Hempsons proudly sponsor care charity single
We are proud to announce that we are the sponsors of ‘Who Cares?’, a new song highlighting the care industry. Proceeds from the sale of the song will go to The Care Workers’ Charity.
‘Who Cares?’, performed by Ivor Novello-nominated singer/songwriter Boo Hewerdine, was co-written by with iCG Marketing Executive Brian Johnson. The pair have had previous success with a collaboration that reached No.1 in an iTunes chart in New Zealand.
Purchase the single
‘Who Cares?’, distributed by Horus Music, is available to purchase as a digital download at Bandcamp: https://thecareworkerscharity.bandcamp.com/track/who-cares
You can download the video here: https://we.tl/t-ywrZm72yI6
You can also link to the video here: https://www.independentcaregroup.co.uk
Comments from the artists
“When I joined iCG over a year ago, I mentioned to the chair, Mike Padgham, that I wrote songs in my spare time,” said Brian. “He immediately said, “We need a song for the care sector!”. Over the next few months, whilst getting to grips with my new job, I began to develop a lyric that tried to capture ‘moments’ from the lives of carers and the people they care for. The phrase ‘Who Cares?’ seemed to work well for the chorus, so slowly it came together.”
Armed with the words, Brian approached his friend Boo Hewerdine, who has had songs recorded by kd lang, The Corrs and Eddi Reader, and has been described by BBC Music as “one of Britain’s most consistently accomplished songwriters”.
“We began writing together during lockdown, just after Brian attended a songwriting workshop I’d run,” said Boo. “We seemed to click immediately and have written a number of songs together over the years – a couple of which appeared on my EP release ‘Singularities’. One of the songs, ‘The Night is Young’ is now one of my favourites and I perform it at nearly every gig.”
They worked together on ‘Who Cares?’ in the same way as they usually do, via Zoom. “Boo is based in Glasgow and I’m in North Yorkshire,” said Brian. “Due to my day job and Boo’s various touring and recording commitments, we don’t get together in the same room that often, but we found remote collaboration works for us. We met up online as usual for ‘Who Cares?’ and within an hour Boo had come up with a beautiful melody to accompany the words.”
The final track has Boo singing and playing guitar, backed by top session musician Euan Burton on double bass, and features North Yorkshire-based community choir Sing Out! South Craven.
Philippa Doyle, head of social care, said, “As a specialist social care firm, we are very aware of the difficulties facing the providers and their staff, and it’s important to us to offer support and raise awareness.”
About iCG
Established 21 years ago, the Independent Care Group (iCG) is a non-profit organisation that works on behalf of care homes, domiciliary care agencies, supported living, specialist extra care housing providers and day care centres, both in the private and voluntary sectors across North Yorkshire and York.
With a Board of Directors who work, on a voluntary basis, for the benefit of the independent and voluntary care industry, iCG speaks up for social care, works for a better future for social care and is actively working towards a National Care Service.
The Independent Care Group works, on an ongoing basis, alongside the statutory local authorities, including North Yorkshire Council, City of York Council, all the Clinical Commissioning Groups in North Yorkshire plus the Care Quality Commission.
They act as a professional conduit, passing on the concerns of providers and working to find solutions to issues such as fee rates, contracts, terms, and assistance through learning.
iCG also ensures care providers have input into quality standards and assessments, so that they are clear and achievable.