FOR THOSE WHO like a challenging job, there's rarely a dull moment at Hyndburn Borough Council. The authority's ambition is to move the Lancashire district out of the 100 most deprived boroughs in the country by 2018 and it knows the health and wellbeing of staff will be important if it is to achieve that goal. The 415 employees say they have fun at work (75% positive) and believe they help to deliver a great service (73%). The council promotes healthy eating and lifestyle initiatives from encouraging staff to eat more fruit to organising lunchtime fitness walks and giving them information on blood pressure checks and cholesterol levels. The Accrington-based council, which has also run training courses on managing stress, gives days off to celebrate special achievements and to thank staff for their efforts during the year, as well as three extra flexi hours at Christmas for staff parties or shopping. Another opportunity to win an additional day's leave comes from the recently introduced annual Great Big Thank You awards, which reward people for going the extra mile. All this goes down well with employees, whose high scores on questions about Wellbeing place Hyndburn sixth overall among all 75 bodies in this list. Staff have not suffered stress-related symptoms in the past 12 months because of the job (73%), are not under so much pressure they can't concentrate (69%) or perform (68%) and say work does not interfere with their responsibilities at home (68%). They don't spend too much time working either, giving a top score of 60%. In addition to Hyndsight, the council's quarterly magazine, team briefings and road shows, any member of staff can contact managing director David Welsby with a question which is answered via "Dave's Bulletin" on the intranet. Employees say people go out of their way to help each other (75%), they are clear about what is expected of them (70%) and deadlines are realistic (65%, ranking third among mid-sized bodies). Staff think the council is doing enough to protect the environment (68%, a top five score) with practices such as harvesting roof water for use in street sweepers, buying electric vans and replacing the mayoral limousine with a low-emissions hybrid vehicle. More than 60% of employees get paid between £15,000 and £25,000 and benefits include subsidised sports facilities and a final salary pension scheme. Some 40% of staff have been on the payroll for a decade or more. www.hyndburnbc.gov.uk