Hello again,
As promised, here is some further feedback following on from the recent staff survey. There were a lot of constructive comments that have given myself and the Board of Directors plenty to think about. It is not practical to address each individual comment, however, there is a common theme in a lot of the comments so I have decided to categorise my feedback into 7 categories as follows: –
- FINANCES
Firstly, we felt it is important to be more open and honest about a number of factors across the business which on a day to day basis affect our decision making. One of those key factors is our financial position.
Many businesses across the leisure sector are experiencing financial pressures at the moment due to increasing costs and changes in customer spending. Whilst we have the fortunate position to have the backing of Broxtowe Borough Council, this does not mean that we are immune from these pressures. Just like any other business our decision making must be based on the most efficient and cost effective route, balanced against our commitment of continuing to provide a high-quality service to our local community.
Over recent months we have seen extremely positive growth in our fitness and swim lesson membership subscriptions, in some cases to an all-time high, but despite this we must still be cautious in our spending to protect this position. This cautious approach will from time to time mean that cut backs and savings need to be made, and we continue to evaluate what we spend in order to get best value from everything we do.
We are continually looking for ways in which the business can grow and develop and we welcome your thoughts, ideas and suggestions so please speak to myself or your line manager.
- ROTAS
There were a number of comments that related to our Rotas and there has been some frustrations expressed within this area but there have been some changes and the following points will give some clarification on some rota issues.
- Rotas are specific to each site as the operations and demands of each site are very different. This includes the opening hours, weekend working and operational demands on any given day.
- Recruitment has proved difficult with some posts not being filled as there simply hasn’t been any or sufficient applications.
- There have been challenges with finances which has had a direct influence on staffing costs. The only direction is up as there are no more efficiencies to made.
- Some rotas have recently been updated and the development of more cross site working on a more regular basis has been included which will also provide more support across sites.
- COMMUNICATION
Communication is paramount to the operations of our business and the following points will provide an insight into some of the things that are happening or coming soon.
- Communication is a two-way process, so please let your line manager or myself know about any thoughts/concerns or development ideas that you have.
- We are in the process of investigating online tools that we can use similar to Staffmis. We have struggled to find the right tool that will work alongside our existing systems but the search continues.
- We are developing a series of how to video/photo guides on the Y-drive. This is something everyone can help with so please speak to your line manager about how you can help.
- TRAINING
Training is available to everybody providing there is a business need for it. The following points will help if training is something you are interested in.
- There are opportunities for staff to develop and receive training. Please speak to your line manager who will help you put a business case forward to why the training will be beneficial to the business and the cost of the training.
- There is a limited central budget for training for the whole organisation per financial year. Therefore, the stronger the business case, the more likely of the training being granted.
- There are a large variety of free e-learning opportunities to everyone via the following websites.
- If you are in a union, there is normally a number of free courses available to help development.
- RESOURCES
We have probably all encountered some frustrations over recent months with our resources and in particular our I.T systems. Unfortunately, there is no quick and easy fix for some problems but your resourcefulness and professionalism does not go unnoticed and the following points will give you an update on where we are to date.
- Our systems have to be in line with the Councils systems and protocols. We have restrictions with ICT but if you are encountering any issues then please speak to your line manager so that the issue can be reported and investigated.
- We have encountered many issues with a variety of the systems we use. Again please continue to report issues to your line manager so that they can be investigated by the software developers. We appreciate there are some frustrations but please continue to work with what we have and raise concerns.
- WELLBEING
The recent survey had a specific section looking at your stress and wellbeing in our workplace. The results were extremely positive with the vast majority of responses indicating that there is little or no stress. There was just a small number of areas for concern which have probably been addressed in other areas of this feedback such as poor resources and lack of communication. If you are concerned about your stress or wellbeing within our workplace, please note the following: –
- Your wellbeing is important to us so please speak to myself or your line manager if you are struggling. If we don’t know about an issue, then we are unable to support you.
- We have an employee assistance programme called Care First which is available 24/7, 365 days a year. It is completely free for employees to use and 100% confidential. You can access Care First by calling them on 08001682143 or talk to them online by visiting the Care First Website carefirst-lifestyle.co.uk. In order to login to access this service the USERNAME is Broxtowe and the PASSWORD is wellbeing. Care First can help on a range of different issues that employees may face, including Mental Health, Work/Life Balance, Support for Managers, Physical Health and Budgeting.
- If you have a physical or mental health condition/disability, then the councils Wellbeing Passport is an option to provide you with support. This is available via the Councils intranet. If you don’t have access to the intranet, then please speak to myself or your line manager who can provide you with a hard copy. This will be completely private and confidential.
- RECOGNITION AND STAFF BENEFITS
Staff recognition and benefits is a difficult topic. I appreciate that it’s nice to hear the words “good job” or “well done” from time to time so I urge all managers and line managers to keep this in mind as a couple of words really can make an employee feel better. However, I will continue to look into this from a corporate stance to see what, if anything we can do. If you have any thoughts/suggestions, then please share them with me. In the meantime, instead of focusing on what we don’t have, I thought I would highlight some of the staff benefits that we do have as I see it.
- We all have access to Brock’s Benefits which offers great discounts on special offers including UK breaks, hotels, theme parks and theatres, cinemas, cash-back and discounts on high street shopping and the cycle to work scheme etc. This is available via the Councils intranet. If you don’t have access to the intranet, then please speak to HR who will help you get access.
- We have very reasonable conditions of work including great annual leave, sick pay and pension scheme.
- Please let me or your line manager know about a colleague that has done well in something. We will then add this to a shout outs section in the newsletter to celebrate a job well doneJ
Once again, a big thank you to everybody that took the time to complete the survey. If you have any more thoughts, then please do share them with me as together we just may be able to make a difference.
Finally, I thought this is the perfect time to share just a few of some of the great positive comments I received through the survey: –
- Every day is a different day with different jobs so it is always lovely coming to work and not knowing what to expect. You meet amazing customers and get to know the regulars. We get lots of opportunities which gives us plenty of experience.
- The staff that I work with are so friendly and kind, it is a nice environment.
- Great staff, flexible around family life and great working environment.
- The regular comments from members. Particularly those with physical and/or mental health has improved since being members and attending regularly.
- Can we take a moment to celebrate all the fantastic staff that we have left, despite a centre closing and efficiency savings etc. Well Done Everyone!!
- A young gymnast from the age of 4 with autism competed at his first regional event at the age of 9 now showing drive, dedication and perseverance.
- Love my job at Lleisure
- I love my job and working within a great team from cleaners to senior management. All good people.
Many Thanks
Your Staff Representative
Grayson Smith-Clare
