Jamie Peters Shift Leader Expand Jamie has worked at Cherry Trees for nearly 18 years. She says "I love my job and I enjoy coming to work! I don’t think a lot of people can say that about their jobs! I feel privileged for parents to allow us to work with their amazing children who all just brighten up our days in one way or another. They have taught me so much over my time at Cherry Trees and I will forever be grateful for that. There is never a dull moment at Cherry Trees! All staff are so caring and want what’s best for our young people and work hard to achieve this and to help our children to achieve goals and independence in one way or another."
Steve Kocher Care Assistant Expand Steve joined us in January, 2005 as a Care Assistant. He's been a fantastic member of the care team, and was recently promoted to the role of Team Leader. When asked about his favourite part of the role, he said that he loved "seeing how the children develop and grow, knowing I've helped them get there". He also holds the rapport he's build with our children and parents close to his heart. He strongly feels Cherry Trees is the best place he's ever worked.
Sandra Cramp Senior Care Co-ordinator Expand I worked at Cherry Trees for 10 years up until 2007 as a senior and left to work and run the respite house for adults in Surrey County Council. I have now returned to work in the office at Cherry Trees as the Senior Care Coordinator. Most of my working life I have spent with either the Special Care Baby units or Palliative care on the community. In the latter years with adults and children with learning disabilities.
Paula D'Aoust PA to Head of Care & Bookings Co-ordinator Expand I started at Cherry Trees in 2015 as the PA to our Head of Care, since then I have come to co-ordinate the bookings for the children as well as the HR administration for the staff. Working at Cherry Trees is one of the most amazing, rewarding jobs I've ever had.
Emma Broatch Senior Care Assistant Expand Introduced to life at Cherry Trees during her placement year, Emma joined us part time on graduation from The University of Surrey in 2009. Going on to join us as a full time Carer, Emma today is now one of our Seniors with over a decade's worth of experience, as well as holding a Diploma Level 3 qualification from Central Sussex College and BSc Single Honours. Emma greatly enjoys her work here and is always a steady presence on shift. When asked about her favourite home cooked meal served at Cherry Trees, Macaroni cheese from our kitchen is top of her list. Outside of work Emma has travelled to two other continents and was one of the founding volunteers in the Burnley Football Club lead 'African Adventures' scheme, Ghana.
Graham Jones Senior Care Assistant Expand Graham joined Cherry Trees in January 2014 and has been with us six years rising from being a Care Assistant to now Senior Care Assistant. Joining Cherry Trees after a long career of more than 30 years working for blue chip international Investment Banks, up in the City of London, running global teams spanning London, Hong Kong, New York and India. "I really enjoy working with our amazing children and dedicated staff and am delighted to have exchanged the trading floor for the playroom floor for the latter years of my working life. In previous years I have dressed up as Father Christmas, handing out gifts in the dining room to the children." Graham, pictured here with Colleague Jill loves Christmas time at Cherry Trees.
Jon Webb Deputy Manager Expand Jon has known Cherry Trees for many years, joining in June 2006 before then re-joining in May 2008 again as a Senior Carer. His career working in Community Living Adult Care, as well as working in a special needs school in Surrey means he has a lot of experience working in the care sector. In July 2018 Jon stepped up as Deputy Managers at Cherry Trees whereby he concentrates on rotas, staffing and welcoming the new families that find us and apply for our help. " My favourite memory of Cherry Trees from the last decade..... It was our 2011 pantomime, put on and performed by all the staff at Ripley Court School. In my striped T-shirt I played Smee in our production of Peter Pan. Such good memories of being on stage, with all my colleagues on the night", says Jon!
Paula Rankin Head of Care Expand Already a familiar face to many of our families, and one of our longest serving staff members on the care team, Paula Rankin became Head of Care in 2018. Paula assumes her position after 30 years with the charity. "I am so pleased to still be here after 30 years and there is not a morning where I wake up and don’t want to come in. I love working with the children, it was all I ever wanted to do since I was 14. Here I am, all these years on in my career and enjoy seeing the children every day be the best they can be."
Steve warr Chef Expand Steve joined the team 4 years ago, with 20 years of cooking experience behind him. He loves to promote fresh home cooking with locally sourced ingredients (plus the occasional chocolate birthday cake). His delicious meals are often cited as the children's favourite part of coming to Cherry Trees.
Emily Wild Care Assistant Expand Emily joined the Cherry Trees team in 2018 as a part time member of staff when she was home from studying Performance Sportswear Design at Falmouth University. She fell in the love with Cherry Trees and became a full time member of staff when she finished her degree in 2019. She's continued working Saturday nights alongside her teacher training, which she started in 2021. Emily loves her job at Cherry Trees.
Nicole Pavlou Care Assistant Expand Nicole has been working at Cherry Trees since summer 2021 as a placement student studying psychology. Her role as a care assistant has rewarded her in many ways, and has made it clear for her that she wants to focus her career after university on children with disabilities.
Jill Tennant Night Carer Expand Jill has been working as a night carer at Cherry Trees since 1994. She enjoys working at Cherry Trees, meeting and getting to know the young people. She's also a big fan of gardening, cycle rides and love cats.
Sarah Palmer Care Assistant Expand Sarah joined Cherry Trees at the beginning of November, 2021. Working with children has always been a dream of hers, especially since having a child of her own. She has a background in childcare, working in children's soft plays and now part-time at her child's school. She enjoys taking on new tasks and opportunities and strives to be the best version of herself. "I'm extremely proud to be a part of the Cherry Trees family, the children and staff are just amazing."
Eloise Westwood Care Assistant Expand Eloise joined the Cherry Trees team in 2020 and has loved every moment since. Eloise has learned a lot in her time at Cherry Trees, one thing being a passion for learning Makaton- a skill which she endeavours to continue developing.
Mariah Ahmed Care Assistant Expand I have been a carer at Cherry Trees for two and a half years now and I must say that this is a very rewarding job. After completing my placement year at university, I decided to stay on as I loved working and building rapports with the children and families that we have at Cherry Trees.
Is it okay for just one of the parents/carers to get in touch or do you need to hear from both of us ? Expand We are really happy to speak with and meet both parents/carers. However in many cases we tend to hear from the mother first all. Often it can be the mum if they have become either the primary carer and they may want to bring a friend, their own mum or sister for support when coming in to meet us for the first time. They are very welcome to come along too.
How do I know if my family situation warrants getting in touch ? Expand You might have had your family Social Worker suggest you contact us, found us online, or even your own child might of heard about us through their school and wants to join Cherry Trees. If you’ve come across us and are curious about what we do here and the types of young people we can offer respite to get in touch. Don’t worry if your child is ‘right for us’, pick up the phone and have a chat. Cherry Trees accepts referrals from parents/carers, social workers or other professionals and once referred we will invite you in to visit Cherry Trees in the first instance. Following this visit we ask for an application form to be completed. Once we receive the completed application form, if we assess that we can meet the child's needs we will arrange for the child to come and visit Cherry Trees for some short tea visits so we, the child and their family can decide whether Cherry Trees is the right placement.
How will I know that you can take good care of my child ? Expand It’s really normal to be concerned about how your child will be looked after and if we will be able to handle them. Our parents will describe their behaviours, ‘they kick…. they won’t eat colourful foods… they don’t like noisey rooms….’ And lots of this we have come across before. We know your child is the most important person to you and possibly that you may feel like the only person who can care for them. We can plan the first visits with you to ensure your child can transition and cope with the new environment in a way that is careful and feels right. Handing them over will be okay! In our last parent survey when asked if Cherry Trees met the care needs of their child, the answer was 100% positive.
Okay I make that first phone call and have a chat, what happens next ? Expand We will invite you to come in straight away and meet us for a relaxed chat here at Cherry Trees. It’s informal, non-committal and is a private discussion. You can see what’s here and what we do and can come for half or an hour or even up to two hours if that’s what’s needed to talk things through. It’s a very friendly place to come to, free from clinical and medical formalities. Everyone is on first name terms and not Mr or Mrs. Our respite stays are meant to feel like a home from home environment and that runs through everything we do, you should feel welcome right away! You will then be offered an appointment after your visit with either our Head of Care and one of the Seniors here (Alfie or John).
How long will it take for me to get an appointment ? Is it a long wait for several months ? Expand Not at-all, we tend to have a quick turn around time, (within a fortnight) but we do tend to offer meeting one of our Senior care team in school hours Monday to Friday. We will then give you a tour, and an application form to give us some written details about your child, as well as your wishes and targets that you would like to see your child working towards. The form gives all Cherry Trees staff an idea of who each child is, where they go to school, what they like, foods they eat etc and then we create a folder which will be a reference point.
What will the first visit for my child be like ? Expand We normally offer a tea-time visit, after school which could be 2-3 hours. They will be met and supervised by one of our experienced care team, and introduced to the dining area, playroom and shown where things are. We can respond to any challenges a first visit may present – not wanting to get out of the car and coming inside for the first time, handling new spaces and being prepared with relevant communication aids. Some children settle in really fast, others longer – we had one child who took 18 months to get used to being here, which is absolutely fine.
How do I pay for visits to Cherry Trees ? Expand Most of our children have packages agreed by their social workers. These packages are supported with voluntary income. However we do offer a reduced parental rate for those not supported by a social worker and a bursary fund. We aim to ensure that finance is not a barrier for children accessing our services.
Once they’ve settled in what next ? Expand After a few visits, we will allocate a key worker who will introduce themselves to you, and keep in touch. We run reviews every 3 months looking at how well new joiners are settling in. By this time your child will be introduced to routines and expected behaviours, be working towards their own goal and will be making new friends, enjoying fresh food cooked by our Chef on-site and can join in with activities both on and off site.