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Most organisations have pretty rigid hierarchies. At Equal Care, we work differently: we share responsibility between those who are the best placed to make the decisions, namely the care and support workers themselves. Our starting points for achieving this are CIRCLES.
Circles are how we organise and share out work and decision-making at Equal Care that goes beyond teams. They are small groups of people with a shared aim and area of responsibility. Everyone within the group is treated equally, and although members may have different responsibilities and roles within that circle (more on that later) everyone’s input is as welcome as the next person’s.
Protecting and advancing our mission to rebalance power in social care
Emma has worked in social care and community development. Previously trustee for community-based charity Stepney City Farm, then working for major mental health charity Richmond Fellowship and advocacy charity VoiceAbility, she offers insight into how support services are designed, developed and commissioned. She saw that power over how services are delivered sits with commissioners and managers. It's rare for people on the front line to be in charge.
Emma is leading the development of Equal Care Co-op. She is the Nominated Individual for CQC purposes.
Kate ran and transformed a small social enterprise (the Feel Good Bakery) working with ex-offenders getting back into work. She has given front-line support in residential care settings. Kate has also had direct experience as a teen carer, being the main carer for her mum for several years before her death in 2007.
Kate led on our co-operative care and support services, regulation and recruitment from our founding until the end of 2024. She has now stepped back from the day-to-day running of the co-op but has stepped into the role of Purpose Circle Chair to continue to support our co-op's growth and development.
Liz is a passionate multipotentialite. She is a diagnosed neurodivergent and proudly part of the LGBTQ+ community. She focuses a lot on self-improvement, growth, and empowerment with herself and others in and outside work.
Liz has a lot of working and personal experience in complex learning differences with behaviours that challenge, advocacy, and outreach in and outside prisons with disadvantaged adults and substance misuse.
Liz deeply believes that what individuals perceive as their greatest weaknesses are actually their most amazing strengths.
A health and safety team trainer and a purpose circle member, Liz also engages in independent support work and advocacy in the co-op.
Hello, I'm Ged Haley. My strong connection to Equal Care is rooted in my journey with Multiple Sclerosis (MS), which I've had since 1978, leading to my reliance on a wheelchair since the late 1990s.
Before discovering Equal Care I had received care from several agencies. The people supported me always did their best but I felt they were overworked, poorly paid and exploited by the agencies they worked for. They were asked to work very long hours, often on their days off with little pay or respect for their well being.
The main priority of these other organisations, besides providing care for ever more clients was profit. I felt very sorry for those carers because of that. Many of these agencies eventually went bankrupt.Neither I nor the people who came to care for me, were able to get to know each other since the relationships were very much an ad-hoc. I rarely saw the same carer twice, on one occasion having over 20 carers visiting who I had not met before.
I realised that there was a tremendous need for care in the local community, and agencies working for profit putting ever greater pressure on their workers was not fair, sustainable or desirable.
When I first heard about Equal Care and the principles upon which it worked, it was a breath of fresh air. Since first coming into contact with the Co-op I pledged to do everything I could to help it to prosper and expand.
My personal background is that I was born in Dewsbury and educated at Dewsbury boys Grammar School, I’ve got a degree in Social Sciences and have done a course at Leeds University in Philosophy and History which has always been my passion. I have a wide range of interests – which includes everything from societal issues, and science, politics local , national and global and culture in general.
Hello, I'm Monica Haley. I was brought up in Dewsbury where I attended Wheelwright Grammar School for Girls going on to study at Bradford University for a degree in social work. Following that I was employed as a social worker in children's care, specifically in fostering and adoption services.I had a relatively straightforward life until my husband Ged was diagnosed with MS. Since then, I've gradually taken on more caregiving responsibilities. Today, it's a round-the-clock commitment, with valuable support from Equal Care.
I first became aware of Equal Care when they organised a community meeting in our local area. We were later among the first families to receive care when they were just starting out, and I've been dedicated to the Co-op's ideals ever since.
Together my husband and I hope to be able to share our experiences, both positive and challenging, with the Purpose Circle to inform the development of Equal Care and to represent the voices of others receiving care and family caregivers.
I am a former solicitor who practiced family law for over 20 years. I have a son and a daughter who are now 31 and 29 and live and work in other towns.
I live in Heptonstall, a village above Hebden Bridge. I am involved in activities locally, being in a choir, in two book clubs, a pub quiz team, a school governor and a safeguarding officer at church. I have a team of carers from Equal Care that visit each morning and evening.
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Supporting our other co-op circles to thrive
As the Communications and Campaigns Officer for Equal Care Co-op, Marc is dedicated to articulating Equal Care's distinctive identity and impactful work to both our members and the wider world.
With a background in politics and philosophy and a flair for visual presentation and illustration, Marc can switch between creative and advocacy work with ease.
Marc worked for a number of years in a library on the island of Jersey, where he begun his communications journey in earnest. He is still at his happiest when leafing through a book, silently willing everyone around him to be quiet.
Matthew worked for Camphill Village Trust for over 20 years as a support worker for adults with special needs, also working in HR and finance. In his role as landcare and estates manager he supported a team of people with very different needs to work together on the land. He experienced how people with care and support needs often support each other whilst working together. He now works as a support worker and DJ.
Matthew leads on our health, safety and wellbeing work, our bookkeeping and due diligence.
Supporting circles in its area to start & flourish.
Liz is a passionate multipotentialite. She is a diagnosed neurodivergent and proudly part of the LGBTQ+ community. She focuses a lot on self-improvement, growth, and empowerment with herself and others in and outside work.
Liz has a lot of working and personal experience in complex learning differences with behaviours that challenge, advocacy, and outreach in and outside prisons with disadvantaged adults and substance misuse.
Liz deeply believes that what individuals perceive as their greatest weaknesses are actually their most amazing strengths.
A health and safety team trainer and a purpose circle member, Liz also engages in independent support work and advocacy in the co-op.
Matthew worked for Camphill Village Trust for over 20 years as a support worker for adults with special needs, also working in HR and finance. In his role as landcare and estates manager he supported a team of people with very different needs to work together on the land. He experienced how people with care and support needs often support each other whilst working together. He now works as a support worker and DJ.
Matthew leads on our health, safety and wellbeing work, our bookkeeping and due diligence.
The most important Circles in Equal Care are the Local Circles. These are the circles that hold the responsibility for supporting teams in their area and their membership is drawn from those who live there.
Local Circles’ aim is to support teams in their area to start, flourish, and finish.
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