JB Agency Homecare

Phil's mother, Joyce Brown started the Company in 1979. Phil was introduced, at age 14, to the payroll side of the business and would process the employee hours, after school. He left school and attended university, gaining a degree in Accounting and began his career in finance. In 2000, he began 1 day a week at JB Agency to assist with payroll and slowly but surely, he soon became immersed in the whole business. Preferring to remain out of the limelight, Phil enjoys his back office role processing payroll, setting budgets, arranging advertising, ensuring health & safety regulations are met and providing the office with foot tapping, finger drumming and the occasional tune.
When not at work, he enjoys fast cars and being outdoors, as well as being a father of five. He plays most sports at a competitive level. At a more relaxing pace, he regularly walks his 2 spaniels, Po and Dora.

Alison has been working, on and off, with JB Agency since 2004. First as a co-ordinator and since 2010 as a manager. She is a psychiatric nurse and has worked for the prison service, with alcohol and addiction services, psychiatric rehabilitation before working with Older Adults. She is passionate about constant improvement to provide and enhance the quality of life for each and every client. Alison loves working for JB Agency as it has a strong sense of values and puts people first.
When not at work, she is usually in some far-flung area of the world, gathering recipes to try out at home. On days off she can be found walking her dogs or feeding her chickens. Her other interests are taming the wilderness that is her garden, vintage clothing and sharing those recipes.

Lucinda has always been sure that her career lay in Care. She studied in Barcelona, worked in both hospitals and care home settings before moving to Scotland. Lucinda has worked with JB Agency since 2019. She says she can't see herself doing any other work except Care - she loves it. She feels that JB Agency is serious about providing quality care and she feels proud to work for JB Agency. When she is not at work, she enjoys listening to music and spending free time with her family.
What the district nurses have written to JB Agency regarding Lucinda:

"The staff member is called Lucinda. I meet her regularly in a home in Burdiehouse. She is an absolute delight to work alongside. She is friendly, helpful, chatty and her upbeat manner is a breath of fresh air. I have also noticed that when she is in or has been in to see this patient that the lady is a lot happier and cheery. Lucinda’s kind and caring nature make such a difference for this lady that I felt that I needed to say.

Kevin had a career in construction, usually roofing, prior to deciding that he wanted to offer more to society. He applied for work as a carer in an Edinburgh care home, with no real idea what the post entailed. He loved it. He has not deviated from his career since. He loves his job, enjoys meeting his clients, and looks forward to each day. He states that he has good support from both the JB Agency office staff but also from his fellow colleagues. When he is not at work, he is rooting for Hibs, spending time with his family and planning his next camping trip

Claire has always worked in care since leaving school. She attended Stevenson College to gain her qualification in Care. She then worked for another Care company before arriving at JB Agency in 2007. Claire is a very well respected member of the JB team, her clients often comment on Claire's abilities to make them feel comfortable receiving care. Claire states she likes her job, loves the variety and gains satisfaction from knowing her clients are well cared for.
An avid Hearts supporter, Claire attends matches when she can as well as meeting up with friends and family on her days off.

Maureen was a full-time carer for her autistic son for 32 years. Maureen felt that once she was no longer his carer - she needed to do something. She decided to make a career of what she knew best - caring. Maureen has endless patience, always promotes independence and choices but is also aware of risk management. Maureen is really happy at her work. Over the years, she has become more involved, taking on more clients and working with occupational therapists, district nurses and health professionals to ensure the best possible outcomes for her clients.
On her day off, she is usually walking her dog, Alfie and looking after her grandchildren

Pauline has worked with JB Agency since 2010. She has a strong background in Care. She worked for many years in Nursing homes, while raising her family. She then worked for a supermarket as a checkout operator but missed the hustle and bustle of being a Carer. Working for JB Agency gave her the autonomy and variety that she enjoyed, as well as utilising her skills as a Carer. She feels that JB Agency has been good to her, the office staff are really nice and she loves meeting her clients every day.
As well as being a busy mother and foster mother and grandmother, she has been training to run Marathons for Cancer charities.

Anne began her journey working in Care in 1994, after a secretarial career. She has been working for JB Agency since 2002. Anne consistently receives high praise from her service users for her work. She is both diligent and extremely conscientious. She states that she loves her work and finds it very rewarding. She particularly enjoys working for JB Agency as she says" you are asked if you will do a visit, I am not told therefore I have control over my work/life balance". Anne's hobbies are: learning Italian and at present, she is completing her HND in Social Studies.

Cindy had a career as a dental nurse for more than 20 years before opting for a better work/life balance with JB Agency. She has been part of the team since 2017. As expected, Cindy is passionate about oral care and is keen to ensure all her service users have the best oral hygiene. She loves the autonomy of deciding when she wants to work. This allows her to spend time with her family and keep active. She is an avid power walker and can regularly be found pounding her beat around south Edinburgh.

Yvonne is a busy mum of four. Until recently, she also held down 3 jobs but now, she only works for JB Agency. She first started working for JB Agency in 2014. She wanted to work with older adults - she enjoys listening to their life stories, their reminiscing and observations. She states that working for JB Agency is not like a job, it is like visiting your family. She loves it. It suits her lifestyle and gives her time with her children. She is very happy with her career choice.

Christine is a retired nurse who still wished to have a caring role once she left the NHS. She was the paediatric stoma nurse for the South of Scotland for many years. Five years ago she was awarded an MBE for services to nursing. Originally from the Outer Hebrides, working for JB Agency allows plenty of time off for Christine to return to visit friends and family. She was attracted to JB Agency as it was a family run business and she didn't want to have her standards of providing good care compromised by insufficient time allocation. Failte, Christine.

When Cherrie first left school, she went into hairdressing but she soon knew that it was not the career for her. She wanted something that gave her job satisfaction and a sense of purpose. She entered the world of Care, first working in care homes for 18 years before coming to work for JB Agency in 2002. Cherrie states that she loves her job, she would still work for JB Agency even if she won the lottery. JB Agency has received many, many letters and cards singing Cherrie's praises. Cherrie loves to be in the garden on her days off with her husband. She feels she has no need to go abroad for her holidays as everything she wants is in Edinburgh, her children and grandchildren, her husband and her lovely garden.

Selena has always worked in Care. First working in Care homes for 13 years and then caring in the community. JB Agency is a second job for Selena but she has been part of our caring team since 2004. Selena states she gains job satisfaction from providing a good service at every visit. She says "it doesn't sit well with my soul" to rush in and out. Selena has a very sporty background, participating in playing badminton, rugby and swimming. When time allows, she spends it with friends and family

Agnieszka studied Beauty Therapy and Make-up Artistry in her native Poland. However, in 2007 she moved to Scotland and once she had mastered the language, began a career in 2009 with Yves St Laurent. Working for them for several years, she both married and soon had a family. For Agnieszka, family is 100% and when contemplating a career change, she chose JB Agency to begin her journey in Care. She states that she has found working with JB Agency a very positive experience, with good training opportunities, a very supportive working environment and has given her the confidence to continue with Care. She enjoys the flexibility of her working hours, which enables her to fit around school hours. When not at work, having fun with her children and pet dogs is a must. She still treats her friends and family to manicures and nail techniques.

When Stacey left school, she became the primary Carer for her uncle. When he had to move into 24/7 care, Stacey knew she wanted to continue in Care but with no qualifications in Care, no validated experience in the workplace - she didn't know how she would accomplish her dream. By chance, her friend was already working for 3 years with JB Agency and recommended Stacey on her values. JB Agency ensured that Stacey had sufficient training, support and mentoring prior to attending service users. Stacey has been working with JB Agency since 2017 and states that it has changed her life. She feels very settled, loves her work and looks forward to visiting her service users. She feels that JB Agency has been very fair to her and because of this she has remained very loyal. When not at work she is helping to look after her niece or catching up with soaps on TV.

When Paula left school, she completed an HNC in Hospitality. Those customer service skills held her in good stead as she became a manager at Morrisons and remained there for 14 years. After giving birth to her first daughter, Paula decided she wanted to branch out into a different field and chose Care. She started with JB Agency in 2015 as a Carer, predominantly working with our double-up teams. In 2018, a post came up in the office as a co-ordinator. Paula leapt in with both feet and she was a natural. The practical skills that she had accrued in the field, her soft skills plus her managerial experience meant within a year she was the senior co-ordinator. Paula always gives her best, often helping out in the field at short notice. She has returned part-time to her role, after having her second daughter. When not at work, thinking about work, or helping out with some work, Paula is rushed off her feet with looking after her small children, her father, her husband and the dog. Another full time job in itself.

Leanne went straight to Administration work after school. She honed her skills as a secretary for several years before applying to be a Nurse. Unfortunately, life got in the way of her studies and she returned to a career in administration, working for Midlothian Council for 14 years. JB Agency is a familiar phrase in Leanne's household, as both her granny and her mother worked for JB Agency. Indeed, her mother still does and has done for 22 years. Leanne brought her skills to JB Agency in 2020. She states that she feels a sense of purpose in her role, a sense of satisfaction that she is making a difference in peoples' lives. She enjoys the hustle and bustle of the daily phone calls and organising new packages of care