Our employees

We want our employees to be proud of a workplace that enables them to contribute their best to the business. Our continued success depends upon the application of their skills and talents in the business and on their wellbeing and job satisfaction.

Our policies and procedures support employee development and the acquisition and application of new knowledge and skills. In 2004, 13 members of staff completed company-sponsored professional and vocational qualifications.

We monitor external and internal feedback and reward an outstanding employee every month with £100 to donate to their charity of their choice. An overall winner is chosen every year and receives a further amount for charity, presented at our annual employee awards dinner.

Employee wellbeing is critical so we provide free regular health screening for employees, free annual flu vaccinations, and external counselling and occupational health professionals to give support whenever necessary.

Our annual Reflect survey had an excellent response rate with a good overall satisfaction score. Employees are actively engaged through team meetings, cross-functional breakfast meetings and focus groups to identify actions we can take to maintain or increase scores.

As part of our continuing drive to improve our policies and practices, linked to our ISO9001:2000 quality standards we have regular external health checks to monitor our performance. We also work proactively with our unions to identify and address issues affecting our workforce.