Wigan charity boss shortlisted for prestigious national social care award

Paul Growney, chief executive of Caring Connections, has been named in the Care Talk National Social Care Top 30 list.

It recognises "movers and shakers” in social care – senior leaders and influencers nationally who have the vision to improve outcomes, who have made a significant difference in the sector and who are strong leaders in their field to improve services.

Caring Connections is a charity which specialises in delivering social care services and charitable projects across the North West.

It currently has a base on Wallgate in Wigan, as well as branches in Merseyside and Cheshire. It employs more than 140 people and supports up to 300 people per day.

The charity specialises in supporting adults with long-term conditions in their own homes, as well as providing fully-funded community bereavement counselling services.

Mr Growney has been invited to the London Marriot Hotel, on Grosvenor Square, on Wednesday, October 19 for a special event to find out who will be named number one on the list.

Voting is now open for people to choose who should get the top spot.

Other people named on the prestigious list include Edel Harris, chief executive of Mencap, Martin Jones, chief executive of Home Instead, Dr Jane Townson, chief executive of the National Home Care Association, and Prof Deborah Sturdy, England’s first chief nurse adult social care.

Mr Growney described the nomination as “one of the proudest moments of my career” and appealed for people in Wigan to show their support by voting for him to be named at the top of the list.

He said: “I am massively proud of this and can’t believe I am on this list amongst such highly regarded people. It’s a very tough world social care, especially now with all the demand.

"All of this I owe to my team-mates and my hard-working colleagues on the front-line day in and day out.

"I hope to proudly represent my region at this event and hopefully take home the win. Please give us a vote.”

To vote for Mr Growney, go to www.caretalk.co.uk/sct30/poll.