Delivering the Wright kind of care

The Eric Wright Group has launched a care home division – its most significant new business stream in a decade.

The £232m turnover group is a long-established property and construction business delivering projects including Pioneer Place in Burnley and the new Animate leisure complex in Preston, along with the Lancashire Central strategic employment site at Cuerden.

Owned by The Eric Wright Charitable Trust, the group includes construction, development, civil engineering, water, house building, partnerships and facilities management divisions, working across Lancashire and the wider North.

The new Wrightcare division has been created with the intention to build, retain and operate a number of new care homes across the North West in the coming years.

Work to build its first home a 68-bedroom residential home in Clitheroe being carried out by Eric Wright’s construction arm, is well underway and is due to open this autumn.

Wrightcare is also currently planning its second development in the village of Grimsargh, north of Preston - a 72-bed care home and 48 bungalows for over-55s. The bungalows will be built by the group’s residential development arm Applethwaite.

Over the next seven years the new business aims to build and operate five high-quality residential care facilities.

Group chief executive Jeremy Hartley, said: “With an aging population and increasing instances of dementia and its associated complex needs, it is important that we ensure the provision of top-class facilities and exceptional care.

“The new division further embodies Eric’s vision for a business inextricably linked to the communities in which it operates, positively contributing to the lives of people who live and work there.

“Our founder and chairman Eric Wright is also passionate about creating a care product that fits with his values. He has been very pro-active in its development.”

Jeremy added: “The new business is very much aligned with our existing activities. We have always had an involvement in the care and health sector through our public sector partnerships and general construction activities across the sector.

“It seemed a natural extension of what we do and our approach has been that if we are going to do it, we will bring together the skills and experiences we have across the group and create a service we are rightly proud of.

“We are able to take a long-term view of how we want to grow the business and this is very much a long-term project.

“Our group consists of diverse businesses that ultimately complement each other and contribute to our resilience and strength.

“The care sector fits well within our portfolio of activities and our desire to work within our local communities and we believe we can make a long-term success of it.”

Jeremy says investing in staff and the latest care equipment available will be central to that success.

He said: “We want a motivated and valued care team. Continuity is important along with high levels of capability and support from our wider group.”

The Bamber Bridge headquartered group has already made one significant appointment, with Robert Blackburn recruited as head of quality and care.

Robert has considerable management experience in the sector and a clear vision for Wrightcare. He said: “We are aiming for our facilities to be part of the community.

“That includes ensuring they are places where people want to work and invest their skills in, to deliver the highest care for residents.

“This is a sector that will benefit for technological advances to improve care and people’s experiences and we believe it is an evolving product.

“We will be at the forefront of that evolution, using the latest technology that will allow staff to spend more of their time with residents, enhancing their lives.

“It is about being proactive with care. Our facilities will be designed to allow people to be as independent and active as they can be.”

Wrightcare is currently looking at further sites for its homes. Jeremy said: “They have to be in the right location and that depends on a number of factors including access to skilled staff and support networks along with the right demographics of the local population.”