A company that runs several care homes in Powys and Mid Wales has been named as one of the largest employee-run businesses in the UK.

In a report published to mark the tenth anniversary of a business model known as the Employee Ownership Trust (EOT), Shaw Healthcare was named as the largest employee-owned care provider in the UK.

The company runs several care homes in the county, such as Cartref Dyfi in Machynlleth, Wylesfield in Llandrindod Wells, Plas Cae Crwn in Newtown and Llys Hafren in Welshpool.

Russell Brown, CEO for Shaw healthcare, expressed his pride at the employee-owned status, commenting: “We’re extremely proud that it’s our employees who enable Shaw to maintain an excellent level of care.

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“We want them to feel valued and to prove this we have heavily invested in staff training and development, salaries and benefits packages. The company’s success is down to our employees and we share our profits to thank each and every one of them.

“Since moving to employee ownership four years ago, Shaw has paid out in the region of £5m of profits to its hard-working and committed employees in the form of tax-free EOT bonuses.

"We are also an accredited Real Living Wage employer, something we feel is crucial to fairly reward our staff and to make Shaw an employer of choice.”

(Image: Shaw Healthcare)

Shaw employs more than 3,000 people and manages over 2,100 care beds. Speaking to staff, residents and family members about their experiences with the company for a series of videos, many praised the care home owner’s approach.

Paula Spruce, Deputy Manager at Brynhyfryd in Builth Wells said: “It’s a very personal touch that the staff offer to our residents here. We’ve got staff that have been here for many years so you’ve got that level of continuity here, familiarity, local faces, and I think that goes a long way with providing reassurance to the families.”

A daughter of a resident at Plas Cae Crwn in Newtown said: “The carers are amazing, you can see that they genuinely care. It’s not put on, it’s not a job, they care. It’s amazing.”