Bluebird Care, the UK’s largest home care provider, has announced the appointment of Joe Whibley as its new UK Chief Operating Officer who joins with a wealth of senior leadership experience behind him across healthcare, wellbeing, and retail sectors.
Joe will focus on supporting franchise partners and Bluebird Care’s wider network of 220+ UK franchises to maximise their potential, while further bolstering consistency, confidence, and operational excellence across the organisation.
Joe brings a strong track record of supporting large, complex businesses to thrive through people-first leadership, operational excellence, and partnership. His career has spanned organisations including LivingWell, Amplifon, and Boots Hearingcare. As Retail Director at Boots Hearingcare, Joe supported over 650 clinics across the UK and Northern Ireland, working with more than 400 healthcare professionals.
Most recently, Joe founded his own training and consultancy business, delivering programmes in leadership, customer service, and sales across healthcare and hospitality.
Joe’s relationship with Bluebird Care began through this work as he delivered more than 20 training sessions to teams across the network, focused on handling care enquiries with empathy, reassurance, and confidence.
He was drawn to the COO role in part due to his own family’s experience of care, where Joe’s aunt stepped in as family carer to his grandmother towards the end of her life. Seeing first-hand the emotional and practical toll this took gave Joe a deep appreciation for the importance of high-quality care that supports not only the individual, but the wider family too – a commitment that strongly aligned with Bluebird Care’s principles.
Joe Whibley, Chief Operating Officer at Bluebird Care, said:
“Purpose has always been incredibly important to me, and Bluebird Care stood out immediately because of its values, its partnership-led approach, and its ambition to set the standard for high-quality care.
I’m excited to get involved more involved with our fantastic network, working closely with franchise partners, the National Engagement Team, and wider support teams to build on the strong culture of trust and collaboration already in place.”
Jonathan Gardner, Chief Executive Officer of Bluebird Care, said:
“Joe brings an exceptional blend of commercial expertise, operational leadership, and purpose-led values. His experience of supporting large healthcare networks, combined with his ability to connect with people at every level, makes him a fantastic fit for Bluebird Care.
He already understands our culture, our partners, and our ambition, and we’re delighted to welcome him to the executive team as we continue to strengthen our premium, people-first approach to home care.”
Joe Whibley, Chief Operating Officer, Bluebird Care