Meet the Peony Court Care Home Team

Our staff are what hold the home together. Each one of these team members are dedicated to providing high quality care and services to those we support, and ensuring that residents enjoy all aspects of life at our home. See below to meet some of our friendly faces:

Sandra Roche

General Manager

Hello! My name is Sandra Roche and I'm the general manager here at Peony Court. Welcome to our website!

I am a social worker by profession and passionate about upholding the rights of older people. I have 30 years of experience in social care across a wide variety of settings. I first became a registered manager in 2001 and led a demolition and rebuild project for a not-for-profit provider whilst achieving the top rating of Excellent at that time. I returned to statutory social work leadership in 2010 and progressed up the ranks to Acting Assistant Director of Adult Social Care responsible for all adults in the borough and a budget of over £40 million.  After nearly 2 years in that role I realized I was losing contact with older people and their families, the reason why I came into social care in the first place and made the decision to return to the front line, just in time for the Pandemic. Thankfully the memories of the past three years are waning and it is good to be nearly back to normal, enjoying trips out and welcoming visitors without restriction.

Since joining Barchester to open Peony Court I have relished making a daily difference in the lives of our residents and their families and building a high-performing team from the get-go. We were thrilled to win a Top 20 Care homes in London Award before our 1st Birthday. Our ambition here at Peony Court is to be Outstanding and we do this by placing our residents at the heart of everything we do, and by empowering them to lead their own lives, individually and as a community. We are a small home which makes for a genuine family atmosphere; I know all my residents, their children, grandchildren, nephews, nieces, neighbours, friends and family pets, as do all the team. We care for our families as much as our residents and value them as partners in care.

Whether you are looking for respite care or a more permanent home from home for your loved one you are assured of the warmest of welcomes, a luxury city boutique hotel environment and bespoke, personalised, loving care from the highly motivated and friendly team at Peony Court.

Phoebelyn Esther Curtina

Clinical Lead

Hi! My name is Phoebe. I have several years experience in management and I am well-versed in all aspects of personal care. I am a nurse by profession, registered overseas. Working in care is very rewarding. Supporting and developing our team makes it all the more enjoyable. I am thrilled and excited to be part of the team at Peony Court. I am looking forward to a long-lasting career. 

Donna Mackenzie, Lead Care Assistant

Lead Care Assistant

Hello! I'm Donna, Lead Care Assistant here at Peony Court.

This is my 10th year working in care, I've worked in various areas of the care industry including, mental health, behavioral/learning difficulties and the elderly. I chose care because it is rewarding on so many different levels, you can make a real difference in someone's life with even a simple positive action and I get to do that every day.

In my role as Lead Care Assistant, I try to be open and I listen to our resident's individual needs and wishes to ensure they get the utmost in person-centred care, something we absolutely strive for here at Peony Court. 

Peony Court is not like any other home; the team is more like family than work colleagues and if someone is having a bad day, we lift each other up!

Paul McKee

Activities

Hi! I'm Paul, the Activities Co-Ordinator at Peony Court.

Before I joined the care sector I worked for many years in the hotel industry, managing housekeeping, hospitality and customer experience. Several members of my family have a history of working in care and I thought, maybe that could be me as well. I'm a natural entertainer with a flare for bringing smiles to people's faces and this was absolutely the right move for me. 

Here at Peony Court, I make a point of getting to know each and every resident and their families. I tailor the activities program to suit individuals, no one is the same and everyone has different interests. It's my aim to be empathetic, enthusiastic and engaging with all of my residents. We have incredible activities and events here guided by exactly what our residents want, from pampering sessions to singing and dancing, chair exercises to arts and crafts, and diversity is absolutely the key!

I can't wait to welcome more residents and guests to Peony Court!

Chris Hilliard

Hi! I'm Chris, the newly appointed head chef here at Peony Court.

I've worked in the catering business for well over 40 years and love what I do. Cooking isn't just a job for me it's my passion, I cook at work, at home, wherever and whenever I can! My favourite thing to cook with is Chicken, boring I know but it's so incredibly versatile, with the exception of puddings you can make pretty much anything with a chicken! 

I decided to move into the care industry because I find it so much more rewarding than restaurants, theatres and such like. I get to engage with the residents, find out what they want and work to make it happen. 

I am so happy to be a new member of the Peony Court Team, I've been made to feel welcome and supported, it's more like family than a workplace, something I've never experienced in my 40-plus year career!

Nick Booth

Head of Maintenance

Hello! I'm Nick, Head of Maintenance here at Peony Court.

Before joining the care sector I qualified and worked many years as an architect, designing and planning the build of houses, retail establishments, office blocks and some of the biggest purpose built care homes and retired living complexes in Europe!

I made the move into the care sector because  I wanted to work directly with the people, I get a buzz every single day knowing I can make a real difference to my team and my residents. 

It's incredibly rewarding and makes the hard work absolutely worth while.

Jill Emmerson

Admin Assistant

Hi! I'm Jill, your friendly admin assistant. I'm the first person you'll be greeted by at Peony Court and I'll even make you a cup of tea! You might even catch me singing along to the radio :-)

I worked in the city as a legal assistant for over 25 years before we were hit by the Covid 19 pandemic and was then made redundant. My own mum had been unwell for a while and I thought, what better way to 'give back' than to look at the care industry here I am.

This career move has been a massive awakening for me, it's a completely different environment in a sector that really matters! 

The team here at Peony Court are great and works as a team, we never say it's not my job, everyone supports each other, and it's a fab place to work!

Lee Goward

Senior HCA

Hi! I'm Lee, a Senior Carer / Clinical Lead at Peony Court.

I spent nearly 15 years defending personal injury claims for insurers across Europe before being made redundant in 2019, as well as a brief stint in program management developing software and then marketing and events then the Covid 19 pandemic hit! I decided now was the time to rethink my career path. 

I'd worked in care before starting my insurance career and at a time of great need it seemed the perfect opportunity to return to the sector and ‘give back’ so I joined Barchester as a carer in one of their nursing homes.  Peony Court, a new refurb then opened and I transferred over as a senior carer / clinical lead - a position I am hugely proud of. 
I have, from the beginning played an active role in ensuring the smooth running of Peony Court, working as a senior carer, acting as 2nd chef in the kitchen, supporting the activities team with events and more recently I took a temporary role as Home Services Advisor.

My goal, together with my team is to ensure that Peony Court is a highly sought after care home, where the reputation speaks for itself - Second to none care, an undisputable life enrichment program, a valued team and residents who can call Peony Court home.

Senior Care Team

This is our Senior care team.

Care Team

We are pleased to introduce some of our team of dedicated carers, here 24/7 to ensure how residents get the absolute best care.

Kitchen Team

Introducing our kitchen team headed up by Chris our head chef and 2nd chef Steph, the team ensure our residents and team are full of nutritious and delicious food! 

The Housekeeping Team

This is our Housekeeping and laundry team headed up by Jahrell

The team work tirelessly to ensure that the home is kept clean and tidy and are passionate about supporting our residents.

Jahrell is a new member of the team and comes to us with a vast amount of experience.... and she's already making waves to ensure the home looks pristine!  

Missy the Cat

Hello! I'm Missy the house cat. 

I was born in 2012 and was rescued from Battersea Dogs & Cats home by a wonderful lady, I had many happy years with her before she sadly passed away so I was on the hunt for a new hoomannn family and was lucky enough to stumble on Peony Court! 

I moved in here in 2021 and I'm so happy! I like nothing better than curling up on a chair in the warm and cosy lounge and no one needs to worry about mice, there'll be no pests in my house! 

I love my hoooman family at Peony Court, they are puurrrfect!