New CEO turbo charging improvements across the care sector

A once-wannabe fighter pilot says a family legacy is now fuelling his mission to help improve the crisis-hit care and education sectors after being named as Flourish’s new chief executive.

Part of Merseyside-based The Progress Group, Flourish aims to raise standards and the quality of care across adult and children’s social care and education markets by offering comprehensive training and staffing solutions. 

And Eammon Price, who brings extensive experience across finance, operations, and strategic leadership, has recently been appointed as chief executive of Flourish. 

Flourish’s offering includes a connected suite of digital products – including digital hubs Click Learning, Click Academy, and Click Community, as well as free access to a rewards and discounts platform and personalised wellbeing app to empower professionals and organisations to build thriving environments.

It also includes pioneering digital platform, Click Shifts, which not only allows self-employed workers to set their own pay and choose their own shifts, but connects care clients to the local, experienced, and vetted carers who can cover shifts at short notice, reducing the need to rely on agencies and avoiding additional fees.

After abandoning hopes of being a fighter pilot, Price, who lives in Formby, today he was proud to follow in his family’s footsteps and bring improvements to the turbulent worlds of adult and children’s social care and education sectors. 

He said: “I have a belief that every child should be supported, nurtured, and given the opportunity to thrive within both education and care settings.

“I wanted to become a fighter jet pilot when I was growing up – sadly my eyesight prevented this dream from coming true – but after a career in finance that has taken me to the USA and Canada, I am proud to be caring on my family’s legacy in the care and education sectors.

“Growing up as one of five children in Liverpool, I was surrounded by carers. My mum worked in social care and has since become a foster carer. Her mum, my nan, ran a care home that she grew from one resident to 10, while my other nan worked in a Sefton care home until it closed.

“Afterwards she adopted two of its adult residents with Downs Syndrome and looked after them for the rest of their lives.

“That extraordinary commitment to care is shown every day by carers and care sector providers and education settings across the country in incredibly-difficult circumstances and that is why I’m proud to be appointed Flourish’s CEO.“

Price previously served as parent company The Progress Group’s chief financial officer for over six years and his extensive career includes four years as a finance and commercial director at GEOAmey as well as senior positions at the Manchester Airports Group and Vertex Business Services.

His appointment comes as the care and education sectors are hit with considerable challenges around hiring and retaining staff as well as empowering them to look after their wellbeing and finding time to upskill them around their hectic schedules and increasing workloads.

Price said: “It is clear that the three sectors Flourish operates in are in crisis at the moment, but we have got big plans to play a crucial role in supporting the Government to fix these issues. 

“We have developed a connected suite of sector-built digital solutions that attract, develop, and retain the people who matter most, to ultimately help achieve better outcomes for the end users of those care and education settings.

“We currently reach around 200,000 end users and we are perfectly poised to expand that and make an even-bigger difference, and I look forward to being a part of that.”