A stalwart of the social care industry has received an MBE for her services to care during the Covid-19 pandemic – which saw her look after military veterans and their partners in a creative and compassionate way.

Harbourne visited Windsor Castle where she received her award from Charles, Prince of Wales.

She qualified as a nurse in 1986 and went on to work as a staff nurse and eventually a ward sister in both the NHS and private healthcare. Harbourne then moved into social care in 2005, starting out as a deputy manager before becoming a home manager in 2006. She now works for Macc Care and is the commissioning manager at Blythe Rose, a dementia home in Blythe Valley Park in Solihull, West Midlands.

Harbourne said: “I was incredibly proud and honoured to have been recognised in this way. It was a complete shock. I was awarded the MBE for service to veterans during the Covid-19 pandemic. My previous home was for veterans and partners, where we found innovative ways to keep our residents safe whilst maintaining contact with their loved ones. I received a phone call from the cabinet office in April 2021 to inform me of my award and had to keep it secret until the Queen’s birthday in June. Due to the pandemic, the ceremony was postponed until the end of March this year but the day was just as special.”

Speaking of her new role as commissioning manager at Blythe Rose, Harbourne added: “It is the one thing I have never done before in my career and I felt ready for a new challenge. I am very excited about the opening of Blythe Rose. The home is going to be unique and the team I have put together is going to be fantastic. We all share the same vision for providing exceptional standards of care and a life full of meaning for the residents we are going to care for. We can’t wait to meet them all.”

Blythe Rose will be the eleventh home of the Macc Care group, which runs a collection of care homes in the West Midlands.

Sharen Guise, Operations Director at Macc Care, commented: “We are delighted to have Cheryl as commissioning manager at Blythe Rose. She is a real inspiration to the industry and her recent MBE is truly deserved. We look forward to seeing what she can achieve there and with a talented team around her, we have no doubt her first home commissioning will be a real success.”