Steven Hutchinson trained as a professional chef, but now he’s serving up first-class care after switching careers. Steven is loving life as regional manager of growing North-East company Care Matters Homecare, but he admits that his career in the care sector was something of an accident.

“I never really meant to develop a career in care,” he laughs. “I just wanted to do care, to do something interesting. The career just happened.”

Growing up in North Ormesby, Steven trained as a professional chef at The Longlands Hotel, in Middlesbrough, and then toured the country, cooking in various hospitality roles, but the monotony started to get to him.

“It was the same thing, day in, day out. Making the same recipes, cooking the same carvery every Sunday,” he says. “I needed a change.”

Moving back to Teesside when he turned 21, and in search of some variety, Steven took a part-time job one day a week as a community healthcare assistant. Little did he suspect this was the first step on his road to success.

“I thought it was going to be a lot of visiting people for a cup of tea,” he says. “But on my first day, I went out to an end-of-life patient, and I quickly realised that no two days were going to be the same in this job!”

Steven had discovered a talent for care, and bosses took note of the good feedback he was getting from clients. Before he knew it, Steven’s one-day-a-week role had turned into a full-time job.

Developing a natural rapport with clients and earning the trust of colleagues, he swiftly rose through the ranks to registered manager, then to a regional manager position, before joining Care Matters Homecare in 2019.

“When I came to Care Matters Homecare, it was still a very small company, but I felt straight away that they still genuinely cared – about clients, about staff, and about the job.

“The company has grown a lot since then and it’s never boring. My plans change some days just between leaving home and arriving at work!”

As regional manager, Steven oversees both Meadowfield House, in Thornaby, and the company’s Darlington location.

Care supervisor, Rachael James, calls him “the best manager I’ve had”, even though in all their time working together, the former chef has never cooked for her.

“I don’t cook at all now, I’m just too busy!” he protests. “People often think being a regional manager is a desk job, but I’m still out there – visiting clients, going out on calls. You know, just to keep things interesting.”

To talk to the Care Matters team call 01325 482 075 or visit the website.

They Care… Because it Matters!