Our ‘Meet the Team’ series continues with Steve Green, Learning and Development Partner at Home From Home Care.
Each instalment is designed to help you learn more about the people delivering exceptional care and support at Home From Home Care.
Steve started his career as a baker before moving into working in factories – working in the food industry for over 20 years. Alongside this, he studied part time, achieving a BSc in Psychology and, wanting to put this to use in a professional capacity, Steve joined Home From Home Care as a Personal Support Worker. Steve was identified for having natural teaching abilities and joined the training team, where his varied career provides interesting training stories.
How does your background support your work now?
Running production lines and dealing with data has given me an eye for detail. Being involved in health and safety and fire marshalling in factories has given me a greater appreciation for the subjects. I also have experience in autism as my youngest son is autistic and this led me to look at the subject in much more detail than I probably would have before.
What do you enjoy most about working for HFHC?
Getting to know the individuals we support. Where else can you work and make such a difference? I have met some really nice people who I have enjoyed supporting over my time. I have also trained some really good staff who have progressed in the company and it’s rewarding when they use the knowledge from the training, to make a difference themselves.
What has been the highlight of your HFHC career?
All of it really. I have enjoyed working in the homes making a difference. I enjoy learning and development as this leads to staff understanding their role in greater depth. One of my proudest moments was in the home when supporting an individual – they asked me to sit down and made me a cup of tea. We had been working on socialization skills and what it means to be part of a wider community. It seemed at that moment it all fell into place and we had created an understanding. It was really quite touching.
What is the most challenging aspect of your role?
I have responsibility for keeping up with current legislation and the policies of the company, which can be challenging. Especially with the pace of change we have.
What makes HFHC’s approach to learning and development different from other care providers
I think we give a fuller experience to the learner. We give each session as ourselves so the personality comes through as well as the content. We are constantly changing training to be relevant to us as a company and keep within the legislative guidelines. Also it’s not boring – our sessions are interesting and engaging. You can even get a laugh out of health and safety and still get the importance of the subject across!
What is your favourite course to teach?
I will always enjoy autism training as it was the subject that led me into care and into studying psychology. However there is something about compliance training that I find fascinating. Health and safety, food hygiene and fire safety, whilst not appearing to be the most interesting of topics are important to our everyday lives.
What advice would you give to someone considering of moving to a career in care?
Just do it. A bad day in care is no way near as bad as having a bad day in a factory. You are working with people and so you always get something out of it. I wish I had moved much sooner, I really enjoy it.
