Meet Our Wonderful Team

Andrew
CEO
Hello, I’m Andrew, firstly, I’m delighted to be part of New Forest Care Homes.
I’m originally from Cumbria but moved around quite a bit being in the military, I started to settle “down south” from London to Hampshire. Once I left the armed forces 20 years ago I embarked into the care industry. I started as a care worker and progressed to CEO and a company owner. My main experience has been within domiciliary care, residential and nursing homes, especially in dementia care.
I like to listen to music, read and walk in the beautiful New Forest.
Ieva holds a level 3 Health and Social Care diploma and is currently studying level 5 Leadership in Adult Care. Ieva has worked in care since 2010 as a care assistant in domiciliary care and care home settings. She has also worked as a support worker for learning disabilities.
Ieva started her career with us in 2012 as a Care Assistant. She progressed her career with New Milton House and is now the Registered Manager, as of March 2023.
Outside of work, Ieva enjoys travelling, reading and spending time with her husband and her dog, Max.

Ieva
Registered Manager

Melanie
Deputy Manager
Melanie has been involved in elderly care for the past 16 years and started her career as part of a domiciliary agency in 2009. She then worked as a private caregiver for a few years and since then in care homes.
Melanie joined our team as a Senior Care Assistant in September 2022 and was promoted to the position of Deputy Manager in March 2023. She has recently attained her NVQ Level 3 in Adult Care.
Sophie has worked in various admin roles for over 8 years in London and Dorchester.
Sophie greets all New Milton House visitors and deals with enquiries. She also interacts with the residents, which she enjoys, and helps them out with any queries they might have.
Outside of work Sophie enjoys travelling, going on beach walks with her family and their two dogs and attending a mini trampoline fitness class.

Sophie
Reception/Admin

Amanda
Head of Housekeeping
Amanda has worked in the care sector for over 25 years. She joined us in 2005, as a Day & Night Carer. In 2016 Amanda was promoted to Head of Housekeeping. She leads a team of domestic and laundry staff and supports the residents and the home with all aspects of housekeeping.
Outside of work, Amanda’s hobbies include spending time with her family, walking her dog, riding her bicycle & cross stitch.
Barbara has been working in various accounts roles for over 30 years. Her main role as a finance manager was for a promotional gift company.
When Barbara is not working, her hobbies include photography, cooking, dancing and walking with her husband and Poppy, their Cocker Spaniel. She also enjoys travelling around the globe and raising funds for Breast Cancer Care. One of Barbara’s trips was to China where she walked along The Great Wall of China, and raised over £6,000!

Barbara
Finance Manager

Vicky
Activities/Wellbeing

Chris
Activities/Wellbeing
Vicky was a teacher for 17 years, initially in secondary schools and then chose to work in primary schools where she taught special education needs children. She then had a late family and went into activities and well-being in the care section. Vicky organises all the Home’s activities, from exercise classes to singers/performers as well arts and crafts and movie nights.
Outside of work, Vicky and her husband, Everett, are keen members of the National Trust. Vicky enjoys sea fishing, reading, singing in her local Church choir and is part of the Mini Cooper Register for Dorset.
Duncan has been working within the food industry for over 20 years, holding a variety of different roles during this time. Duncan brings a wealth of experience from his time in hospitality and catering. Duncan’s role at New Milton House is to ensure all residents are catered for, with a focus on unprocessed, whole foods, sourced locally and cooked to residents liking. He is always working with residents to develop the menu and offer dishes to cater for all tastes. Recently Duncan has been busy growing vegetables and herbs in our garden, adding these to the recipes served to residents.
When Duncan is not working, he enjoys spending time with his family, forest walks and fishing.

Duncan
Head Chef

Max
Furry Friend

Poppy
Furry Friend
Max and Poppy are our furry friends. They’re often found in Ieva or Barbara’s offices, or having a sniff in the gardens. They’re both very well behaved and our residents love to see them.
We welcome visitors to bring their furry friends too!
Board of Trustees
Dawn– Chairperson of the Board of Trustees
I moved to Barton on Sea in May 2021 after living most of my life around Heathrow and working in London. My background is Human Resources and I was most recently the Human Resources Director for Crossrail Limited, the company who built the new Elizabeth Line railway in London. Moving to Barton saw my retirement from that company after 22 years.
Previously I have held senior Human Resources roles in Lombard NatWest, Railfreight Distribution and Prudential Insurance.
I joined the Board of Trustees of New Milton House in January 2022 and have recently taken on the Chair role.
New Milton House is a great care home and I am very pleased to be part of it.

Nigel

I have been a Trustee since June 2019 having retired earlier that year after a long career as a Senior Manager in the housing and care sectors. I worked for four County Councils and a Housing Association, mostly responsible for planning, developing and managing newly built retirement housing and care homes for older people. I have visited several hundred care homes in my career and I am delighted to still be involved in this much valued service by helping New Milton House in its ambition to achieve outstanding care.
I am also a Trustee of The Abbeyfield Wessex Society based in Bournemouth and of Sandleheath Village Hall, a village I moved to in 2016. My colleagues believe I spend too much time playing golf and holidaying in Europe, neither of which I can deny!
Angela
Having completed my nurse training in my home country of Wales, I moved to Dorset to specialise in cancer and haematology nursing.
I spent the following 37 years, setting up nurse-led cancer/ haematology services in both primary and secondary care, also working in London, South Africa and Australia.
Following my retirement from The NHS I took up a position for 5 years as a Specialist Nurse Advisor for the Care Quality Commission inspecting Cancer/Medicine and End of Life Care.
I enjoy tennis, looking after our grandchildren and walking in the forest with our miniature schnauzer Max.
I am very pleased to be a trustee of New Milton House which is always developing and looking at new ways to deliver great care.

John

My background is in finance having had a career in banking, insurance and HR culminating in being appointed PLC director for WSP an international construction company.
In 1995 I set-up my own business in financial services starting with just a desk and a telephone from offices in Weybridge, Surrey and built a practice with a team of consultants, admin and compliance experienced employees. In 2016 I then merged my business with another practice and continued there as a consultant until formally retiring in 2022.
I wanted to continue to use my business experience in the local community and became a trustee of New Milton House in 2021 (prev. Quaker House) to help improve and develop the success of the business. I live in Barton-on-Sea with my partner Rosemary and I enjoy golf and football, with two of our six grandchildren at the Fulham academy – hoping to see them come out on to the pitch at Craven Cottage one day!!
Mike
Originally from Chester, I have lived in The New Forest area for 40 years. After 22 years in the banking industry, I had a brief spell in Financial Services followed by almost two decades in schools management as a school Bursar and Facilities Manager before a more recent role in the Telecare industry. I bring to the team experience in several fields including finance, buildings management and practical skills.
I live locally with my wife and enjoy dog walking, food and travel.

The governance of New Forest Care Homes is undertaken by an independent, voluntary and unpaid Board of Trustees. The board comprises of local people who give up their time to help ensure New Milton House remains an important service to the local community, providing excellent care within a charitable and not-for-profit ethos. The Board of Trustees also ensure that the organisation complies with all Charity Commission rules and regulations, plus all other Company Registration and Care Quality Commission standards.
The Board of Trustees normally meet bimonthly with other occasional meetings and visits as required.
The main responsibilities of the Board of Trustees are to:
1. Set the annual budget and fee increase plus monitor all expenditures and income
2. Appoint the most senior Managers and ensure we act as a responsible employer for all our staff
3. Monitor that all care, building and financial standards and regulations are fully compliant
4. Ensure that our Care Home remains a caring, safe and happy place for all who live, work or visit

