{"id":34515,"date":"2026-10-20T17:15:04","date_gmt":"2026-10-20T16:15:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.franchiselocal.co.uk\/news\/?p=34515"},"modified":"2026-10-16T17:15:34","modified_gmt":"2026-10-16T16:15:34","slug":"the-best-decision-ive-ever-made-sonas-radfield-story","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.franchiselocal.co.uk\/news\/the-best-decision-ive-ever-made-sonas-radfield-story\/","title":{"rendered":"The best decision I\u2019ve ever made\u201d: Sona\u2019s Radfield story"},"content":{"rendered":"Reading Time: <\/span> 3<\/span> minutes<\/span><\/span>

When did you last come home from work knowing you\u2019d made a difference to someone\u2019s life?<\/h3>\n

Sona Bharkhada asked herself that question at 35, pregnant with her first child. Her career had started in pharmaceutical research and public health, then moved through healthcare management into supply management and customer service, and each step had taken her a little further from the people she had set out to help. \u201cI realised I missed that feeling of coming home knowing you had made a difference to people\u2019s lives,\u201d<\/em> she says.<\/p>\n

Her second child was on the way when she decided to do something about it, and four years on, she has that feeling back. She now runs two Radfield Home Care businesses, employs around 50 people, and delivers around 700 hours of care a week to roughly 85 clients across Leicester and Stamford. Her Leicester office was also the first private domiciliary care specialist across Leicester to be rated Outstanding by the CQC.<\/p>\n

Does it matter where you\u2019re starting from?<\/strong><\/h4>\n

Sona knew healthcare and she knew management, but she had never worked in social care, so she went looking for a franchise that could fill that gap while she brought the rest. \u201cWith a franchise, I could have that expertise, documentation and guidance behind me, while I could bring my leadership and management experience. It seemed like a no-brainer.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

Plenty of people reading this will be coming at it from the other direction. If you\u2019ve spent years in care or the NHS, you already know what good care looks like, and you\u2019ve probably delivered a great deal of it on someone else\u2019s rota, within someone else\u2019s budget. What you may not have had is the chance to build the kind of service you\u2019d want for your own parents, with a proven business model behind it.<\/p>\n

Either way, nobody expects you to arrive knowing everything, and Sona still had plenty to learn herself, despite her experience. What tipped her decision was the people. \u201cIt felt like a true partnership,\u201d<\/em> she says. \u201cThere was a family feel and a culture and ethos that I didn\u2019t get elsewhere. Senior leaders are not driven by adding another franchisee; they want to get the right partner.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

Has it been easy?<\/strong><\/h4>\n

No, and Sona won\u2019t pretend otherwise. When her Leicester registered manager left, she stepped into the role herself for around a year while she found the right replacement. \u201cIt was challenging, but I learned so much from it,\u201d<\/em> she says. \u201cI\u2019m stronger because of that experience.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

None of it stopped her growing, either. Two years ago, the owners of the neighbouring Stamford franchise retired, and Sona took the business on, even though it delivered more than double the weekly care hours of her Leicester office. \u201cI had to scale up my thinking,\u201d<\/em> she says. \u201cBut because it was Radfield Home Care, I already knew the systems and the operating structure so I could hit the ground running.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

What makes it worthwhile?<\/strong><\/h4>\n

If you\u2019ve been following Rob Dancy\u2019s story, you\u2019ll remember the \u00a314 VHS tape. If you missed that one, it\u2019s well worth catching up here: It Cost \u00a314. It Meant Everything<\/a>.<\/u><\/strong> [link to the Rob Dancy piece: It Cost \u00a314. It Meant Everything.]<\/p>\n

Sona\u2019s equivalent is a 103-year-old former headteacher, whom her team helped return to the school where she had worked. The school welcomed her back with an assembly and presented her with its Star of the Month award. We\u2019d love to have been in that hall.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s the same instinct behind the memorial stone her team made for a client living with dementia who had lost her beloved dog, and the day centre Sona set up when she noticed some of her clients were missing company.<\/p>\n

\u201cThose are the moments when you realise you do this for a reason,\u201d<\/em> she says. \u201cYes, it\u2019s a job, but for us it\u2019s more than just care.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

Sona\u2019s is one of a growing number of stories like this across the Radfield network, and no two partners started from the same place. If you\u2019d like to read some more real-life stories, here\u2019s some great places to start:<\/p>\n