Bridgehead Communications
Portrait of Jonathan Gardner
Photo: the group’s website

LARGE AND MID-SIZE HOME CARE GROUP/178 BRANCHES

Jonathan Gardner

Chief Executive Officer, Bluebird Care

Jonathan Gardner is chief executive of Bluebird Care, the UK and Ireland home care franchisor, and a former chief executive of Boots Opticians.

BIOGRAPHY

Jonathan Gardner is chief executive officer of Bluebird Care, the franchisor behind the Bluebird Care home care network in the UK and Ireland. Since January 2025 he has also been president and CEO of international markets at Bluebird's owner, Caring Brands International. In December 2025 he told Home Care Insight that the network's 220 franchise businesses were delivering more than a million hours of care a month.

Gardner is a pharmacist who qualified in 1996, after a pharmacy degree at the University of Nottingham. He spent most of his career at Boots. From 2005 he was head of region for central London and the airports, then stores director for London (2009) and for the West of the UK (2010). He became retail director of Boots Opticians in 2012 and managing director of Boots Hearingcare in 2014. From 2017 to 2019 he was chief executive of Boots Opticians, which his LinkedIn profile describes as the UK's second largest optical chain, with about 650 stores including 180 franchises.

He then led two other franchise and multi-site businesses. He was chief executive of the dental group Rodericks Dental from December 2019 to December 2020, and managing director of Laser Clinics UK, a franchise-based aesthetics business owned by KKR, from March 2021 to May 2023.

Bluebird Care appointed him chief operating officer and managing director in June 2023. By December 2023 it was calling him chief executive. He said he visited 120 UK and Ireland offices in his first six months. In February 2024 he announced a £600,000 transformation and growth programme, which included a Registered Managers Academy. The network had already doubled its field support team. Under him the network relaunched its brand in 2025 with the line 'It's Good To be Home', and in July 2026 Bluebird published a Care Index Report on careers in social care. It found that 74% of people would be proud to work in adult social care but only 32% would consider it as a career themselves.

Alongside Bluebird, Gardner has run his own advisory company, GT Advisors & Consulting, since 2020. His LinkedIn profile lists him as chairman of Pindrop Hearing Limited from March 2026 and as a member of the Bank of England Decision Maker Panel from September 2025. He was a confirmed speaker at the Leaders in Care Conference in 2025.

About Bluebird Care. Bluebird Care is the UK and Ireland home care franchisor, owned by Caring Brands International. In December 2025 Gardner said its 220 franchise businesses delivered more than a million hours of care a month. See its rank and history

CAREER

  1. MAR 2026 – NOW

    Chairman · Pindrop Hearing Limited NOW

  2. SEP 2025 – NOW

    Member, Decision Maker Panel · Bank of England NOW

  3. JAN 2025 – NOW

    President and CEO, International Markets · Caring Brands International Inc. NOW

  4. JUN 2023 – NOW

    Chief Executive Officer · Bluebird Care NOW

  5. SEP 2020 – NOW

    Founder and CEO · GT Advisors & Consulting NOW

  6. MAR 2021 – MAY 2023

    Managing Director · Laser Clinics United Kingdom

  7. DEC 2019 – DEC 2020

    Chief Executive Officer · Rodericks Dental

  8. MAR 2017 – NOV 2019

    Chief Executive Officer, Boots Opticians · Walgreens Boots Alliance

  9. JAN 2014 – MAR 2017

    Managing Director, Boots Hearingcare · Sonova Group

  10. SEP 2012 – DEC 2013

    Retail Director, Boots Opticians · Walgreens Boots Alliance

  11. OCT 2010 – AUG 2012

    Stores Director, West · Boots UK

  12. JUN 2009 – OCT 2010

    Stores Director, London · Boots UK

  13. APR 2005 – JUN 2009

    Head of Region, Central London and Airports · Boots UK

ARTICLES, INTERVIEWS AND APPEARANCES

COUNTED FOR THE RANKING

1 article in the twelve months to 7 October 2026 (1 trade).