At Ridgeway Rise Care Home, we have a team of industry professionals that have a passion for delivering high-quality person-centred care with a compassionate approach. Our aim is to build strong relationships between staff members and residents and we do this through respect. We work hard as a collective to ensure that not only our residents and team have the feeling of being valued and fulfilled but also their loved ones.
Bella Balaci
Home Manager
Bella BalaciHome ManagerBella has been a Registered Nurse for over 18 years and has an extensive range of qualifications and management experience in the Care Home Sector.
Nursing inspired and developed her innate desire to help and care for people, and as a Care Home Manager Bella is the key communication point for Residents, Families, Staff, fellow professionals and the various agencies involved in care provision.
Valentin Joita
Deputy Manager
Valentin JoitaDeputy ManagerValentin Joita is our devoted Deputy Manager with experience as a Registered Nurse as well as one of our trainers. With a considerable range of qualifications, he is always kin to help and take care of our lovely residents, relatives and team members.
Lory Branisteanu
Chef Manager
Lory BranisteanuChef ManagerLory is our Head Chef here at Ridgeway Rise Care Home and he has a huge passion for cooking. With his 28 years of experience as a chef including senior positions, Lory enjoys menu planning and challenging himself in meeting high satisfaction standards. He used to work in kitchens of large banqueting hotels, restaurants, and care homes worldwide. Lory speaks 8 different languages. Everywhere he goes, Lory invests in developing coaching and mentoring programs for his team.
Elizabeta Ionescu (Lilly)
Chef in Training
Elizabeta Ionescu (Lilly)Chef in TrainingLilly joined the team as a kitchen assistant initially but her passion for cooking and baking was so transparent she decided to take on the offer of training as a Chef. Lilly has vast experience working in the kitchen and catering for a bigger number of guests. Lilly loves learning about different cultures and experimenting with dishes. She is a fast-adapting person willing to always do more to meet the resident’s expectations.
Cristian Panaitiu
Unit Manager
Cristian PanaitiuUnit ManagerCristian Panaitiu oversees the second floor. He is a dedicated Registered Nurse and Unit Manager. Cristian contributes to the life of Ridgeway Rise as a conscientious coordinator, active daily care assessor, tenacious trainer and a fun-loving colleague.
Olesya Santalova
Unit Manager
Olesya SantalovaUnit ManagerOlesya joined the Ridgeway Rise team in October 2023 and loves working at Ridgeway Rise Care Home due to the high professionalism and team spirit.
She is very passionate about her role melding her team together with a “hands-on” approach, enthusiasm and relationship skills to develop a great reputation for her workplace.
Andreea Birligea
Unit Manager
Andreea BirligeaUnit ManagerAndreea Birligea has plenty of experience as a Registered Nurse and multiple qualifications. She is the End of Life care lead and dedicates her time to caring for the residents on the ground floor.
Alina Roman
Registered Nurse
Alina RomanRegistered NurseAlina has been a registered nurse since 2014, she joined Ridgeway Rise right at the beginning, in 2019. Alina is a great asset to the team. She recently qualified as a mental health first aider. She is a dysphagia champion and supports the Continence Lead. Alina loves working with her team and is always happy to pick up additional shifts, which earned her an award for Ridgeway Rise’s Values Champion as Respectful.
Tayla Smith
Care Assistant
Tayla SmithCare AssistantTayla joined Ridgeway Rise 4 years ago and is currently undertaking Apprenticeship level 3 with Swindon College and has the best feedback from her teachers.
Nothing is too much trouble for Tayla and she is always looking out for opportunities to brighten residents’ days.
As she says “I’m a carer and want to do what I do, a large part of that is having autism and being misunderstood/finding it hard to express what’s inside to the outside; much like those with dementia and people who have communication barriers- is this good to include or is it better to leave it out and say something else, as there is a lot of stigma around autism.”
Tayla won the National Carer of the Year Award 2024 for Care Concern Group.
Alla Ricks
Activity Coordinator
Alla RicksActivity CoordinatorAlla is our Activity Coordinator on the 2nd floor and has a Masters degree in music, finishing university as a qualified conductor. Alla is our art expert and is never short of ideas to plan unique craft sessions. Alla is also a piano teacher and has extensive experience in organising events. Alla has a great passion for entertaining residents and making their lives enriched and enjoyable with lots of soulful activities.
Anna Kiljan
Activities Coordinator
Anna KiljanActivities CoordinatorAnna is a passionate Activities Coordinator here at Ridgeway Rise. She is a very popular team member and runs all sorts of fun activities for our residents, including a Knitting Club. Outside of work, Anna is very active and her hobbies include martial arts, vintage cars and travelling.
Colin Weaver
Activities Coordinator
Colin WeaverActivities CoordinatorColin retired from Sainsbury’s, ending his 30-year career in the bakery, eventually as a bakery manager. At the age of 52, he was diagnosed with a rare form of cancer. His recovery from a very hard battle, disqualifying him from many aspects of life, made him realise he was not ready to retire yet. He always loved working with people and his new role, as an activity coordinator, is his way of giving back, supporting others and enjoying life. He loves history and offers the residents lots of talks on notorious characters, not by reading facts from the book but by dressing as that person. Colin is the regional winner of the Great British Care Awards 2023.
Kinga Dabrowska
Admin Manager
Kinga DabrowskaAdmin ManagerKinga has a degree in social care and pedagogy and devoted her life to working with older generation and people living with dementia. Kinga uses her experience to make sure Ridgeway Rise is a care home of choice for the new residents and their families. She organises events and open days to introduce the great atmosphere of the Home. Kinga is very active in the community as a member of Dementia Action Alliance, she also delivers training sessions to local businesses, organises regular community lunches, events with Swindon Carers Centre and participates in career days at local schools.
Trevor Kenyon
Maintenance Manager
Trevor KenyonMaintenance ManagerTrevor is local to Ridgeway Rise Care Home and has worked in maintenance roles for 28 years, most of this time at Honda as a Maintenance Engineer and more recently as Facilities Manager for Arena Group. Trevor has a keen interest in working at Ridgeway Rise Care Home, not only carrying out the day-to-day maintenance of the building but also meeting and getting to know our residents and contributing to their wellbeing.
Charlie Yeates
Receptionist
Charlie YeatesReceptionistCharlie has been working at Ridgeway Rise for over two years and started off as an Activities Coordinator. She is known for being bubbly, chatty, and a people person. Charlie can often be seen speaking to residents and their families, offering them a hot cup of tea and a smile – she is always happy to help.