Cirencester care home worker honoured for hard work

Darren Jones, senior head of maintenance at Hunters Care Centre in Cirencester, has been named Maintenance Champion for the Central Division in the Barchester Care Awards 2026.

The awards celebrate staff who go above and beyond for the 14,000 residents across Barchester’s 271 care homes and private hospitals in the UK.

Mr Jones said: “I was honestly shocked, but pleasantly surprised when I got the news.

“I have proudly worked as head of maintenance at Hunters for nearly nine years now and it means so much to me that so many people took the time to vote for me.

“Now I have to find a suit for the finals.”

Mr Jones now advances to the national finals, where winners from across the country will be honoured at a special event in October.

Ciprian Groza, general manager at Hunters Care Centre, said: “This is an amazing achievement and the whole home is supporting Darren.

“We are so proud of him. Darren has been an incredibly dedicated member of the team for many years.

“He is well-loved by residents and staff and this award is well-deserved for all his hard work.”

Hunters Care Centre, operated by Barchester Healthcare, provides nursing, residential, and dementia care, and is part of one of the UK’s largest care providers.

The award comes after nearly 6,000 nominations were submitted.