Mac Research and Consultancy Limited is a specialist social care consultancy operating across Scotland and England, founded and directed by Arlene Bunton. With over 20 years of frontline and strategic experience spanning the Scottish social care sector — from community and homelessness services through local authority care home management, national sector leadership, and UKAS-accredited quality assurance — the consultancy brings a depth of operational knowledge that is rare in the independent advisory market. The firm works primarily with registered care providers including care homes, care at home services, housing support, drug and alcohol rehabilitation, complex care, and learning disability services. Its core offer covers regulatory compliance and inspection readiness, quality assurance and audit, policy and procedure development, workforce development and training, business development and growth strategy, and Care Inspectorate and CQC registration support. Mac Research holds a distinctive position in the market because its work is grounded in both academic rigour and operational reality. Arlene is a doctoral researcher in Dementia and Ageing at the University of Stirling, with published work on inclusive dementia care and a research framework that draws on intersectional theory and person-led approaches. This academic foundation informs every piece of work the consultancy delivers, ensuring that policies, audits, and training are evidence-based rather than compliance-driven templates. The firm’s brand values — Expertise, Integrity, and Impact — reflect this commitment to substance over box-ticking. The consultancy’s recent work demonstrates the breadth and scale of its capability. Mac Research has produced comprehensive policy suites of 60 to 80 documents for Care Inspectorate and CQC-regulated services, complete with aligned risk assessments, audit tools, and governance frameworks. It has developed a full Care Inspectorate Readiness Assessment methodology — a structured mock inspection product adaptable across adult care homes, drug and alcohol rehabilitation, care at home, and complex care services — designed to prepare providers for regulatory scrutiny before it arrives. Alongside this, the firm delivers thought leadership content on workforce strategy, succession planning, compliance culture, and sectoral policy, positioning its clients and the wider sector for the challenges ahead. Mac Research also operates at the intersection of care and technology. Through its partnership with Konpanion, the firm is developing PolicyHub, a SaaS policy management platform designed for the UK care sector’s 36,000-plus registered services. This positions the consultancy not only as an advisory practice but as a scalable product business with significant market reach. The firm’s professional networks and partnerships extend across key organisations including the National Robotarium and M:Brace, supporting digital integration, HR and leadership development, and innovation in care delivery. Arlene’s sector profile includes roles as Independent Sector Lead at Scottish Care and Head of Scotland at Fulcrum Care, and she is a recognised dementia champion and LGBTQ+ advocate in care. For a commercial partner, Mac Research offers a credible, well-connected, and operationally proven consultancy with a clear growth trajectory — combining deep regulatory expertise, academic credibility, a strong content and thought leadership profile, and an emerging technology platform. It is a serious practice with national reach and a distinctive voice in a sector that increasingly demands both compliance assurance and genuine quality improvement.
