I am loving my career as an Activities Coordinator as I really enjoy the arts and crafts, am a keen baker, and love finding interesting places to visit. I particularly enjoy when we have the Pet Pals in, as the residents absolutely love seeing and interacting with the animals, as do I! In the past year we’ve also had many brilliant musicians in, which often leads to a little sing along and a boogie. One of my favourite trips we have been on is to our cherry tree in Northiam where, once a year, we get to go and pick cherries from our own tree, and get to enjoy a picnic in the great outdoors. We also bring plenty home for residents to share with friends! If you want to see more of the sorts of activities we get up to at Hurstwood View then pop by the Life at Our Home section on the website.

My name is Sam and I am an Activities Coordinator here at Hurstwood View, and I joined the team in later 2018.

The home has such a friendly & welcoming atmosphere; it feels like one big family. I take great satisfaction in contributing and making the residents' days happy and fulfilled. I like to organise activities that are both engaging and meaningful, and I look forward to coming back to work each day to see everyone again. 

In September 2011, my partner & I arrived back in the UK after 21 years of living in Australia to be with our ageing family. I had no idea what kind of job I wanted to do but I didn't want to go back to Driving Instructing or the IT industry so the ad for an admin assistant at Hurstwood View jumped out at me & I haven't looked back since I joined in June 2012. I love the interaction with the residents & families, also the fact that everyday at Hurstwood View is never the same as the day before!

Hi, my name is Christine and I have worked at Hurstwood View since November 2012 as an Admin Assistant. I have a background in administration and finance. I love to travel and enjoy watching musicals and most sports, especially tennis, swimming and football.

I enjoy working at Hurstwood View, as no two days are the same. I enjoy meeting and greeting people and building a rapport with residents and their loved ones.

Hurstwood View is a friendly and happy place to work in.

My name is Martin Harle and I am the Head Chef at Hurstwood View.

I have 40 years experience in the catering industry. It was in September 2012 when I helped to open Hurstwood View and I have enjoyed every minute of my work here. Working with fresh produce is both rewarding and interesting and helps me create seasonal menus which our residents enjoy very much. I also work with a very professional team that are both friendly and willing to support me in the day to day running of the kitchen. Hurstwood View is a beautiful place to work but more importantly offers excellent care,our home is also upbeat and we have lots of fun.

Staff and residents interact very well and there is very much a family feel to Hurstwood View. We also enjoy visits from family members who enjoy the ambience of Husrtwood View and the food. We have a full activities programme at our home and trips out,this all adds to the life we all experience here. In my spare time I like to go fishing, watch football. I am also a keen DYS person.

I have been working in the catering industry for over 15 years and worked in a number of different kitchen environments. I simply adore cooking and love to experiment with various flavours. Being Scottish I am very fond of traditional Scottish dishes which when I am cooking, love to add a different twist. I am very fortunate to live in East Sussex with my husband and daughter. Sussex is a beautiful county with many interesting and historical places to visit. I love my job at Hurstwood View and in particular it’s a privilege to meet and work with so many interesting residents. But what I love most is when people tell me they enjoy my food!

My name is Wayne Grogan and I have worked in the hospitality sector for over 12 years.

I started of running my own business in dealing with phones, this was for 4 years before I decided that I wanted to move into another career.

I worked in the hospitality field for 12 years at Heaver Hotel, the job involve ensuring that the conferencing facility and 90 bed hotel was run appropriately. I gained experience in customer care, health & safety and the well-being of the guests. I was facing the possibility of redundancy and when researching for a job, I saw the position at Barchester Hurstwood View and thought that I would take a chance and the opportunity and benefits that Barchester were offering gave me the push to apply. As I want to progress into higher management with Barchester and this sounded like the company that I could grow within.

The chance to have contact with the residents and the interaction is so great, when working at Hurstwood, no day is the same. It is also good to have resident’s ask me to deal with an issue within their room and have a little chat with them at the same time. I am enjoying working part of such a diverse team and ensuring the presentation and safety of the home is paramount in my day to day responsibilities.

During my time working at Heaver Hotel, I was voted Employee of Month, then Employee of the Site for the year and then got flown to Portugal and came 2nd in the finals of the Employee Recognition programme and was awarded £2,500.00. This money I then used to pay for my honeymoon to the Dominican Republic.

These are the Care Assistants at Hurstwood View:

Caroline Myers

I came into care when my children began school over 20 years ago. I have worked in a variety of services, including palliative care and adults with learning difficulties. Years ago, a friend recommended that I apply for work at a new Barchester home in Five Ash Down; I did and happily joined the team, and here I am now thoroughly enjoying my role caring for residents.

Imalia Istrate

I came to England in August 2016 from Romania, and was lucky enough to be offered the role of Care Assistant at Hurstwood View. I had heard lots of good things about the home, so I was pleased to be given this opportunity. I thoroughly enjoy caring for residents, hoping that I make their days bright and cheerful.