Ten years ago, Louise Sheffield established Active Case Management, despite having no background in case management. Here, she reflects on the growth of the company in terms of size, reach and reputation and how they are entering their second decade with positivity.
“Very refreshing but completely terrifying.”
Louise Sheffield’s early experience of setting up on her own in case management was a far cry from her career to date.
“I’d worked in the NHS and at the time there weren’t many people doing the work I did,” reflects Louise, whose background is in occupational therapy specialising in brain injury.
“But then here I was setting up a business in this new area of case management – I’d never been a case manager, although my service co-ordinator role in the NHS had drawn on the same skills of assessment and planning through a multi-disciplinary rehabilitation programme.
“I’d gone from being in the NHS and knowing everyone at every event I went to, to going to events as a case manager and knowing no-one.
“It was a strange time at first, and I did think I must’ve been mad. But my instinct then was the same as it is now – just to crack on.”
And the determination of Louise – with her years of experience as an NHS rehabilitation co-ordinator – to make her mark has paid off, with her business, Active Case Management, marking its 10th anniversary.
With a team of 13 people covering the Midlands, North West and North East from its Wigan head office, its reach continues to grow.
“For the first few years it was only me and it was a learning process in many ways, but I wanted to learn, I was starting with a blank slate,” says Louise.
“It was a very different mentality to working in the NHS. While I was there, we were very conscious of waiting lists and our targets and whether a different service was more appropriate than ours. I was the gatekeeper of the service – but for me, from the outset with my business, it was a case of I’ll take on any client, as long as it’s within my capability.
“I didn’t always know if I was doing things right, but the solicitors seemed to be happy, the clients were happy, so I thought it must be right.
“But as you grow and create relationships and build a team, you find you have the benefit of the expertise and experience of those around you. That continues to help me.”
Having built a strong reputation for its support of, and dedication to, clients, Active is also known for its intermediary work.
Louise herself is a registered intermediary, a role she has now established as her niche in case management, but was something she was unsure how to incorporate into Active’s offering in the early days.
“I actually saw it as a potential threat to my case management work at first – I’m always cautious if someone claims to be an expert in too many things,” says Louise.
“But actually, I needn’t have been so conscious of that, as it’s become something we’re now known for and I’m very proud of our reputation.
“My favourite kind of client is one who is a bit cheeky, bit naughty, who maybe sails a bit close to the wind. There will be some challenging behaviour alongside the bags of character – but that often comes with disinhibition and impulsiveness and that can often get people into trouble with the law.
“And that is where our specialism can be really important.”
While fulfilling both roles concurrently, case manager and intermediary work are very different, says Louise.
“If I put all my files together for my case management work, they would fill an entire wall of the office, whereas my intermediary work would fit into one filing cabinet,” she says.
“With case management, you learn a huge amount about your clients, and you’ll know their shoe size, you’ll know their aunty’s name, you’ll know that with some clients you’d better answer the phone to them at 2am or else they’ll have called another 10 times before 3am.
“But with intermediary work, it’s very narrow remit but very deep. I like how it doesn’t take up the huge amount of brain space you need for your clients and their lives.
“But the roles definitely complement each other and the skills you need for one do help you with the other.”
Going forward, Active continues to progress and Louise’s can-do attitude is at the heart of that.
“This was a different world at first, but it’s a great one to work in. I’ve got a great team of 13 people now and we’ll keep on doing the best we can for our clients,” she says.
And the ethos of the team as they enter their second decade is more determined than ever before.
“For us, it’s all about saying ‘Yes we can, bring it on’,” adds Louise.
