THE REHAB GROUP is to drop its name and completely rebrand as the name is “no longer fit for purpose”.
The group is to appoint a branding agency to draw up a new identity for the organisation and they are in line to receive €30,000 to €40,000 for the work. The new identity is to be put in place during the first quarter of next year.
The renaming of the organisation will draw a line under the fallout from the controversy that the company was mired in in 2014 that culminated in the resignation of its chief executive Angela Kerins, and saw a new board being appointed five months later.
Today, the organisation has over 3,300 employees in over 200 locations providing health and social care, training and education, rehabilitation, supported employment and commercial services in local communities to thousands of people in Ireland, England, Wales, Scotland, Poland and Saudi Arabia.
According to a Rehab Group statement: “The word ‘Rehab’ is now largely associated with drug and alcohol rehabilitation services and is no longer fit-for-purpose for an organisation whose key three pillars are care, training and employability.
To put it simply, we are not in the business of ‘rehabilitation’. We are in the business of changing hearts and minds around disability, in all its forms, by giving our people a chance to thrive, achieve and shine.
The statement confirmed the directors of the Rehab Group decided to invest in the development of new brand strategy this year.
‘Weak’ name
The organisation stated: “This process has revealed the name Rehab is weak, making a name change imperative if we are to achieve our organisational strategic goals.
“During a robust and collaborative process we asked our staff, the people who use our services and our key stakeholders whether there is an appetite to find a new name and visual identity for Rehab which more truly reflects the work we do in 2017. The answer was a resounding yes.”
The rebranding of the group follows the production of a strategic five-year plan by Rehab in 2015. Last year, Rehab’s income totalled €151 million and its spending amounted to €154 million.
The organisation received HSE funding of €63 million under the headings of training, support and employment, along with day activity and day care services.
In total, 14 employees received salaries in excess of €100,000, with chief executive Mo Flynn on a salary of €140,000. Three other staff members received pay of between €120,000 and €130,000; five between €110,000 and €120,000 and five between €100,000 and €110,000.
Last year, Rehab supported more than 17,000 people across its care, learning and employability services.
Rehab also provided over 197,000 hours of home support hours, while over 7,800 vital respite bed nights were provided to adults and children with disabilities.
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