Kerry Cattell - Care Home Leadership, Culture & Governance Specialist.
 

Supporting care providers, registered managers and boards to build compliant, well-led, financially sustainable care homes with open, honest and supportive cultures.
 

Trusted Care Home Leadership Expertise

I am Kerry Cattell: a UK-based care home leadership, culture and governance specialist, former Bupa & Avery Regional Director, and experienced CQC Nominated Individual.

I support care providers, charities and registered managers to:

• Build open, learning cultures

• Strengthen CQC Well-Led governance

• Improve compliance without fear or blame

• Retain staff and reduce burnout

• Create financially viable, sustainable services

• Prepare confidently for CQC inspection

• Lead with clarity, confidence and compassion

My work sits at the intersection of leadership behaviour, culture, governance and compliance, because safe, high-quality care always starts with leadership.

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Why Leadership & Culture Matter in Care Homes

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Many care homes struggle not because staff don’t care, but because culture becomes closed, fear creeps in, and leadership unintentionally reinforces silence rather than learning.

I specialise in helping services move from:

• Fear → psychological safety

• Blame → learning

• Firefighting → strategic leadership

• Compliance anxiety → inspection confidence

• High turnover → stable, engaged teams

My approach is practical, human and evidence-based, grounded in real operational experience, not theory.

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Real Experience. Real Understanding.

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My career in care was shaped by personal experience as well as professional leadership.

I entered the sector following my mother’s long illness and experiences within hospital and care settings. That journey gave me first-hand insight into what happens when systems work well, and when they don’t.

Professionally, I have:

• Worked my way through operational leadership roles

• Held senior regional leadership responsibility with Bupa Care Services and Avery Healthcare.

• Led services through improvement, turnaround and stabilisation.

• Acted as CQC Nominated Individual with full regulatory accountability.

• Supported boards and trustees with governance and strategy

• Consulted with care services across the UK

This combination of lived experience, senior leadership and governance responsibility underpins everything I do.

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How I Support Care Services

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I work with care providers, charities and leadership teams through:

Leadership & Culture Development

• Open culture frameworks

• Leadership coaching for RMs, deputies and senior teams

• Behavioural leadership support

• Psychological safety and incident learning

• Staff engagement and retention strategies

Governance & CQC Well-Led Support

• Board and trustee governance support

• Nominated Individual guidance

• Inspection preparation and mock reviews

• Quality assurance frameworks

• Incident review and learning systems

Operational & Financial Sustainability

• Occupancy and performance improvement

• Leadership structures that reduce dependency on individuals

• Sustainable management models

• Supporting services through change and growth

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Practical Tools, Not Generic Advice

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Alongside consultancy and coaching, I develop practical tools for care leaders, including:

• The Care Home Blueprint – a practical guide to sustainable, well-led services

• The Leadership Culture Pathway – an 8-week roadmap for cultural change

• Digital leadership and culture tools (currently in development)

• Board-level frameworks and templates

• Training resources for leadership teams

Everything I create is designed to be used in real care homes, not left on a shelf.

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Who I Work With

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I work with:

• Independent care providers

• Charitable care organisations

• Registered Managers and Deputies

• Trustees and Boards

• Leadership teams navigating change

Whether a service requires stabilisation, growth, cultural change or stronger governance, my role is to support leaders to lead well, not carry the burden alone.

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A Calm, Clear, Honest Approach

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I am known for a leadership style that is:

• Straight-talking but kind

• Grounded in reality

• Non-judgemental

• Focused on learning, not blame

• Aligned with regulatory expectations

• Respectful of the pressures leaders face

Care leadership is demanding. You don’t need more pressure, you need clarity, structure and support.

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Work With Me

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If you are a care provider, registered manager or trustee looking to:

• Strengthen leadership capability

• Build an open and safe culture

• Improve CQC outcomes

• Create long-term sustainability

I would be happy to talk.

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👉 Get in touch to discuss how I can support your service.

Kerry Cattell

Care Home Leadership, Culture & Governance Specialist
Former Bupa & Avery Regional Director
CQC Nominated Individual
📍 UK