About Allegra Care

Helen had a 20 year career in the Australian care and senior living sector before transferring to the UK in 2017. In the senior living sector Helen has held the senior roles of General Manager for Tricare Nursing Homes (1,200 Residents), Chief Operations Officer for Domain Principal Group (5,000 Residents) and Executive for Strategy, Standards and Service Development with Australian Unity Independent and Extra Care (3,000 residents, 55,000 home care clients). Helen has undertaken global research to shape her award winning residential care service model. Helen was the first aged care recipient of the Endeavour Executive Australia Award, and is a Board member of the Common Age Association, a charitable organisation focused on improving aged care standards in all Commonwealth countries.
Helen is a Director of Seniors Living Group and Chief Operations Officer of Allegra’s sister business Amicala.

Henry was formerly Head of Retirement Living at Savills. In that role he advised many of the leading UK extra care, assisted living and retirement developers and operators, as well as advising investors and new entrants. Henry in addition advised think tanks, policy bodies and industry groups. Prior to this role Henry was a partner for a retirement and care home developer / operator in Southern England. Over the course of his 20 year career in property, Henry has worked across the senior living sector.
Henry is a Director of Seniors Living Group and Chief Development Officer of Allegra’s sister business Amicala.

Michael has spent the last 7 years in the senior living sector and has 30 years’ experience in the finance sector. He qualified as a Chartered Accountant at KPMG. He was formerly Head of Group Mergers and Acquisitions at UBS, having started his career at Morgan Grenfell in London. Michael has been involved in a wide range of corporate advisory assignments, including IPOs and restructurings.
Michael is a Director of Seniors Living Group and Chief Financial Officer of Allegra’s sister business, Amicala.

Paul has spent the last 7 years in the senior living sector and has 30 years of management experience. He was a partner at Q Street Capital and co-owner of Matrix Alternative Asset Management. He began his career at Barclays Capital, where he was Deputy Head of Equities Trading globally and Head of Equity and Derivatives Trading at BZW Japan.
Paul is Chairman of Seniors Living Group and Chief Executive Officer of Allegra’s sister business Amicala.

Mark Horton joined Slaughter and May in 1979, having read law at Cambridge University. He practiced as a corporate Partner for over 30 years, based mainly in London. In Hong Kong he was head of the firm’s China practice and also served as a Council Member of the Hong Kong Law Society. For many years, he led both the firm’s Government practice as well as its infrastructure, energy and natural resources (IEN) group. He was seconded to the Brexit unit within HM Treasury in 2016, before retiring from the firm in 2018.

Mark is an investor in, and director of, private companies operating in a number of different business sectors. He became a Board member of Allegra Care in 2020.

Valerie brings over 30 years’ experience in Health and Social Care to her position as Standards Manager for Allegra Care, focussing since 2009 on Quality and Governance. She qualified as an Adult Nurse at Kings College London in 1996, since when she has worked across a variety of sectors in care. Joining Allegra Care in February 2023, her expertise in professional leadership, new ways of working and clinical effectiveness enables her to develop strategies to improve standards of care for residents, enhancing their wellbeing and their lives.

Her busy home life includes spending as much time as possible with her adorable grandchildren and, in her free time, watching Korean and Chinese television dramas.

As a seasoned executive leader, Darryl brings years of expertise and progressive performance in the health care sector, both in Australia and here in the UK. His career with Allegra Care started as General Services Manager at St George’s Nursing Home in Weston-super-Mare, before becoming The Recruitment and Retention Manager, based at the company’s Guildford head office. In this capacity, he oversees the recruitment process for Allegra Care's homes, ensuring that the company has a skilled, caring and committed workforce.

Darryl’s other interests away from work include golf, gym and sports cars. He is also a passionate foodie who enjoys trying out different cuisines and new recipes.

Bringing over 30 years of experience in the healthcare industry to his role with Allegra Care, Adam Keens’ track record encompasses key estate management roles in both the public and private sectors.

In addition to a Post Graduate Diploma in Facilities Management at Reading University, Adam has also completed the Sterling University Dementia Design Course. This wide-ranging academic research underpins his belief in the importance of ongoing investment to prolonging asset life, and the crucial roles played by solid compliance foundations and good design in the optimised delivery of care.

In his professional capacity, Adam has innovated and developed strategies for dealing with backlog maintenance and continued investment in the built environment, as well as a tool for monitoring and proactively managing property compliance in Care Homes. He has also spent time in the US studying the American Community model of Senior Living and their approach to dementia care through their Reminiscence programme.

Away from work, when he isn’t avidly following Formula One and other motorsports, Adam can often be found tinkering with classic cars and motorbikes.

Joining Allegra Care after over six years as Director of Facilities at Sunrise Senior Living, Adam Keens brings a wealth of knowledge and expertise to his position as Director of Asset Management.

Sue brings a diverse range of experience and skills gained from various marketing roles in South Africa and the UK, to her role as Marketing Manager at Allegra Care. She is driven by her great enthusiasm for marketing and a desire to make a positive impact on people's lives. She firmly believes that everyone deserves the best care and attention and is committed to promoting the excellent care provided by Allegra Care to a wider audience. Despite her busy schedule, Sue enjoys spending quality time with her family and friends, taking long walks with her Dachshund Sunny, and exploring the beautiful countryside that surrounds her.

Nevertheless, her dedication to her job and her passion for marketing motivates her to continuously seek innovative ways to promote Allegra Care and ensure its ongoing success.

With a 14-year track record in the healthcare sector, working as financial controller for four multi-site care home groups, Tim is a highly experienced finance professional. From acquisitions and disposals to diversification and a de-merger, he brings a wealth of corporate change experience to his role with Allegra Care, working closely with executive management and shareholders of privately-owned residential care groups. His wide-ranging remit has seen him acquire and cultivate a diverse skillset, including systems integration and process implementation and development. A self-confessed lover of spreadsheets, Tim is dedicated to helping people understand the story the numbers are telling. In his time off, he enjoys walking and cycling in the Surrey Hills with his family, whilst his fascination with history has seen him recently learn Hebrew.

Recently celebrating his 40th year working in the care sector, James brings a wealth of experience to his role as Allegra Care’s Operations Director. His career spans care in a range of settings and sectors, with his initial training as a nurse leading on to a variety of roles throughout 20 years’ service in the NHS. James is passionate about elderly care and shares Allegra Care’s dedication to person-centred care delivery, ensuring that every aspect is tailored to each individual’s specific needs. In his free time, he will most likely be found walking in his beloved countryside, faithful four legged companion in tow.

Nicky brings more than 25 years’ care sector experience to her role as Regional Manager, with a career that spans a wide variety of roles, from care assistant to regional manager.

As her father was in the RAF, Nicky grew up as a Forces child – educated in Germany and living in many locations through her younger life, including Hong Kong. Married for 17 years, with four wonderful sons (and recently becoming a Nanny to yet another little boy!) she is happily settled in a lovely Suffolk village. As her youngest son is an outstanding striker for his football team, she can often be seen on Saturdays and Sundays running the line at his matches. Her other main sporting interest is pool – she plays for Suffolk and also runs two teams in the Ipswich league. Nicky also enjoys spending her leisure time at the gym, relaxing with her family or walking her French Bulldogs, Ralph and Coco, who are frequent visitors the homes she managers, where the residents adore them and treat them very much as their own.

Working for eleven years as a Social Worker and Team Manager in Adult Services, Jacqueline relished supporting care providers with their safeguarding, quality and compliance requirements. Based on this experience, she then sought a move into working with a residential care provider. Jacqueline approached Allegra Care first, as she felt that the company’s values, care principles and household model aligned very closely with her own vision of what good care should look like. As Regional Manager, her passion for outstanding care is self-evident as she supports homes and colleagues across Hampshire. She also thinks laughter is a great tonic – and her cheeky sense of humour is infectious.

Away from work, Jacqueline enjoys eating out, cinema and horse racing. As a mother of two grown up children, she enjoys spending time with her friends, her family and her two grandchildren.

As Administration Office Manager for Allegra Care, Joanna brings a wealth of experience and organisational skills from her years as a PA in the interior design, media and music sectors, the latter giving her a claim to fame for having once met David Bowie. Her role with Allegra Care sees her coordinating the various administrative functions of the business and ensuring the smooth running of the company’s head office in Guildford.

Joanna lives in Ripley, Surrey and much of her time away from work is taken up by her three wonderful children.

After many years’ commuting daily to work in London’s Regent Street, Lynne joined the team at New Forest Nursing Home in 2008. In her capacity as Regional Accounts Manager for Allegra Care, she oversees all accounts and administrative functions and enjoys a long-standing working relationship with her established team, most of whom have also been in post for many years. Her primary focus is helping people, from residents and their families, to suppliers and the company’s many commercial and business partners.