West Sussex Home Care Trust becomes employee-owned

The company, previously known as Optimal Future, is now 100% employee-owned, making it one of the first home care providers in the UK to operate as a trust run entirely for the benefit of its staff.

CEO Ann Taylor, who also leads Hilton Nursing Partners, said the shift is a direct response to the problems she’s seen in care over the past three decades.

“Care companies are usually owned by private investors or a small group of shareholders,” she said. “That’s not what this is. This is owned by the people delivering the care. That changes everything.”

Under the Employee-Owned Trust (EOT) model, the business is held collectively on behalf of its staff. There are no shares to buy and no personal financial risk. But if the company performs well, employees share in the profit.

“It’s not just a feel-good initiative,” said Taylor. “It’s a structural change in how care can be delivered — more accountable, more sustainable, and more rewarding for the people doing the work."

Staff, initially unsure about what the shift meant, have since embraced it. Registered Manager Sonny Dhatt said once the model was explained, the reaction was overwhelmingly positive. “It’s a bit like the John Lewis model, when everyone’s invested, they care more. And that improves the quality of the service.”

The company is also scaling its ‘Home to Decide’ programme, which gives people a short period of care at home after hospital discharge to consider their long-term options, rather than being pushed straight into a care home.

“We need to stop treating older people like they don’t have a say,” Ann Taylor said. “This gives them time, control, and real choice.”

Sussex World asked staff members for their thoughts on the employee-owned change. Connie Davies and Lowri Green both said their paths into care were shaped by personal experience, and that the move to a trust model is already having an impact.

“I got into care after looking after my dad at home,” said Lowri. “He was in the hospital and they tried to send him to a nursing home, but I didn’t want that for him. I was working as a chef at the time, but I put everything on hold to bring him home and look after him properly.”

Connie said: “My grandad was forced into care and didn’t get the treatment he needed. He passed away because of it. That’s why I got into care, I want to make sure other people don’t go through what we did.”

When asked whether the trust model would make a difference, they said it’s not about the job changing, but the mindset. “It’s not going to change the care we give, but it does change how you feel about it,” said Connie. “You want to give 110% instead of 90, because now we all get something back when the company does well.”

Lowri added: “They explained it clearly, the more the company makes, the more we all get out of it. It’s fair. If we’re putting the effort in, it’s good to know we’ll see some of that come back to us.”

Both said the event felt like a fresh start. “It’s been a nice day, and I think everyone’s interested to see where it goes next,” Connie added.