About
A Timeline of Peninsula Care Services
A brief overview of key milestones and achievements in Peninsula Care Services history, highlighting how the company has grown and developed over the years.
The Beginning
Peninsula Care Services was established in 2009 and since then has continued to grow. Based in Newtownards, Peninsula provides care to clients in their homes as well as running a successful agency providing temporary Nurse and Care Assistant cover to a broad base of clients.
Expanding Our Reach
In 2010, Peninsula Care Services embarked on a significant expansion phase, broadening our service offerings and extending our reach to new communities. We established partnerships with additional healthcare facilities, enabling us to provide quality care to a larger population. This year marked a pivotal point in our growth, as we adapted to the increasing demand for our services and reinforced our commitment to excellence in healthcare provision.
Opening the Training Academy
In 2012, Peninsula Care Services took significant steps to enhance the quality of care provided by our professionals. We introduced comprehensive training programs to ensure our staff remained up to date with industry best practices and regulatory standards. This year also marked an expansion in our partnerships with healthcare providers, allowing us to place highly trained professionals in hospitals, care homes, and community care settings.
Recognising Our Staff
In 2014 we launched our Heart of Peninsula Care Awards. This yearly celebration features esteemed guests and local business leaders at some of the best venues in Northern Ireland. It has become a highly anticipated night and a fantastic way to honour our hard working healthcare professionals. This is a night celebrating our staff with awards including newcomer, unsung hero and giraffe of the year for the member of staff who was head and shoulders above the rest. The climax of the night the announcement of the highly coveted Heart of Peninsula Care winner.
An Award-Winning Year
This year, we truly felt that the service we have worked so hard to build and consistently deliver was recognised in a meaningful way. That recognition was powerfully affirmed through winning a Belfast Telegraph Award for Outstanding Service to Business, alongside an Ards Business Award for Excellence in Customer Service and Professional Business Services.
These achievements had a profoundly positive impact on us as an organisation, boosting confidence, strengthening team morale, and reinforcing our shared belief in the value of what we do and the difference we make.
Award Winners
In 2016 Peninsula Care were delighted to be honoured with the Healthcare Business of the year award. The First Trust Bank Business Eye Awards hosted a lovely night at the La Mon hotel, this occasion marks a memorable night in the history of our company.
Training Excellence
This year, our Training Academy, built on a strong commitment to excellence in equipping staff with up-to-date knowledge and skills in the care industry received well-deserved recognition at the Randox Health Awards, where we were Highly Commended for Training in Healthcare. This acknowledgement reflects the dedication and quality that underpin
everything we deliver through our learning programmes. In addition, the work and leadership of our Director, Jonny Cook, was recognised with a Special Recognition Award, an achievement he is incredibly proud of, particularly at such a young point in his career. Together, these milestones have had a hugely positive impact, reinforcing our commitment to growth, development, and excellence as both an organisation and a team.
Strengthening Our Presence
As the healthcare sector continued to face unprecedented challenges due to the ongoing effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, Peninsula Care Services remained committed to providing high-quality staffing solutions and care services. We adapted to new health and safety regulations, ensuring that our team was well-equipped to deliver safe and effective care in hospitals, nursing homes, and community settings.
Fundraisers and moving home
In 2023 we raised nearly £4000 for Brainwaves NI. This charity hits close to home for our company and through a combined effort from our staff we were able to smash our fundraising goal. This also marks the year we moved into our permanent offices, this was a full circle moment for our director Jonny as the office was formally a bar owned by his family and the place he had his first job and his entrepreneurship began.
Leading the Industry
In 2024, Peninsula Care Services continued to evolve, embracing new technologies and innovative approaches to healthcare staffing and service delivery. We enhanced our digital recruitment processes, making it easier for healthcare professionals to connect with opportunities that matched their skills and career aspirations. Additionally, we introduced specialized training programs to upskill our workforce, ensuring that our staff remained at the forefront of industry standards.
Enhancing our Services
In 2025, we enhanced the care support we provide to people in their own homes by
developing our enhanced care at home service. This included building a skilled team of nurses and care workers with specialist training to support individuals with complex needs, including ventilated patients, allowing us to keep people in our local community safe and well at home.
Our Vision & Mission
Our Vision
Our Mission
- To deliver exceptional care services that enhance the lives of individuals in need of support.
- To recruit, train, and place highly skilled healthcare professionals in environments where they can make a meaningful impact.
- To uphold the highest standards of integrity, professionalism, and excellence in all aspects of our work.
- To continuously improve and innovate our services to meet the evolving needs of our clients and the healthcare industry.
meet our team
Jonny Cook
Jonny Cook
As Director of Peninsula Care Services, Jonny Cook plays a key role in both the strategic management and day-to-day operations of the organisation. A true team player, he is dedicated to ensuring that our care services are delivered to the highest standard, meeting the expectations of our valued clients and service users.
With extensive experience in domiciliary care and nursing recruitment agencies, along with a strong background in both care and management qualifications, Jonny brings a wealth of expertise to the company. His leadership ensures that our team provides compassionate, high-quality care to those who need it most.
Outside of work, Jonny enjoys spending time with his two dogs, Poppy and Noah. A keen traveller with a love for the sea, he prefers to explore the world by cruise. He’s also a theatre fan who enjoys taking in performances whenever he can.
Matthew Wylie
Matthew Wylie
A true company veteran, Matthew joined in 2010 after a career change from construction, training as a Community Care Worker before moving into recruitment support. While advancing his qualifications in HR, leadership and management, he took on more responsibility and is now our Registered Manager, overseeing daily operations, compliance, and recruitment for the Domiciliary Care Agency.
Outside of work, Matthew balances a busy home life with his passion for football coaching, darts, and pool—having even helped Northern Ireland win the European Championship in 2012!
Joanne Roy
Joanne Roy
Joanne is our dedicated Registered Nurse Manager at Peninsula Care Services, bringing over 40 years of nursing experience to the team. Since qualifying in 1983, she has specialised in elderly and dementia care, spending 17 years as a Home Manager.
At Peninsula Care Services, Joanne oversees nurse recruitment, training, and compliance, ensuring the highest standards of care. She manages NMC registrations, conducts audits, and supports our team with her extensive expertise.
Outside of work, Joanne enjoys family time, sunny picnics, and cosy days in with her dogs Betty and Archie.
Kim Stewart
Kim Stewart
Kim has been part of Peninsula Care since 2013, bringing over 20 years of care experience to her role. An award-winning care worker, she’s earned multiple accolades, including the prestigious Heart of Peninsula award. After a stint in coordination role, Kim returned to hands-on care before stepping into the Deputy Manager role in 2023, where she now helps oversee our care team and ensures top-quality service. Outside of work, she’s a passionate live music fan and a keen traveller—next stop, New York for Oasis’ reunion tour!
Darren Matchett
Darren Matchett
Having more than 20 years of experience in healthcare, Darren joined Peninsula Care in June 2020 during the pandemic as an agency Health Care Assistant. He joined the office team in July 2021 to assist the daily running and operations of the Recruitment Agency. Since then, he has completed his Level 3 in Human Resources (CIPD) and in Education and Training. As of today, Darren is responsible for the recruitment of Agency Health Care Assistants and assisting the Nurse Manager with Nurses, ensuring compliance is met and is the first point of call to our customers requiring the short- and long-term filling of vacancies, you may also see him delivering courses for the Training Academy including Dysphagia Awareness and Infection Control. Darren is a bit of a film buff so if you want a review on the latest block buster or hit TV show – he’s your man to talk to.
Glenda Caughey
Glenda Caughey
Glenda joined Peninsula Care 8 years ago in March 2017 and like many of our Care at Home office based team, she started out as a Community Care Worker. She was interested in care as a career due to being a caregiver in her own family and found a passion for helping others. An award-winning care worker, Glenda was recognised in 2017 as Unsung Hero of Peninsula Care, before returning to the awards stage in 2023 to collect the Client Choice and The Overall Heart of Peninsula Care. Early in 2024 she made the change to becoming a Care Coordinator in our office team and has since then enjoyed working with our staff and service users throughout the Bangor area, which she oversees. Glenda has also taken the necessary training to become our in-house manual handling staff trainer. In her spare time Glenda enjoys attending the Belfast Giant’s home games and cheering the team on.
Emily Lightbody
Emily Lightbody
Initially joined the team as a Care Assistant in 2021, having worked in care settings since 2017, she brings a wealth of experience and compassion to her role.
During her time with us, Emily achieved her Levels 2 and 3 Health & Social Care and was awarded Learner of the Year at our Heart of Peninsula Care Awards.
Emily works alongside her carers and members of the multidisciplinary team in the community to ensure her service users care is assessed, planned and delivered effectively.
Beyond work, Emily is a proud mum of two boys. She loves spending time in the Mournes with her family, taking them to rugby practice, and enjoying the great outdoors. She’s also a big fan of Christmas movies, especially “The Holiday” and loves reading almost every night. When she’s not relaxing with a good book, she enjoys soap operas and listening to country music.
Mandy Lewis
Mandy Lewis
Mandy Lewis has been a valued member of Peninsula Care since 2010, starting her career as a community care worker. Over the years, she has built lasting relationships with many service users, delivering an exceptional standard of care and becoming a familiar, much-welcomed face in their daily lives.
Committed to professional growth, Mandy has achieved her QCF Level 2 and 3 qualifications in Health and Social Care. Her dedication and expertise have led her to her current role as Monitoring Officer.
In this position, Mandy is out on the road each day, visiting service users in their own homes to ensure care is delivered to the highest standard and that individual needs are being met. She also supervises care staff while on duty, offering guidance, support, and encouragement drawn from her extensive experience. In her spare time Mandy enjoys reading, swimming and her holidays.
George Black
George Black
George has been working part time with Peninsula since our inception overseeing our payroll and accounts department. He uses various current software packages to ensure that our team are paid on time and that clients are invoiced. He is the main port of contact for any of our valued clients to discuss details of their account. George has over 12 years experience in the industry, in not only a finance position but also in various caring and management roles as well as being a trained counsellor and holding a Chartered Management Qualification.
Emanuel Oliveira
Emanuel Oliveira
From Portugal, Emanuel joined our team in 2019 working in a health care role before taking on the role of Agency Coordinator and now Accounts Assistant. With a keen interest in numbers he works in our Finance department dealing with payroll and invoicing. In his spare time he enjoys listening to music and is a keen footballer currently playing for Sirocco Works FC.
Erwina Smyth
Erwina Smyth
With an eye for detail, Erwina is responsible for the recruitment compliance of our Care at Home and Nursing team. Her role ensures that our nursing and care team receive the most up to date ongoing supervision, training, and development.
Erwina is known to have a sweet tooth, and outside of work, enjoys going to see tribute bands and spending time with her two grandchildren.
Curtis Gray
Curtis Gray
As an Admin Assistant at Peninsula Care, Curtis is often the first voice you hear or the first face you see when you visit our office. Based at reception, he plays a key role in supporting our team, assisting with the onboarding of new recruits and ensuring HR files are kept up to date throughout their time with us.
Outside of work, Curtis enjoys spending time with friends and playing football for fun. He has recently taken on the role of coaching a senior men’s football team, a challenge hes’s embracing with enthusiasm. He also loves making the most of his time off by travelling, whether it’s a short trip or a well-earned holiday.