Message from the Managing Director

01 October 2021

Dear colleagues,

I hope this message finds you well.

This week we have been marking National Inclusion Week. This is something, as I mentioned in my message last week, that is very important to us as a Council. I’m pleased that we have been able to talk this week about the steps that we are taking to make our organisation more inclusive. You may have seen the news that SLT colleagues and I recently supported a move towards staff using pronouns on email signatures and in meetings if they wish to do so. More information and guidance on how to do this can be found on Staffnet+.

As inclusion week draws to a close, we enter the month of October and so will be marking Black History Month which starts today. Our Diverse staff network met this week to progress their aims of promoting an inclusive workplace for all. I was unfortunately unable to make the meeting myself, but I look forward to seeing the actions the group will be taking as their work progresses. Watch this space.

Colleagues may have seen an appeal on Staffnet earlier in the week to support us in trying to recruit more staff to our residential care services. There’s an urgent need to fill vacancies for Care Assistants, Cooks, and Kitchen Assistants within our residential care teams. 

We are particularly keen to hear from those with previous experience of working in care homes or within the health or care sector. If you know of anyone looking for part-time, full-time or flexible work and who has previous experience in this field, please do encourage them to apply for these vacancies through our website.

Elsewhere, this week has seen the launch of a new timebanking scheme. Established by our Housing department who are working in partnership with Glamorgan Voluntary Services (GVS) and Benthyg Cymru, the Time, Grow, Gain scheme will see volunteers issued with tokens that can be used towards a variety of activities. I’d like to congratulate all of the teams who have worked on this scheme in the run up to its launch and wish you the best of luck, I look forward to hearing how it progresses.

I would also like to thank those who have this week been working to ensure we have effective contingency plans in place to respond to the national fuel supply issues that have been well documented in the media. Our Emergency Planning team have been working with teams across the organisation to make sure our critical frontline services are not disrupted. The situation is steadily improving but we remain prepared for all eventualities. As usual, Debbie Spargo and her colleagues have ensured that the Council was and remains fully prepared for all eventualities. Thank you Debbie.

Finally, I’d like to remind staff that there’s a free cycle maintenance session taking place at the Civic offices tomorrow, 2^nd October, from 10am – 1pm. This is a free session being put on as part of our work to promote the Healthy Travel Charter and is an opportunity to learn more about looking after your bike. There will also be two e-bikes on site for you to try out. For anyone looking to purchase a new bike, the cycle2work scheme is up and running again for the next five weeks. Please visit the cycle2work hub for more information.

I hope you have an enjoyable weekend. Take care.

Diolch yn fawr,

Rob.