C&W has traditionally placed a significant emphasis on creating an environment that is fun to work in. Events this year which have contributed towards this include; All UK staff summer drinks party held at The Kensington Roof Gardens in September; Sponsored Pilates lessons are run in the Portman Square office on a regular basis, and are always over-subscribed; Team Away Days eg. Punting in Cambridge, School Race Day and Pub Quiz, Inter-Team softball match followed by drinks and pizza and a LondonTreasure Hunt followed by a drinks reception and dinner.

C&W has traditionally placed a significant emphasis on creating an environment that is fun to work in. Events this year which have contributed towards this include; All UK staff summer drinks party held at The Kensington Roof Gardens in September; Sponsored Pilates lessons are run in the Portman Square office on a regular basis, and are always over-subscribed; Team Away Days eg. Punting in Cambridge, School Race Day and Pub Quiz, Inter-Team softball match followed by drinks and pizza and a LondonTreasure Hunt followed by a drinks reception and dinner.

Escalate is their in house talent development scheme. All staff are enrolled into Escalate which is a structured development programme for all levels to encourage life long learning and promotion of skills within the business. They have recently launched their 'mentoring scheme' - all employees were given the opportunity to apply for the scheme and 12 have now been chosen to be mentored by the directors of the group.

All employees are encouraged to maintain work life balance - employees are encouraged to request flexible working practices to fit in with their lifestyle and family needs. All staff attend stress awareness training and all staff have access to occupational health services.

There is pay/support for external management qualifications. Crayon run courses on managing people. There is internal management development training where Managers are trained through feedback and external trainers. 360 feedback is given through the appraisal system. There is a buddy system in place for internal coaching/mentoring. There is one to one coaching sessions for managers through external coaching/mentoring. Many managers belong to groups of senior managers in their disciplines.

Some team events include inter agency softball, karaoke, company drinks and weekend to Spain. The company work away weekend is a way to encourage cross communication across and within departments, as well as encouraging integration for new joiners with other members of the agency.

CHG has established robust systems of training and personal development in operation. This is underpinned by a rigorous system of planning, delivery and evaluation of training programmes which help inform future training decisions. Investment in staff is delivered through various methods of training e.g. courses, professional qualifications through day release, open university or night school, personal development and on the job training/induction.

Management tool kits/resources are included in the Performance Management Appraisal System. People Managers have management training NVQs and professional qualifications which are paid for and support by CHG. There is an on the job training buddy/mentor allocated to all new staff as part of their induction. Housing Diversity Network Coaching and Mentoring Programme is offered to all staff.

Everyone is assigned to a HR business partner. Each and every people manager receives some level of leadership and management development, through workshops, 1-2-1 feedback sessions and coaching. Directors train as mentors & coaches and middle managers are trained to coach and give side by side coaching.

The senior management team at Computer 2000 encourage a culture which is open and transparent. Directors work in teams and put themselves forward for 'pranks' such as the gunge tank, year end videos and parties. Management speak from the heart and are genuine, open, direct, honest and demonstrate humility in their communications. They personally recognise individual contributions and long service demonstrated most recently by personally arranging for bosses to fly in from Canada, USA, Germany and France for a presentation to an employee that had worked with the company for 25 years.

Coleg Morgannwg prides itself on having an effective approach to reward, recognition and health & well being. With regard to remuneration the college has a robust, fair system for the assessment of salary for academic staff. They have a policy and process for the re-grading of support staff. They continue their work in relation to the health & well being group to further embed healthy working practices in the college. They ensure that all managers are aware of the opportunities to nominate staff members for various awards and recognition for their contribution.

Funding is allocated to ensure that the development needs of staff meet organisational aims and objectives and that they have priority. The continuous personal development needs of staff are recognised and will be supported. If a particular course does not relate directly to a specific job role a contribution to the costs of training may be requested. As well as external trainers the college will also use internal staff. Some of the courses that Coleg Morgannwg offer are, deaf awareness, drug awareness, ECDL, bullying and harassment and Indian head massage.

A suite of training courses exist to enable people to develop and enhance their management skills. There is internal coaching/mentoring provided by Line Managers. External coaching/mentoring is provided by Keele University. There are other peer support opportunities in the form of seminars/managers forums. A basket of forums exist such as the Management Forum, Staff Meetings and Focus Groups which provide peer support and knowledge sharing opportunities.

A suite of training courses exist to enable people to develop and enhance their management skills. There is internal coaching/mentoring provided by Line Managers. External coaching/mentoring is provided by Keele University. There are other peer support opportunities in the form of seminars/managers forums. A basket of forums exist such as the Management Forum, Staff Meetings and Focus Groups which provide peer support and knowledge sharing opportunities.

Employees are very personally involved in the organisation's efforts to support charities. It is employees who nominate and organise the charity events with the support of the company. Employees spend a lot of their spare time each month baking cakes for the monthly charity days. Employees often come up with unique, fun ways to raise additional funds like bacon buttie sales, BBQ food for sale or fun runs and charity bike rides, raffles and games or quizzes. CHL likes to take suggestions from members of staff about how to improve CHL's environmental efforts and when suggestions come through they are quick to investigate these and take them on board where they can. There is a sense of team responsibility for being environmentally friendly and CHL has a conscience in this area.

This is one of the few companies where the values represent what actually happens on a day to day basis. All at 'Team CHL' through all levels are equally important in terms of their performance in their specific role. By creating a culture in which mutual respect is more than a PR aspiration, CHL have a place which feels like a co-operative. Staff at CHL are truly passionate about the success of the business and feel proud that they have personally been involved in what is considered a very successful business by its peers in the mortgage industry.

Chester & District Housing Trust support a community enterprise scheme to refurbish broken electrical goods. They have supplied a house to a local charity as a demonstration house of simple methods to save energy and reduce CO2 emissions. They use this to involve local residents in environmental projects. They have also installed solar panels to rural homes that are isolated from the national gas supply. All new homes that are built are designed to meet very high environmental standards. The support and improvement of the communities in which they operate is a fundamental commitment of the business.

The CEO of Chester & District Housing Trust is described as open and approachable, and a charismatic and inspirational leader. He often delivers briefings and encourages feedback and has a regular internet blog. All managers at Chester & District Housing Trust are easily accessible and all offices are open plan.

Chandler Chicco has offered over 25 group training sessions to their staff in 2010. With regards to individual training and development they have supported over 50 different trainings, including supporting professional qualifications. CCC continues to run our successful innovate and eat sessions for staff. This forum is used for people to share key learning and experiences with other team members. As they don't have job titles individuals are recruited on a skills basis which encourages teams to learn and interact on a daily basis. The company have a unique 360 online appraisal system which is twinned with a professional mentor scheme.

Chandler Chicco has offered over 25 group training sessions to their staff in 2010. With regards to individual training and development they have supported over 50 different trainings, including supporting professional qualifications. CCC continues to run our successful innovate and eat sessions for staff. This forum is used for people to share key learning and experiences with other team members. As they don't have job titles individuals are recruited on a skills basis which encourages teams to learn and interact on a daily basis. The company have a unique 360 online appraisal system which is twinned with a professional mentor scheme.