Baines AdvisoryHealth & social care
Strategy & growth

Strategic advice for care organisations planning their next stage

For owners, directors, boards and investors in health and social care. I help you decide where to go next, test whether it is deliverable, and put the governance in place to get there safely.

Where I help

The decisions that shape a care organisation

Growth strategy & business planning

A realistic plan for where to grow, linking your services, workforce, finances and local commissioning demand, so expansion strengthens the organisation rather than stretching it.

Entering new care markets & service models

For providers, investors and developers moving into a new model of care, from supported living, extra care and residential services to home care and community support. I bring the care, regulatory and property sides together from the start, drawing on my work as a Director of OwnSpace Developments.

Acquisitions & due diligence

An experienced view of a service’s governance, quality, compliance and risk before you buy, invest or merge, and a plan for what needs to happen after completion. Whether you are buying a care home, a home care agency or a supported living service, you will know what you are taking on.

Turnaround & regulatory recovery

When a service is under pressure, the fix is rarely just an action plan. I look at leadership, governance and the business model, and help put right the causes rather than the symptoms.

Board governance & assurance

Governance that gives your board reliable evidence of quality and risk, using C‑CAF, Care England’s nationally recognised assurance methodology.

Service design & new contracts

Services designed around real needs and commissioners’ priorities, with tender support to win the contracts and mobilisation support to start them safely.

Board to front line

Strategy that works in practice

I understand governance at board level, and what it takes to make change happen inside a service. That combination is what makes a strategy deliverable.

BoardDirection and assurance

Growth strategy · Board governance and assurance · Investment and acquisition decisions

OrganisationGrowth and resilience

Business planning · Tenders and contracts · New services and markets · Turnaround

ServiceQuality and delivery

Hands-on operational support · Interim management · CQC compliance · Registered Manager mentoring

Why it matters

Why strategy from someone who has run services is different

  • Plans you can actually deliverEvery recommendation is tested against staffing, quality and day-to-day operations, not just a spreadsheet.
  • Regulatory risk built in from the startGrowth that ignores CQC requirements or commissioning realities creates problems later. I account for both at the planning stage.
  • Commercial resilienceCare organisations need to be financially sustainable to deliver outstanding care. Strategy has to serve both.
  • Care and property togetherFor accommodation-based services such as supported living, extra care and residential care, the building and the service have to be planned as one.
How we work together

From first conversation to delivery

  1. Understand

    We talk through where your organisation is now, where you want it to be and what is in the way.

  2. Plan

    Clear priorities, options and risks, with a plan that your board and managers can act on.

  3. Deliver

    Support to put the plan into practice, as a defined project or through an ongoing retainer.

Planning your next stage?

Tell me what you are considering, whether that is growth, an acquisition, a new market or a turnaround. A first conversation costs nothing.

Book a strategy conversation