About Us

Steve Dourish
Director

Steve has a fantastic track record of managing and running successful Estate Agents throughout the area. Steve had a desire to be an Estate Agent from a very early age and started working on Saturdays at his local estate agents from the mere age of 14 – and was so keen to understand the industry – he offered his services free of charge! Steve continued working Saturdays and school holidays until he left school in 1998 (we don’t think he looks old enough either).

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Jeremy Day
Director

Jeremy has been working in the Estate Agency business for 21 years, having started as a junior negotiator at a large corporate Estate Agents in Cheshire. Within 2 years, he flew through the ranks and became the Branch Manager at the companies failing Stafford office. After just 18 months, Jeremys flair and hard work paid off, resulting in the office becoming one of Staffords’ market leading Estate Agents. His branch was also one of the best performing offices in the company. Jeremy’s success didn’t go unnoticed by the competition, so much so, he was head hunted by another Stafford Estate Agency, where he specialised in large and prestigious homes.

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Steve Schwartz
Senior Valuer

Steve has been in the Estate Agency industry across Staffordshire for over 25 years, starting as a Junior Negotiator, quickly rising the ranks to Office Manager at a large corporate firm before joining Dourish and Day as Senior Vauer in 2019. Having worked with Steve Dourish and Jeremy Day at other local corporate agents he jumped at the idea to join them on the growth of Dourish and Day across the region. As well as a very successful career Steve has taken part in both the prestigious Ironman and London Marathon. But nothing comes more than a challenge than raising three children and being the dog-father of their crazy cocker spaniel Max. Outside of work Steve is a true family man and loves spending time with his wife and children travelling in their camper van, enjoying the peace and making memories.

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Liam Cope
Lister

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Andy Clarke
Sales Manager

Andy joined us in the summer of 2019 and comes with 16 years worth of experience in the industry having worked for two other estate agents in both Stafford and Cannock throughout the whole of that period. You will hear him from a distance with his Cannock accent, which us Staffordians are still trying to interpret today, but don’t worry, we’re trying to teach him how to speak properly! Estate agency comes very easy to Andy and offers him brief respite from his three kids who keep him more than busy in the hours not spent in the office. Days off are spent with the kids and his wife as well as the occasional light run which helps to keep all of the carbs off that he munches during work hours. He claims that bringing up three kids has boosted his immunity to catching the common cold, but on the rare occasion he does, you can be sure that the whole world knows he is struggling with a bit of man flu.

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James Sargeant
Sales Executive

James started on a week’s work experience at Dourish & Day back in 2018 and just could not keep away. He has now worked his way up the ranks and compliments the Stafford Sales Negotiation team with his sights set on valuing in the future, You could say he’s the oil that keeps the hard working machine that is Dourish & Day Estate Agents working with all of the sales that he negotiates in one day! Before becoming a member of the Sales Team family he completed his Engineering Diploma at the JCB Academy so we’re not sure if he’s the next Steve Dourish, Jeremy Day or Anthony Bamford! Outside of work James enjoys a range of sporting commitments including Rugby, Football and Boxing as well as social events with friends and family.

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Jo Evans
Sales Executive

What Jo doesn’t know about buying or selling properties is not worth knowing! Having over 25 years of experience in Estate Agency, most of this time spent in the Stafford market, she knows every street and has probably sold your friends, neighbours and family’s home or even helped them buy it along the way. Our Queen of sales comes with a vast amount of knowledge, attention to detail and care, having settled into the sales team very quickly taking on her mothering role. She loves to look after the team and always has that extra special treat or two to help everyone feel extra motivated. Priding herself on excellent customer service and finding buyers their new home, really does put the cherry on top of her cake. As the day ends, Jo enjoys spending time with her friends and family, taking the time to read crime novels and is enthusiastic petrol head so will always go full speed to get you moving!

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Steven Ratcliffe
Administrator

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Aaron Dosanjh
Sales Executive

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Abby Wootton
Sales Executive

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Molly Cadman
Sales Support / Administrator

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Megan Fay
Sales Support / Administrator

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Nancy Swoffer
Sales Support / Administrator

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Adam Burgess
Branch Manager

Comparable to our director Steve, Adam Burgess also first started in Estate Agency at the age of 15 where he too worked Saturdays and holidays till leaving school in 1999. Then going straight into a full-time position until in 2001 when joining Steve Dourish as a Valuer in Stafford Town Centre, with an exceptionally successful career now spanning more than two decades. (Even by Adams own admission this is where his true training began). Outside of Adams continuing commitment to the industry he has a superb family with two children and when they’re not causing his hair loss, he enjoys fitting in a bit of photography.

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Andrew Richards
Sales Executive

Andrew brought with him to Dourish and Day an extensive background in Estate Agency, with over 14 years’ experience listing and selling homes across West Midlands, Staffordshire, and surrounding areas. Having studied Business Management at the University of Sheffield, Andrew started as an apprentice at well-known independent agent in Tettenhall and has never looked back! He is also a member of the NAEA and holds the NFOPP Technical Award Level 3. Outside of work, Andrew enjoys keeping fit, cycling, and various combat sports.

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Paige Grimley
Sales Executive

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Craig Meredith
Branch Manager

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Olivia Perry
Sales Executive

Olivia joined us in the year of opening the Market Drayton branch in 2022. She was a great asset for the team from day one, knowing the region well, having lived in the market town since she was born! Having played netball to a high level, both County and Regional, Olivia certainly knows how to jump through hoops for her clients and will never drop the ball on property sales. Outside of work life Olivia enjoys taking time to herself; relaxing watching Netflix and eating plenty of snack as well as weekend breaks and summer holidays abroad with her family with the most recent being Rhodes and Cyprus.

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Russell Burling
Sales Executive

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Rhys Day
Apprentice

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Ellie Bell-Jenks
Lettings Director

Without trying to sound like Liam Neeson from the film ‘Taken’ working in lettings takes a particular set of skills, skills acquired over a very long career! Having worked in lettings since she was 18 and not wanting divulge a lady’s age, we can say she has certainly been at it for a long time. What she doesn’t know about pet policies, routine maintenance, emergency repairs and landlord/tenant law quite frankly isn’t worth knowing. Ellie’s motto of Firm but Fair goes a long way in the lettings industry and hasn’t failed her yet! Outside of work Ellie loves being outdoors, from mowing the lawn at home to wild swimming, and quality time with her husband and son is a bonus. If there happens to be wine there too, she really is living her best life. Her son Arthur is fascinated by her job and can’t wait to work in estate agency to try and ‘put together the biggest chain of house moves in the World’. We can’t wait for Arthur to join the team.

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Janine Bennett
Lettings Manager

Janine started with Dourish and Day in 2020 bringing with her a wealth of knowledge and experience in both Sales and Lettings with over 25 years in Estate Agency across Staffordshire, Shropshire and the West Midlands. Janine started her career in Sales and moved over to the more fast paced Lettings market where she would say you will never know what to expect on a day to day basis calling it “the great tales of the unexpected” and is often seen spinning a number of plates in her balancing act. Her plates don’t stop spinning as she comes to an end of the working day, she continues to perfect her balancing act at home with four children and a Cocker Spaniel. When Janine gets the chance to take time to herself she enjoys keeping active, taking day trips and holidays.   Email Janine Bennett

Sarah Bryan
Lettings Executive

Sarah burst through Dourish and Day doors in August 2018 with a beaming smile and infectious laugh, instantly becoming a massive part of the team. She is hardworking, motivated and super organised and loves the busy day to day life of lettings. Sarah has a crazy sense of humor so life in the office is never dull with her around. When she is not in the office entertaining us she is busy entertaining her son Lewie enjoying days out to the zoo, theme parks or the cinema. She can also be found showing off her skills on the netball court, playing in a league for a local Stafford team. Sarah likes to make the most of life, spending time with her friends and family and loves nothing better than holidays or weekends away. After a hard week at work she is known to kick back and relax with a well deserved glass or two of fizz.

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Ellie Whitehouse
Lettings Executive

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Stuart Taylor
Accompanied Viewing Assistant

Stuart recently joined us having previously been living a life of retiree, but realising quite quickly that retirement life wasn’t all that it was cracked up to be. Stuart was after a position where he could interact with people having felt that his days needed something else and realised that that something else was with Dourish & Day. Stuart is a Local Councillor, Rotarian, Fisherman and budding Gardner with a flair for sporty cars. We often wonder how much free time he actually had in the first instance with all that he does outside of work.

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Clare McKiernan
Sales Progressor

When we asked Clare to describe herself it went something like this: Gin, Wine, Prosecco, some Estate Experience. Actually with over 30 years in Estate Agency there isn’t much that amazes Clare during the home buying/selling process and has seen her fair share of surprises. No wonder the first three thoughts of the day relate to alcohol. With her son now grown up, Clare enjoys nothing more than to socialise with the girls and can be found most weekends at the pub (if lost please return to Dourish and Day). In contrast, our Clare really is a home bird and knows Stafford and surrounding areas like the back of her hand, having lived locally all her life. She will admit the true love of her life however is her Cocker Spaniel Jackson enjoying long walks and snuggling on the sofa.

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Sarah Austin
Sales Progressor

Sarah joined us in 2020 and brought with her a big smile, lots of knowledge and her love for all things property! Sarah began her successful estate agency career aged 17 and has picked up a wealth of experience over this time. Sarah loves all aspects of sales progression and, as an experienced property professional, Sarah loves working with both her clients and external parties to progress a property through to completion. Outside of work Sarah takes regular trips away to her caravan in Wales with her family, and most importantly with Nala, Charlie, and Ernie, her three adorable dogs! Outside of work, Sarah is also prone to enjoying a glass of chardonnay (some would say bottle) in her local pub when seeing family and friends.

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Nicola Hart
Sales Progressor

We were lucky enough to employ Nicola who bought her smile and positive attitude straight into our offices together with her wealth of experience in selling homes in the local area. When you meet Nicola, you will always be greeted with a smile. Nicola has a passion for customer service and strives to make moving home an enjoyable and exciting time for our customers. When she’s not busy helping people buy and sell their homes Nicola enjoys hiking with her dog Paddy, her most recent conquest being Scafell Pike which doesn’t surprise us as she has a thing with mountains. We’ve known her to move them before for our clients to ensure they get the best result. Nicola loves to travel with her family and enjoys nothing more than to relax and unwind with her friends, a spa and a few G&Ts!

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Lisa Carpenter
Sales Executive

Lisa joined the team in 2021 and has had many careers in her lifetime, ranging from teaching Computing & IT within a college environment, training First Aid courses for St John Ambulance, banking for many years, data analysis for a school and working within the social housing sector. She can now add estate agency to her many talents after deciding to join Dourish and Day due to her experience of both buying and selling a property and being impressed with the service she received. She has been a welcome addition to the team with her versatility and adaptability and has worked as a viewing representative, working within branch and also on the phones at night. In her spare time, she enjoys competitive dinghy sailing, socialising and shopping!

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Kerry Lawson
Sales Executive

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Vickie Hodgetts
Sales Executive

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Keith Wright
Accompanied Viewing Assistant

Keith joined Dourish & Day having retired from a career in the Military/Civil Service/United Nations. He immediately fitted in with the team here and brings his own personal knowledge of the property market (he has after all moved 13 times to date) to our accompanied viewings team. Keith is a man who says it as it is and brings an open and honest approach to his work which our clients appreciate and one of his accolades is to be able to give clients some vision on properties that need a bit of TLC. He lives in Stafford and has an abundance of local knowledge. With five daughters and seven grandchildren, Keith says it was either a case of coming back to work or opening a crèche. Luckily for us at Dourish and Day, we won!

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Bob Mercer
Accompanied Viewing Assistant

Bob joined us in 2023, hanging up his boots for retirement having spent over 40 years in Sales and Marketing of the shoe trade. Having a good knowledge of the property market himself as a private landlord of properties around Stafford, Bob was keen to ensure he can assist buyers with the search for their dream homes by taking up the role of Viewing Representative at Dourish and Day having previously sold and purchased through us before he has first hand witnessed our proactive customer service. As an Aussie living in the UK he loves to travel and meet new people, as well as finding the time to compete in over 60 half marathons to date, however he has admitted that maybe he should start to concentrate on enjoying the slower pace of life.

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Graham Greenwood
Accompanied Viewing Assistant

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John Cook
Accompanied Viewing Assistant

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Julie Sargeant
Accompanied Viewing Assistant

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Kirstie Heely – Archer
Accompanied Viewing Assistant

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Chevaughan Carrington
Accompanied Viewing Assistant

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Paul Betteley
Accompanied Viewing Assistant

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Anna Haycock
Social Media Guru

Have you ever wondered who is the face behind our social pages? Well here she is. Anna has been with us since the day we opened the doors. Bombarding us with likes, followers and digital talk which quite frankly blew our minds. Annas background is media from helping local businesses whilst working for the Staffordshire Newsletter to now enjoying scrolling through properties and articles for you guys to read online. Anna is a proper Stokie duck but has lived in Stafford for over 10 years now with her beautiful family - cute boyfriend, 2 adorable (not so little kids) and her crazy Cocker Spaniel. You can find Anna either with a constant glow around her from way too much screentime, up on the Chase enjoying the fresh air or snuggled up on the sofa with her family.

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