Norfolk company has two real GEMs in the team

A Norfolk home care company has two real GEMs among its team as two worthy winners of a company award have been revealed.

The March GEM Awards attracted many nominations for team members at award-winning family run Extra Hands, but two worthy winners stood out for Going the Extra Mile.

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At the company’s  Broadland office, Amy Platten was recognised for ‘going the extra mile’, in a nomination that described her as “lovely, kind and patient”.

The 30-year-old from North Walsham, who returned to Extra Hands in 2021 after a brief career break, said: “The award was totally unexpected; I had a phone call from the manager and thought, ‘What have I done now?’!

“It’s nice to feel that I’m appreciated.”

She added: “The job is so rewarding, and you’re improving people’s quality of life and helping to keep them in their own home.”

The Heacham office winner was Daniel Plain, who received two different nominations for the award.

A grateful service-user wrote: “Without the support Daniel gives me, I don’t know where I would be – he looks after my personal care so well.”

The second nomination described his “gentle and caring approach” as “truly inspirational”.

Daniel, 40, joined Extra Hands three-and-a-half years ago when he moved to Heacham, having previously worked in a warehouse.

“When the opportunity at Extra Hands came up, I didn’t know if I would like it,” he said, “but I found I really enjoyed it.

“The service users are all so nice and very appreciative, and it’s good to be doing something for the community and to be making a difference. I used to dread going into work with my old job, but now I really enjoy what I do – it suits me to a T.”

Extra Hands was founded in 1993 and provides a variety of home care packages across the county to suit all requirements and budgets.