Scottish Carers Win Awards after Bumper Year of Nominations
Top carers, nurses and support staff from one of Scotland’s leading providers of older person and specialist care have been recognised for their outstanding performance at an awards ceremony, following a record-breaking number of entries.
2150 nominations were made for the 2026 Meallmore Colleague Awards, the highest number it its 15-year history, and up almost a quarter from last year.
The awards celebrate Meallmore colleagues who have made a positive impact on improving the lives of colleagues, residents, and their family members over the past twelve months.
Categories cover the breadth of expertise within social care across, including nursing and care, meaningful activities, hospitality, leadership, and home support. New for 2026 was the Deputy Manager of the Year award, recognising the leadership, reliability and daily support that deputy managers bring to residents and colleagues.
As well as the category prizes, 24 colleagues were presented with long service awards, recognising their dedication and commitment to Meallmore. 11 colleagues were celebrating 20 years of service, six were marking 25 years of service and seven were honoured for a remarkable 30 years’ service.
A special Chairman’s Award was presented to Bruce Mason, Care Home Manager at Kinmylies Lodge Care Home in Inverness to highlight and celebrate his contribution to mental health nursing in the Highlands and for all he has delivered for Meallmore in his 30 years of service.
Culduthel Care Home in Inverness was named Elderly Home of the Year, with nominations describing a whole-team approach, with residents and families involved as needs and wishes change. One family noted seeing their mum enjoying the knit-and-natter group, with a huge smile, while being supported to keep making her own choices, while another relative described feeling among friends, and “at home”, rather than “in a home”.
Alderwood House in Dumbarton scooped Specialist Home of the Year, with the team praised for building trust, supporting wellbeing and relationships, and working together to help each resident move forward at their own pace.
All 2,000 plus Meallmore colleagues are eligible for an award, with nominations coming from residents, families, visiting professionals and other members of the team in the weeks leading up to the ceremony.
The event, now in its 15th year, returned to the Dunblane Hydro for the official ceremony with 230 people in attendance from Meallmore’s 27 care homes across Scotland.
Cillian Hennessey, CEO of Meallmore, said: “The record-breaking response to this year’s awards is the perfect way to mark 15 years of our Meallmore Colleague Awards. Each nomination showcases the compassion, dedication and teamwork that define our Meallmore community and the impact our colleagues have on the lives of our residents, their families and the wider team. This is what makes Meallmore an exceptional place to live and work. Reading the nominations makes us so incredibly proud – all 2,150 of them!
“These annual awards are a celebration of our shared achievements and give us much-deserved pride, purpose, and optimism for the coming year. I’d like to congratulate all the finalists, and of course, our very worthy winners who have blown us away, as always.”
