In a care sector often accused of lagging behind the wider world of health innovation, a Swindon home has quietly stepped forward with something rather different. Willowbrook View, part of the Connaught Care Collection, has begun offering its award-winning wellbeing service not just to residents and staff, but to anyone visiting the home for a tour — and doing so long before they’ve made any decisions about moving in.
For three months, prospective residents and their families will have full access to Connaught Connect, the care group’s far-reaching support platform. It’s an unusually generous gesture and, by all accounts, a first for the UK care sector.
Connaught Connect launched only last year, created with the help of wellbeing specialists Health Assured. The service folds together a host of tools — emotional support, guidance around bereavement, help with lifestyle choices, legal signposting, financial advice — all accessed through a dedicated app containing everything from guided programmes and video workouts to live chat, self-assessment tools and an impressive bank of over a thousand digital resources.
Although still young, the platform quickly earned national attention, securing the Wellbeing Innovations Award at the 2025 Social Care Leadership Awards in London. For Laurence Feather, Connaught Care’s Head of People, the accolade came as a genuine surprise.
He explains how the team never set out to build something “award-worthy”, but simply wanted to respond to the moments when people feel unsure or worn down. To see that effort recognised so quickly, he says, was a reminder that small, thoughtful interventions can have a sizeable impact.
The idea to extend the app to visiting families came about after repeated conversations with relatives who were juggling probate queries, financial decisions, emotional strain and the maze of information that surrounds a transition into care. For many, this period is when they feel most exposed and least equipped to navigate the complexity.
Realising that Connaught Connect already offered much of the help visitors were struggling to find elsewhere, Willowbrook’s team took the unusual step of opening access to everyone walking through the door. It means families can explore support on everything from legal worries to mental wellbeing, and even book one-to-one counselling sessions if they need more structured guidance.
Andrew Winstanley, CEO of Connaught Care Collection, says the move sits firmly within the group’s “complete care” approach — a philosophy rooted in supporting not just physical needs, but emotional, social and spiritual wellbeing. Giving visitors access from the outset, he says, simply reflects what the organisation believes care should look like.
Families already trialling the app report that having immediate expert advice has eased a great deal of pressure. One family member, Melvin, described the initiative as “a thoughtful touch that brings real peace of mind”, praising the way it gathers practical and emotional support in one place.
Connaught Care now operates six luxury homes across the UK, and its latest step positions it once again at the more innovative end of the care spectrum — a space where compassion, technology and human support increasingly meet.
