Dr. Charles Armitage and Dan Blake founded Florence to give our amazing social care workforce the community and tools it needs.
Our tech helps professionals take control of their working lives, connects teams and frees up time to make a real difference. For too long, the UK's under-funded, over-stretched system has pushed more social care professionals to leave than to stay; with ever-growing vacancies and Covid-19 adding to the pressure. We’re here to make social care outstanding, through innovation and technology. We’ve built Florence to be a backbone of support for the care sector, with the goal of fixing its broken staffing model for good. And we’re making this happen together. Over 90,000 care professionals and 2,000 organisations have joined us since 2017. Whether it's bringing flexibility and control to care teams' working lives, or enhancing their professional development; we're committed to building a better way - always.
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We created Florence to put people back at the heart of care.”
Dr. Charles Armitage
CO-FOUNDER AND CEO
How we got here 🛤️
October 2016
Charles and Dan our two co-founders met and the idea of Florence, a marketplace that connects professionals with shifts, was born 🙂
2017
We fill our first shift though our marketplace for flexible care professionals 🎉
2018
We launched Florence in Manchester. In that same year we also launched Florence Academy to empower professional development for our nurses and carers 📚
2019
We raised Series A funding which helped us to hire incredible talent and grow towards our mission. We also opened our office in Glasgow to expand into Scotland 🚀
2020
We launched National Care Force to support volunteering in the social care sector during the coronavirus outbreak ✨
2021
We launched our two SaaS products Florence Rota and Florence Academy for our clients making rota scheduling and professional development for their workforce easier 🙌🏼
June 2022
We raised $35m (£28.5m) Series B funding to help us launch internationally and grow even further in our mission to revolutionise care 🚀
September 2022
We're chosen to join UK tech 'unicorn' growth programme Future Fifty. Previous alumni include Monzo, Deliveroo and Skyscanner 🦄
November 2022
After much preparation, we launch Florence in France – our first international market 🇫🇷
February 2023
We launch in Canada, taking Florence into North America 🇨🇦
March 2023
We're selected for the AWS Healthcare Accelerator: Global Cohort for Workforce startup program ⏩
June 2023
Florence listed #21 on the prestigious Sunday Times 100 fastest-growing companies 2023 🎉
Charles is a doctor turned CEO of Florence. He is passionate about improving care services for all, with a commitment to advancing ways for staff to provide quality, compassionate care. When not working on Florence, Charles spends his time in his garden with his dog, Rosie.
Dan is a former army officer and financial services professional. He is focused on making sure Florence provides the best experience possible for nurses, carers and care homes. Dan is married to his very supportive wife Emma, and they have three young boys to keep them busy.
Caroline has over 15 years work experience, and a global career spanning people, education, strategy implementation, organisational development and project management. At Florence, she's responsible for our for people programs, operations, training and development, and employee engagement.
Lauren is a former strategic consultant with PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), she’s enthusiastic about cross-functional transformation and using technology to help solve the healthcare sector staffing shortage. She works closely with the leadership team, develops company strategy, handles shareholder and investor communication and creates programmes to drive success at Florence.
Emily started out as a mortgage broker in Australia before deciding she wanted to help with the staffing shortage in the healthcare sector. On returning to the UK, she dedicated her career to excellence in operations, client success and compliance. Emily serves as Florence's Head of Operations & Compliance, looking after customer service, regulatory compliance and internal audit teams.
As commercial director, Ronan ensures our care organisations’ experience with Florence is the best it can be. Before joining Florence, he headed sales for R&D claim tech challenger EmpowerRD, and helped take fintech leader Funding Circle from start-up to IPO. His key focuses are developing our sales team and strategisting to continue Florence’s sustainable growth.
Shanice runs Florence’s marketing function and Academy e-learning strategy. She joined Florence after falling in love with our mission, following nearly ten years spent at education challenger brand Hult International Business School where she led as VP of Marketing. Passionate about theatre, live music, and travel she loves to bring creativity and colour to every aspect of her life.
Atish directs the progression and scalability of our finance function at Florence, with a focus on both domestic and international growth. He joined us after six years at app-based disruptor brands in chartered flights and betting, and relishes heading up the development of a company that uses technology to improve care.
As UK Managing Director for Social Care, Dejan is driven to create the best possible experience for our care professionals and organisations. After six years in recruitment consultancy, Dejan arrived at Florence excited to disrupt the industry with technology that puts people first. When not focussing on growing Florence, Dejan spends his time with his young family.
Tom is our Chief Technology Officer, heading up our tech team and overseeing the evolution of the Florence product. He’s passionate about rethinking the way social care operates and how technology can change the world for the better. In his spare time he works for St. John’s Ambulance and loves all things climbing and hiking.
As Chief Nurse, Fiona is a strong advocate for our care professionals, managing compliance, governance and incidents across our workforce. Fiona has over 30 years’ experience in nursing, spending much of her career in the NHS with a focus on elder care. Fiona was previously matron at the Royal Stoke University Hospital and a nursing lecturer at Keele University.
Learn more
Fiona Millington
Chief Nursing Officer
Awards and accolades
We are proud to have won awards and accolades in tech, innovation and social care.
Our values
Our values are the beating heart of Florence, they are reflected in everything we do from supporting workers and care homes, to collaborating with the team.
Care about what you do
People that care make a bigger difference.
Always ask another question
Be curious, you never know where the answer might take you.
Embrace the adventure
Drive change and be part of something special.
Put yourself in their shoes
Our users are at the centre of everything we do.
Build a positive team
Be inclusive and accept each other's differences.
Want to join the team?
We’re currently on the lookout for talented people - check out our open roles.