Robs Weekly Round-Up
07 October 2022
Dear colleagues,
It has been one week since the Staff Awards 2022, and that has just about given me time to reflect on what a great occasion it was. To see so many people come together to celebrate themselves, their friends and their colleagues after all we have been through in recent years was fantastic.
After two years away the awards had a fresh new look and a new set of categories designed to reflect the dedication and commitment of staff, after an extremely challenging few years. A record-breaking 194 nominations were submitted, more than 1000 votes cast, and on the night over 400 people were in attendance to see the 13 trophies handed to the winners.
I could write a full weekly round-up for each of the shortlisted nominees and the same again for each of the winners. Everyone whose name was featured should be very proud of themselves. Those that went home with one of the unique trophies designed by users of our New Horizons Day Service should be absolutely delighted.
The Our Hero category winners were chosen by colleagues, whilst the winners of the wider categories were selected by our sponsors.
These were the winners:
Our Heroes:
- Schools: Jeff Schembri, Oakfield Primary
- Resources: Lynne Clarke
- Environment and Housing: Deborah Gibbs
- Social Services: Simon Colston
- Learning and Skills: Donna Parker
- Hero of Heroes: Jeff Schembri, Oakfield Primary
Wider Categories
- Rising Star: Emily Dobson, Regeneration Officer - Directorate of Place
- Celebrating Diversity: Amy Auton, Web Editor – Directorate of Corporate Resources
- Project Zero: Recycling and Waste Management – Directorate of Environment and Housing
- Community Impact: Covid Grants Response Team – Directorate of Corporate Resources/Place
- Team of the Year: Vale Community Resource Team – Directorate of Social Services
- Schools Making an Impact: Oakfield Primary School
- Best External Partnership: Leisure Management Partnership – Directorate of Environment and Housing
The gallery of pictures from the night captures each of our winners on stage, many as part of teams they so clearly care greatly about. The pictures also show what a great time everyone had, and how much it meant to be able to come together.
I’ve had many messages this week from colleagues who enjoyed Friday night. Perhaps the one that best sums up the sentiment is from Anita Dobson in our Building Services team.
Anita said: I work as a cleaner in the Civic Offices. I attended the Staff Awards on Friday night as the cleaning team were nominated for Team of the Year by Lynne Armstrong. I have worked for the Council for over seven years and this was our first ever nomination due to Lynne’s efforts. It's a great achievement to be nominated and short listed.
As cleaners we can't work from home so have been in our buildings every day throughout Covid. We are supported by a great management team of Haley Fellows, Paul Edwards and especially Lynne Armstrong. I'm very proud to be part of their team and would really appreciate it if you can show them the recognition they all deserve. They support us all above and beyond and it needs to be highlighted.
Nothing encapsulates the spirit of Team Vale more than colleagues wanting to get some recognition for those who have helped them achieve. Thank you, Anita for getting in touch. Thank you to everyone who has helped someone in their team achieve something amazing.
For one final time I would like to congratulate and thank all of the nominees, as well as those who took the time to submit nominations. I’d also like to say another thanks to our generous sponsors and the Vale Hotel who made it possible for us to deliver a first class event at no cost to the Council. To Miles Punter, our compare for the evening, whose customary jokes at his SLT colleagues drew laughs and groans in equal measure! Of course, thanks to all of those who purchased tickets to attend, and also to those who contributed to the raffle which raised £1150 alongside an additional £1000 from the auction for the Mayor’s Foundation.
I would also like to say a special thanks to those colleagues on the Staff Awards organising committee who have been working hard all year to enable their colleagues get the recognition they deserve and a great night at the same time. Jo, Tracy, Maria, Hawys, Andy, Carole, Mark, Harriet, Andy, Delyth, Mike, Lloyd, and in particular Angela who kept the project in order throughout, diolch yn fawr iawn.
In many other places returning to work on Monday may have felt like returning to the ground with a bump. Here though it was straight back into seeing the hard work of our colleagues paying dividends for those who use our services. On Tuesday Welsh Government chose Whitmore High School in Barry as the location to announce a new round of funding to support learners with additional needs. The specialist autism resource base at the school has had a huge impact since opening in 2021 and it was great to see it used as an example of national best practice.
This week has also seen much discussion about some of the challenges ahead. On Tuesday I held a session with all chief officers to consider the Council’s financial position ahead of the process for setting next year’s budget being kicked off at Cabinet on Thursday. I will provide you all with more detail on our position and plans for addressing this in the coming weeks. For now, I will just say that while it may be one of the toughest challenges for this organisation yet, having seen the calibre of our staff showcased last Friday I have no doubt we will rise to it.
Finally, I’d like to give a mention to Michael Robson in our SRS team. I had an email from a member of the public earlier this week who wanted to reach out and thank Mike for taking the time to stop and chat to her brother when he was very distressed. Mike showed care and compassion to a stranger he met while out doing his work and very probably saved a life. I’ve written to Mike directly to share the email I received and thanked him personally. He is a fantastic ambassador for the Vale and an example to us all of the importance of above all else -of being kind.
Thank you to you all for your efforts this week. Diolch yn fawr iawn.
Rob.