Chigwell-based care home group, Oakland Care, has celebrated being honoured with a prestigious King’s Award for Enterprise in Sustainable Development.
At a ceremony at its head office at Lambwood Heights care home on Lambourne Road, Chief Executive Officer Joanne Balmer (BME) was presented with the award by HM Lord Lieutenant for Essex, Jennifer Tolhurst, in front of residents, staff, families and invited guests.
The King’s Awards for Enterprise are the most prestigious business awards in the UK, celebrating outstanding achievement in areas including innovation, sustainable development and social mobility.
Oakland Care has been recognised for its long-standing commitment to sustainability, with environmentally responsible practices embedded across all aspects of its operations, from energy use and waste reduction to sustainable building design and biodiversity initiatives.
It became the first and only UK care home group to achieve carbon neutral certification back in 2021, a status they have retained for five consecutive years. Earlier this year, it opened its latest home, Harpenden Springs, the business’ ‘greenest’ development to date, and one of the UK’s most environmentally friendly care homes.
Since 2023, staff from Lambwood Heights and its sister home in Loughton, Woodland Grove, have dedicated hundreds of hours of voluntary work to plant thousands of trees as part of local sustainability projects and community programmes across Essex.
Lambwood Heights also won the Climate Action Net Zero Award in the Essex Care Sector Awards in 2025 and holds an annual ‘green month’ every September. The 73-bedroomed home, like all of Oakland Care’s properties, has its own wildlife garden to encourage biodiversity as well provide residents with a stimulating sensory environment.
Joanne Balmer, Chief Executive Officer at Oakland Care, received The King’s Award at Lambwood Heights on Wednesday 9th September. She said it was recognition for Oakland Care’s sustainability goals but also the efforts of team members.
“We are incredibly proud to receive the King’s Award for Enterprise in Sustainable Development. This award is a testament to the dedication of our teams who work tirelessly to embed sustainable practices across our homes and have been wholly committed to supporting our bold ambitions in this space.
“Our approach has always been about more than meeting targets. It’s about creating a lasting, positive impact for our residents, our communities and the environment, while also serving as trailblazers within the industry, helping to inspire and support others on their journey.
“We will continue to invest in innovation and our people as we build on this achievement and further strengthen our commitment to sustainability across the organisation.”
