Leadership
Sarah Okonkwo
Founder & Managing Director
Former care home manager with 12 years in the sector before founding Silverforce HR in 2009. Leads strategy and client relationships.
About Silverforce HR
Built by people who know care
Silverforce HR was founded by care sector professionals who saw how badly the industry was served by generalist recruiters. We built the agency we wished had existed.
2009FoundedOver 15 years in care sector HR
2,400+PlacementsPermanent and temporary roles filled
98%RetentionOf permanent placements at 12 months
Our Story
We built the agency care deserved
Silverforce HR was founded in 2009 by Sarah Okonkwo, a former care home manager who had spent years watching good care organisations struggle to find the right people — not because the candidates weren't out there, but because the agencies they used didn't understand what "right" looked like in a care context.
The agency started with a single principle: every consultant we hire must have worked in care. Not adjacent to care. Not in healthcare broadly. In care — in a home, on a ward, in a supported living setting. That principle has never changed.
Today we work with over 200 care organisations across England and Wales, from single-site family-run homes to national care groups. Our team of 18 consultants has collectively placed more than 2,400 permanent and temporary workers — and we still answer the phone when something goes wrong at 11pm on a Sunday.
"We don't place people in care homes. We place people who will care."Sarah Okonkwo, Founder & Managing Director
We have grown steadily — never chasing volume, always protecting quality. Our compliance team reviews every candidate file before it reaches a client. Our account managers are capped at 12 active clients so they can give each one the attention it deserves.
We are not the biggest care sector recruiter in the UK. We are, we believe, the most trusted.
Sector knowledge
Every consultant we hire has worked in the care sector. We do not recruit people who have never set foot in a care home and ask them to place nurses.
Honest counsel
We tell clients when a brief is unrealistic and candidates when a role is not right for them. Short-term discomfort, long-term trust.
Compliance first
Our screening process is built around CQC requirements, not around speed. We would rather take longer than place someone who should not be there.
Client Voices
What care organisations say about us
We measure our success by the relationships we build with the organisations we serve — and the people we place within them.
Silverforce found us a registered manager in three weeks. Every other agency had been trying for four months. They understood exactly what we needed.
David HargreavesOperations Director, Heathfield Care Group
Their HR consultancy work transformed how we approach staff retention. We've reduced agency spend by 40% in 18 months. The investment paid for itself in the first quarter.
Rachel PatelCEO, Sunrise Care Partnership