State of Engagement 2026 Report |
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Every team at Dale & Valley Homes receives a large basket of free fruit at the start of every month to encourage staff to have a healthier diet. This also increases the likelihood of staff achieving their '5 a day' and makes eating fruit a normal part of their working day. Their 'Workout Wednesdays' take place on the first Wednesday of every month to encourage employees to carry out some form of physical exercise. Employees receive a half hour credit to their flexi account when they have undertaken an exercise activity (usual walking, running or a visit to the gym) in their lunch hour. Employees can boost their annual leave entitlement by buying an additional five days leave. Alternatively, they can sell up to 5 days leave. Annual flu vaccinations and mini health checks are available to all staff to improve their health and reduce absenteeism. The mini health checks gives employees a picture of their current health and suggests changes to their lifestyle, if needed.
Every team at Dale & Valley Homes receives a large basket of free fruit at the start of every month to encourage staff to have a healthier diet. This also increases the likelihood of staff achieving their '5 a day' and makes eating fruit a normal part of their working day. Their 'Workout Wednesdays' take place on the first Wednesday of every month to encourage employees to carry out some form of physical exercise. Employees receive a half hour credit to their flexi account when they have undertaken an exercise activity (usual walking, running or a visit to the gym) in their lunch hour. Employees can boost their annual leave entitlement by buying an additional five days leave. Alternatively, they can sell up to 5 days leave. Annual flu vaccinations and mini health checks are available to all staff to improve their health and reduce absenteeism. The mini health checks gives employees a picture of their current health and suggests changes to their lifestyle, if needed.
Following the stock transfer of homes from Durham County Council to Dale & Valley Homes, 4200 new tenancy agreements needed to be prepared, hand delivered and tenants' signatures obtained in a 3 month period. This was a mammoth task and required a ‘whole team' approach. Roles ranged from Tenancy Agreement preparation, home visits to get the document signed and data entry. They were assigned to every member of the organisation, including the Managing Director and Executive Management Team. For this task, traditional team boundaries were put aside and new virtual teams established. This approach meant that staff members were working alongside colleagues they had never worked with before, thus supporting improved relationships and communication between both teams and individuals, once back in the ‘day job'. Motivation was maintained through weekly updates on progress. Every member of staff took pride in the achievement of steadily moving towards the end goal. Weekly updates were followed by e-mails from the Managing Director praising everyone involved for their hard work and dedication. What could have been a hugely mundane and cumbersome task, became a real team building exercise which promoted interaction between different individuals across the organisation, breaking down barriers between teams. Once finished, the sense of achievement, shared by the whole organisation, was almost tangible and re-enforced that the 'impossible' can become 'achievable' when everyone works together.
A new e-learning system has been made available for employees and volunteers, which is accessible from both work and home computers, reducing potential constraints around accessibility and enabling learners to engage in learning activities at a time that suits them. The system also enables the Trust to address concerns about cross infection, which prevent people with CF meeting each other, and ensure we adopt an inclusive approach to learning. The Trust recently developed an NVQ level 3 award in Volunteer Management for our employees to better understand best practice standards of volunteer management. The programme has been so successful that it is now offered to other organisations and the take-up is encouraging.
'Introduction to Management' programme provides support to new managers on becoming more comfortable in their role as managers. Recently, the Trust invested in a year long development programme for its senior managers, to facilitate better collaborative working. Peer coaching, action learning and 360 degree feedback were integral parts of the programme, which is based on NLP (Neuro- Linguistic) techniques.
'Introduction to Management' programme provides support to new managers on becoming more comfortable in their role as managers. Recently, the Trust invested in a year long development programme for its senior managers, to facilitate better collaborative working. Peer coaching, action learning and 360 degree feedback were integral parts of the programme, which is based on NLP (Neuro- Linguistic) techniques.
One initiative the company have found to be particularly effective in enhancing the wellbeing of their people has been our Up For Fit team. They provide fresh fruit, organise sporting activities and social events. A combination of both sporting and social elements is the annual beach games which they have taken part in for the last three years. It provides people with an opportunity to exercise, socialise and develop relationships with their colleagues in a fun yet competitive atmosphere.
One initiative the company have found to be particularly effective in enhancing the wellbeing of their people has been our Up For Fit team. They provide fresh fruit, organise sporting activities and social events. A combination of both sporting and social elements is the annual beach games which they have taken part in for the last three years. It provides people with an opportunity to exercise, socialise and develop relationships with their colleagues in a fun yet competitive atmosphere.
Cornish Mutual is passionately committed to giving back to their community. This year alone, they have raised over £12k for charitable causes as a result of more than 50 fundraising events ranging from a month of activity coinciding with Comic Relief, to regular “Bake-Offs” and Bingo Nights at Head Office. It's not just about fundraising though, the company also incorporate a “Volunteering Day” into their induction, where a team of new starters give up their working day to volunteer for a local charity – a recent group spent time painting the headquarters of a local children's charity. The company have also raise awareness of issues in their core community – the farming and agricultural sector in the South West. They have recently arranged 3 Health & Safety Workshops for both Members and Non-Members which cover a series of issues, with talks from expert speakers. These events are free to attend and are endorsed by the Health & Safety Executive.
Annually, each year Line Manager at Compassion UK can submit nominations for team members who have contributed in an outstanding way. The formal rewards are given on an employee receiving outstanding on their appraisal. The financial gift for last year was a £250 cash bonus. The company also allow informal rewards up to the amount of £25, which is in the form of a voucher.
Annually, each year Line Manager at Compassion UK can submit nominations for team members who have contributed in an outstanding way. The formal rewards are given on an employee receiving outstanding on their appraisal. The financial gift for last year was a £250 cash bonus. The company also allow informal rewards up to the amount of £25, which is in the form of a voucher.
At Compassion UK, their primary purpose, mission and values are promoted worldwide throughout all the partner and field countries through the global meeting held every six months. This is also video conferenced all over the world and staff come together to watch this. It is also reiterated through marketing to staff as well as being available in pdf and booklet form through company's intranet and is also included in the company's annual reports.
Each of the Columbus Senior Management team has worked at Columbus for more than 10 years. The Managing Director, 17 years, the Service Director 15 years and the Consultancy and Sales Director have both been employed by Columbus for over 10 years. They are all passionate about Columbus as a company, the employees and the customers. Throughout that time as the company has grown there has been a common goal around driving continuous improvement into all aspects of the company. The latest goal sums this up, “Employees and Customers for Life”. The management team continuously seek feedback from employees and customers, through surveys, roundtables, face to face meetings, suggestion boxes and brainstorming, and they act on the results. All of the team are extremely approachable and their door is always open. A key initiative for the team at present is a mentoring programme for other managers so that they can gain greater insight in to business and to help them with their career aspirations.
Many of the company's employees work on customer sites and it is therefore vital that they give them sufficient support to help make them successful and satisfied. The company does this in two ways. Number one is technology. Team members need to have access to relevant resources, collaborate with team members no matter where they are in the world and have up to date information. Along with Skype for Business, Yammer and an Intranet they also use OneNote from Microsoft. This gives every member of the project access to all the working notes, and as it is hosted in the cloud it is always available and up to date. Every project is broken up into sections such as must does, escalations, technical plans, communications, meetings and every one of the project inputs all their information. Projects can last for multiple months and involve many Columbus consultants, plus there are up to 30 projects on the go at any one time. So this collaborative tool has proved to be a great success. We also use a number of mobile apps to help the team, for example an expenses app helps the whole interaction with finance. The second key ingredient is people. The consultants in particular may not see much of their team mates even when they are working on the same project. So it is essential that the company bring the teams together on a regular basis to help build the bonds that form amazing teams. This is done on a departmental level and companywide level.
Each of the Columbus Senior Management team has worked at Columbus for more than 10 years. The Managing Director, 17 years, the Service Director 15 years and the Consultancy and Sales Director have both been employed by Columbus for over 10 years. They are all passionate about Columbus as a company, the employees and the customers. Throughout that time as the company has grown there has been a common goal around driving continuous improvement into all aspects of the company. The latest goal sums this up, “Employees and Customers for Life”. The management team continuously seek feedback from employees and customers, through surveys, roundtables, face to face meetings, suggestion boxes and brainstorming, and they act on the results. All of the team are extremely approachable and their door is always open. A key initiative for the team at present is a mentoring programme for other managers so that they can gain greater insight in to business and to help them with their career aspirations.
The company have spot bonuses for a job well done. . Deal Flow, cross selling reward programme, enables employees to benefit personally from any work they refer outside their own team. Personal bonus incentive plans.
The company hold firm wide updates for employees between twice a year to communicate progress towards delivery of our objectives. They also have a spot bonus/reward programme which recognises employees who have demonstrated exemplary behaviour aligned to our values. Corporate induction is held every quarter.
The company have spot bonuses for a job well done. . Deal Flow, cross selling reward programme, enables employees to benefit personally from any work they refer outside their own team. Personal bonus incentive plans.
Staff have been involved in: Belfast Marathon - 23 staff members took part to raise money for charities including The Welcome Organisation and one of residential homes (De La Cour House) Residents Funds - £1,632 was raised for the Welcome Organisation & £264 was raised for the Residents Fund. Over 60 staff have taken part in the Treasure House Project, a project with the Northern Ireland Museums. This project is about reducing social isolation amongst older people & promoting social inclusion, learning & development of new skills & improving social networks. The Women's Tech Project - In partnership with Women's Tech, the Association delivered a programme called “Tea and Drills” which is a taster programme for those interested in developing skills for employment within the construction industry. This has now developed into an £850,000 funded Programme called SPEC (Supporting People: Empowering Communities), funded by the European Social Fund and Department for Employment & Learning.
Staff have been involved in: Belfast Marathon - 23 staff members took part to raise money for charities including The Welcome Organisation and one of residential homes (De La Cour House) Residents Funds - £1,632 was raised for the Welcome Organisation & £264 was raised for the Residents Fund. Over 60 staff have taken part in the Treasure House Project, a project with the Northern Ireland Museums. This project is about reducing social isolation amongst older people & promoting social inclusion, learning & development of new skills & improving social networks. The Women's Tech Project - In partnership with Women's Tech, the Association delivered a programme called “Tea and Drills” which is a taster programme for those interested in developing skills for employment within the construction industry. This has now developed into an £850,000 funded Programme called SPEC (Supporting People: Empowering Communities), funded by the European Social Fund and Department for Employment & Learning.
The SMT are "hands on" at events, community initiatives, tenant forum meetings and team briefs. Committed to the ethos of social housing, the SMT demonstrate this with an ambitious new homes programme, the creation of a community development function and customer feedback influencing decisions made at strategic level.
The company's learning motto is Be the Best I can. The Cheval Promise is: 30 minutes of learning - every colleague - every week.
The company's learning motto is Be the Best I can. The Cheval Promise is: 30 minutes of learning - every colleague - every week.
The company's learning motto is Be the Best I can. The Cheval Promise is: 30 minutes of learning - every colleague - every week.
As part of their on-going commitment to developing their staff, and ensuring they have the right people to take the business forward, Cestria have created the Stepping into Management Programme for staff who have high performance in their current role along with the ambition and commitment to work towards their first managerial role. The objectives are: To improve internal succession by developing a pool of high potential individuals, to provide a structured, challenging and rewarding development opportunity that will help to develop some of the core skills, knowledge and experience required to be an effective manager. To further enrich the current performance of high performing members of staff a number of their staff are involved in the HDN Mentoring Programme. The Mentoring Programme offers the opportunity for staff members to access an external Mentor for one-to-one professional development support and to attend Mentoring Workshops focused on a variety of career development topics. . As well as the HDN mentoring programme they have also launched an Internal Mentoring Program for staff who would like to mentor or be mentored by existing Cestria staff members. All staff have been given the opportunity to work alongside and gain experience of the role of another individual, and gain an insight into a particular work area through job shadowing. Cestria are keen to support staff to develop skills and/or gain qualifications which contribute to the achievement of agreed personal and career goals. Recently, with the help of funding, 10 people gained a nationally recognised qualification.
Cestria are currently working towards the Better Health at Work Bronze level Award and staff have completed a health assessment questionnaire to indicate the areas that the company should focus on. This has highlighted that diet, alcohol use and fitness are the three main areas to concentrate on, and a programme of activities is being arranged to improve wellbeing in these areas, along with campaigns such as Stoptober, Dry January and Mental Health month.
As part of their on-going commitment to developing their staff, and ensuring they have the right people to take the business forward, Cestria have created the Stepping into Management Programme for staff who have high performance in their current role along with the ambition and commitment to work towards their first managerial role. The objectives are: To improve internal succession by developing a pool of high potential individuals, to provide a structured, challenging and rewarding development opportunity that will help to develop some of the core skills, knowledge and experience required to be an effective manager. To further enrich the current performance of high performing members of staff a number of their staff are involved in the HDN Mentoring Programme. The Mentoring Programme offers the opportunity for staff members to access an external Mentor for one-to-one professional development support and to attend Mentoring Workshops focused on a variety of career development topics. . As well as the HDN mentoring programme they have also launched an Internal Mentoring Program for staff who would like to mentor or be mentored by existing Cestria staff members. All staff have been given the opportunity to work alongside and gain experience of the role of another individual, and gain an insight into a particular work area through job shadowing. Cestria are keen to support staff to develop skills and/or gain qualifications which contribute to the achievement of agreed personal and career goals. Recently, with the help of funding, 10 people gained a nationally recognised qualification.
Communication Day On the first Wednesday of each month the company hold “communications day”, led on each site by Senior Managers, these sessions are held to ensure all colleagues are fully aware of the Company's performance, are up to date with the latest projects and most importantly have the opportunity to ask any questions they may have and give timely feedback. Technology Roadshow, the technology division is diverse, both in terms of roles and geography. As such they hold bi-annual technology roadshows, giving members of the team an opportunity to hear about what all the areas have been working on, what the focus for the future is, demo new products, hear from subject matter experts, but also have the opportunity to network with their peers face to face. Fun@Work and PayBack The company is enthusiastic about colleagues enjoying their time at work – they do lots of things to encourage teamwork and teamplay, including sport days, Halloween fancy dress and even a 50th birthday party.
The PayBack Foundation Ceridian UK established their own registered charity, The PayBack Foundation, in 1997. Colleagues are passionate about the Charity, as they know that 100% of all donations go directly to PayBack grant recipients. They feel a connection with the charity as the company share the details of where all of the donations go to. The company help local disabled and disadvantaged children! Colleagues are always thinking of bigger, better and more unusual ways of raising funds. In 2015 the company participated in 3 Tough Mudder events, 2 10k runs, a half marathon, Adare to Survive, a 12 hour Boogie4PayBack as well as the more usual cake bakes, small change donations and more. MacMillan Coffee Morning as well as supporting PayBack, Ceridian also supports a number of nationally recognised charitable events. Each year the offices bake cakes for MacMillan coffee morning, with all donations going to this worthy cause.
The PayBack Foundation Ceridian UK established their own registered charity, The PayBack Foundation, in 1997. Colleagues are passionate about the Charity, as they know that 100% of all donations go directly to PayBack grant recipients. They feel a connection with the charity as the company share the details of where all of the donations go to. The company help local disabled and disadvantaged children! Colleagues are always thinking of bigger, better and more unusual ways of raising funds. In 2015 the company participated in 3 Tough Mudder events, 2 10k runs, a half marathon, Adare to Survive, a 12 hour Boogie4PayBack as well as the more usual cake bakes, small change donations and more. MacMillan Coffee Morning as well as supporting PayBack, Ceridian also supports a number of nationally recognised charitable events. Each year the offices bake cakes for MacMillan coffee morning, with all donations going to this worthy cause.
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