Worcester Royal Infirmary NHS Trust Date of Study: 1999 Size: large Sector: public Region: West Midlands Type of Business: local authority Summary: Staff are their most important asset in providing effective, high-quality healthcare services to the community. A range of work-life balance initiatives assist staff with family responsibilities and there has been a major investment in training for managers to encourage a more flexible approach to how jobs get done. Profile: The ...

Watford Council Date of Study: 1999 Size: large Sector: public Region: London and South East Type of Business: local authority Key Policy Area: parental support Summary: Watford’s ethos is that “you don’t have to struggle to juggle” as a working parent. It seeks to empower managers and all employees to organise work in a way which supports a better quality of life, both for employees and the local community. Profile: Watford Council (1,100 employees ...

United Response Date of Study: 2000 Size: large Sector: voluntary Region: UK Type of Business: disability charity Key Policy Area: flexible working Summary: In the quest to attract and retain staff, United Response has decided to pilot three new flexible working options: annualised hours, core and variable hours and term time working. They also employ a relief pool of staff to provide contingency cover. Profile: United Response is one of Britain’s largest learning di...

The Penguin Group Family Friendly Employer of the Year 2004 Date of Study: 2004 Size: large Sector: private Region: UK Type of Business: Book publishers Summary: The Penguin Group has a well established, deeply-embedded family friendly culture, which has enabled it to recruit high flyers from its competitors. Profile: Penguin has a strong ethos about positive parenting and its value both to children and to the business. The company fully understands the wisdom of reta...

The Body Shop Date of Study: 2000 Size: large Sector: private Region: South West Type of Business: retail Key Policy Area: workplace nursery Summary: Anita Roddick and her colleagues at the Body Shop are intensely proud of their Family Centre nursery. They also think their flexible working and extended maternity leave package makes sound business sense. Profile: 'Even ten years down the line, the Body Shop is still incredibly proud of the service', says Sue Carpenter who r...

The Birmingham and Solihull Job Centre Plus Employer of the Year Driving Diversity Award 2003 Date of Study: 2003 Size: large Sector: public Region: West Midlands Type of Business: employment service Summary: Jobcentre Plus has identified that its customer base has changed significantly over recent years and that new ways of working are needed to ensure it continues to provide a high level of service. Profile: The organisation is fully committed to building a workforc...

Telford and Wrekin Borough Council (family focus) Employer of the Year Family Friendly Award 2003 Date of Study: 2003 Size: large Sector: public Region: West Midlands Type of Business: borough council Summary: The Borough has only recently become one of the new unitary authorities. This provided a good opportunity to launch them as a family friendly local authority. Their particular focus has been on children and young people. This ethos permeates the way they think about ...

Telford and Wrekin Borough Council (carers focus) Employer of the Year Carers in Employment Award 2003 Date of Study: 2003 Size: large Sector: public Region: West Midlands Type of Business: borough council Summary: Telford's flexible working policies and support for carers have led to an increase in full service opening hours by three days each year. Profile: The Council is proud of its employment principles of 'Value, Fairness and Trust', many of which are specifical...

Tees and North East Yorkshire NHS Trust North East Employer of the Year 2001 Date of Study: 2001 Size: large Sector: public Region: North East Type of Business: healthcare Summary: Recognising the biggest constraint the NHS faces is the shortage of human resources, the Trust is keen to look at new and creative ways to help its staff achieve work-life balance. Profile: As a health care provider, the Trust recognises its success is dependent upon its ability to achieve ...

Standard Life Date of Study: 2000 Size: large Sector: private Region: UK Type of Business: insurance Key Policy Area: flexible working Summary: Employees can negotiate when and where they work and how many hours, as well as extended parental leave and career breaks. This helps the company to attract and retain valued staff. Profile: The Standard Life group is one of the world's leading financial services groups offering pensions, life assurance, savings, investments, mortg...

Sperrin and Lakeland Health and Social Care Trust Northern Ireland Employer of the Year 2001 Date of Study: 2001 Size: large Sector: public Region: Northern Ireland Type of Business: Health Trust Summary: A comprehensive range of work-life balance options allow the Trust to be flexible and innovative in the way it delivers services to clients and patients on a 24/7 basis. Profile: "The main benefit of work-life balance policies to our workplace is that, as a prov...

South Lanarkshire Council Public Sector Employer of the Year 1999 Date of Study: 1999 Size: large Sector: public Region: Scotland Type of Business: local authority Summary: South Lanarkshire anticipates that in the future there will be an even greater demand for flexibility, both in terms of service delivery and employee need. It has created a set of clear values and principles that encourage flexibility and choice to fit with different caring needs and work-home balance. ...

SEI Macro Date of Study: 1999 Size: large Sector: private Region: London and South East Type of Business: semi-conductor distribution Summary: Company monitoring demonstrates that staff turnover has reduced substantially since the introduction of flexible working, whilst the quality and number of potential employees has increased, in an industry where high staff turnover is the norm. Term time working and home working have been particularly successful. Profile: Broadening th...

Scottish Court Service Scottish Employer of the Year 2001 Date of Study: 2001 Size: large Sector: public Region: Scotland Type of Business: Court Service Summary: The Scottish Court Service has 1000 staff spread the length and breadth of Scotland and the Islands. Its work-life balance policies help it to retain skilled staff with childcare commitments and address potential recruitment and retention difficulties. Profile: The Scottish Court Service has 1000 staff sprea...

Salisbury Health Care NHS Trust Joint South West Employer of the Year 2001 Date of Study: 2001 Size: large Sector: public Region: South West Type of Business: healthcare Summary: The Trust has used work-life balance policies to aid recruitment and retention of staff and therefore to deliver high quality care on a 24/7 basis Profile: Salisbury NHS Trust have used work-life balance policies to aid recruitment and retention of staff, to deliver high quality care on a 24/...

Royal Borough of Kingston Date of Study: 1999 Size: large Sector: public Region: London and South East Type of Business: local authority Summary: Kingston promotes work-life balance internally via its “Family Friendly Managers’ Award”, and externally through an EU-supported project for SMEs, called “Striking the Balance”. Profile: The Royal Borough of Kingston (3,639 employees in 1999) has to compete for staff alongside other major employers in ...

Penguin UK Date of Study: 2000 Size: large Sector: private Region: London and South East Type of Business: book publishing Summary: Generous maternity leave provisions, paid “compassionate leave”, assistance towards childminding costs, a summer playscheme and flexible working all contribute to a positive family friendly culture at Penguin. “We retain the high calibre staff we wouldn’t want to lose,” they say. Profile: Publishing is often portray...

Pannone LLP Commended for Britain’s Best Boss 2007 Date of Study: 2008 Size: large Sector: private Region: North West Type of Business: legal Summary: Summary of Joy Kingsley’s nomination:Joy Kingsley has been Managing Partner at Pannone for 14 years, overseeing the growth in staff from 200 to 750. During her 14 years at the top, Joy has taken the firm from problematical times, with billings of £6m and under 200 staff in 1994 to leading regional status wi...

Oxfordshire County Council Employer of the Year 1990 Date of Study: 2000 Size: large Sector: public Region: London and South East Type of Business: local authority Summary: “We offer part-time working hours of almost every conceivable sort and combination,” says Oxfordshire CC’s Hilary Simpson. “Part-time women outnumber full-time men in our workforce by four to one and I have no problem in prioritising their needs. For us, family friendly is not an...

NSPCC Date of Study: 2000 Size: large Sector: voluntary Region: UK Type of Business: childrens charity Key Policy Area: flexible working Summary: The charity introduced a range of work-life balance policies in 1995 to make them “a more inclusive employer who would attract a range of people with the skills we’re looking for”. Profile: As the UK's leading charity specialising in child protection and the prevention of cruelty to children, the NSPCC is workin...

North Wales Police Welsh Large Employer of the Year 2001 Date of Study: 2001 Size: large Sector: public Region: Wales Type of Business: Police force Summary: Promoting work-life balance is part of a larger culture change in an organisation which has been traditionally male-dominated. It has also resulted in a more motivated workforce, who are more responsive to the needs of the public. Profile: "We see work-life balance as being essential to the recruitment, rete...

NatWest (North Region) Britain’s Best Boss 2007 Date of Study: 2008 Size: large Sector: private Region: North West Type of Business: financial Summary: Summary of Chris Brindley's nomination:Chris has been Regional MD for the past four years, having started at NatWest, printing cheque books 25 years ago. Through his leadership and extensive engagement with his colleagues (staff in head office, regional office and branches), the region has achieved both internal and e...

Nationwide Building Society IT Best Boss Special Commendation 2001 Date of Study: 2001 Size: large Sector: private Region: South West Type of Business: Building society Summary: Karen Foard has been instrumental in spreading home working and condensed weeks across Nationwide's 450-strong and traditionally male-dominated IT department. Profile: "It all started when we realised we were short of space in the department and we decided to think laterally. We encourage...

Nationwide Building Society Date of Study: 2001 Size: large Sector: private Region: UK Summary: Expanding flexible working opportunities has been a 'win-win' situation for both the Society and its employees Profile: "Nationwide has, for some, considerable time, acknowledged that enabling employees to work flexibly can help us to achieve our business objectives and have introduced a wide range of policies, practices and procedures to support flexible working. This fits cl...

National Magazine Company Medium Employer of the Year 2000 Date of Study: 2000 Size: large Sector: private Region: London and South East Type of Business: magazine publishing Summary: Magazine publishing company which has pioneered tackling a previously endemic long hours culture and senior level job-sharing in creative roles. It monitors its improved staff retention levels on a quarterly basis. Profile: Long hours comes with the territory in magazine publishing when ...

MSN UK Innovation Employer of the Year 2004 Date of Study: 2004 Size: large Sector: private Region: UK Type of Business: Computer software Summary: Part of global software giant Microsoft, MSN UK has found that combating excessive working hours and 'presenteeism' has led to better staff morale and higher productivity. Profile: MSN have boldly tackled the macho culture in a sector renowned for its long hours, heavy turnover and burn-out of young, enthusiastic staff. ...

McDonalds Restaurants Ltd Date of Study: 1999 Size: large Sector: private Region: UK Type of Business: catering Summary: The company’s Family Matters group meets regularly to review work-life balance policies. They are seen as closely associated with McDonald’s business needs, in terms of better staff relations, reduced absenteeism, lower turnover and increased productivity. Restaurants are encouraged to add initiatives of their own to support families. Profile: ...

Marks & Spencer plc UK Large Private Sector Employer of the Year 2000 Date of Study: 2000 Size: large Sector: private Region: UK Type of Business: retail Summary: M&S are increasing the number of staff who work from home, answering customer letters or electronic comments. Flexibility has increased across the whole week and staff response has been very positive. The company believes that helping staff to achieve a better work-life balance will play a part in its fut...

Lloyds TSB Group plc Date of Study: 1999 Size: large Sector: private Region: UK Type of Business: banking Key Policy Area: flexible working Summary: The company’s Work Options scheme aligns flexible working with business objectives. Outputs, rather than hours worked, are now strongly emphasised as the criterion for success, and a wide range of working options has been put forward to enable staff to combine the needs of the job with other responsibilities. Profile: Ll...

Littlewoods Employer of the Year 1999 Date of Study: 1999 Size: large Sector: private Region: UK Type of Business: retail Summary: Work-life issues are integral to Littlewoods declared aim of becoming an “employer of choice”. 16,060 of its 27,000 employees (in 1999) work flexibly. Enhanced parental leave, an information pack and career breaks are also on offer to all, and childcare is available at its Liverpool and Manchester sites. Profile: Littlewoods (2...

Linklaters Date of Study: 2001 Size: large Sector: private Region: South East Type of Business: leading city law firm Key Policy Area: work-life balance issues Summary: Addressing employees work-life balance issues in a traditionally long hours culture organisation. Profile: Finding a balance at Linklaters Senior BALANCE AT WORK consultants, Jo Reynolds and Lucy McCarraher, have just completed a project at Linklaters as part of the 2001 round of DTI Challenge Fund consu...

Leeds Metropolitan University Yorkshire and the Humber Employer of the Year 2001 Date of Study: 2001 Size: large Sector: public Region: Yorkshire and the Humber Type of Business: higher education Summary: A wide range of flexible working options and innovative leave provisions have been introduced to boost the proportion of women in senior positions Profile: LMU is the largest university in England and Wales to have achieved an Investor in People award. The assessment...

Leeds City Council Date of Study: 2002 Size: large Sector: public Region: North East Type of Business: city council Summary: Piloting flexible working and work-life balance policies with the aim of extending service provision and quality, increasing morale and improving recruitment and retention. Profile: Even the sceptics agreed flexible working improved efficiency Leeds City Council Finance Department received funding from the DTI Challenge Fund to undertake a major work...

Lauder College Scottish Employer of the Year 2004 Date of Study: 2004 Size: large Sector: private Region: UK Type of Business: College of Further Education Summary: Lauder College has created a balanced, life-style friendly culture which is based on the ethos of supporting people and being inclusive. Profile: Lauder College takes a very holistic approach to work-life balance, with wide ranging flexibility, presented in creative and innovative ways and actively communi...

Kings College Hospital NHS Trust Employer of the Year 2000 Date of Study: 2000 Size: large Sector: public Region: London and South East Type of Business: hospital trust Summary: King’s College Hospital’s “Kingsflex” scheme has proved key in reducing absenteeism and increasing recruitment. Flexible rostering, widespread part-time working, personalised annual leave and enhanced parental and carer leave are all widely promoted both in-house and in the ...

Jaguar & Land Rover Women in Science, Engineering and Technology Employer of the Year Award 2005 Date of Study: 2005 Size: large Sector: private Region: Midlands Type of Business: Motor vehicle manufacturing Summary: Through their strategies to attract and particularly, to retain women in SET after starting their families, Jaguar and Land Rover have demonstrated huge commitment to the women's agenda at a time when the car industry - and their parent company Ford in par...

HSBC Family Friendly Employer of the Year 2005 Date of Study: 2005 Size: large Sector: private Region: UK Type of Business: Banking and finance Summary: HSBC shows consistent development of family friendly policies over a number of years and is an exemplar when it comes to childcare support for working parents. Employee feedback is an important part of their evaluation process and they are now considering the possibility of including employees' families in future staff sat...

Hertfordshire County Council Carers in Employment (Joint) Employer of the Year 2005 Date of Study: 2005 Size: large Sector: public Region: East of England Type of Business: Local authority Summary: Operating in an environment of low unemployment, Hertfordshire County Council aim to be an 'employer of choice'. They particularly value the specific skills that carers can bring to the organisation. Supporting carers in the community is part of the County Council's role and the...

Guy’s & St Thomas’ Hospital NHS Trust Date of Study: 2003 Size: large Sector: public Region: South East Type of Business: NHS Hospital Summary: Alternative shift systems and ways of working reduces staff turnover and costs and improves patient care. Profile: An Award Winning Consultancy Project Over the last year, Balance At Work consultants Gillian Wing and Jean Jones have worked with the Paediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU) at Guy’s & St Thoma...

Glaxo Welcome Date of Study: 2000 Size: large Sector: private Region: UK Type of Business: pharmaceuticals Summary: “We need to attract and retain the best people to stay at the leading edge of science and technology” says Glaxo Welcome HR Manager Ian Brown. On flexible working he says: “as long as the work gets done, the real question here is ‘why not?’” Profile: Glaxo Wellcome is a world leading pharmaceutical company with around 13,400 ...

Ernst & Young UK Date of Study: 2000 Size: large Sector: private Region: UK Type of Business: business services Summary: As a global player in the knowledge economy, Ernst & Young recognises its success is highly dependant on recruiting and retaining the right people. Reduced working hours and other forms of flexible working are on offer to all staff, but have mostly been taken up by returning mothers. Profile: As a global player in the knowledge economy, Ernst &...

Employment Service UK Large Public Sector Employer of the Year 2001 Date of Study: 2001 Size: large Sector: public Region: UK Type of Business: Government Summary: The Employment Service is committed to making the full range of its excellent work-life balance policies available to all staff. Profile: "ES is fully committed to being an employer that takes Work Life Balance issues seriously. This means we recognise that everyone has a life outside work and that, at...

Elida Faberge Ltd Date of Study: 1999 Size: large Sector: private Region: Yorkshire and the Humber Type of Business: manufacturing Summary: The company’s Childcare Co-ordinator maintains a childminding network, helps parents identify vacancies in local nurseries and operates a holiday playscheme in partnership with other local employers. Flexible working is available wherever possible. Profile: The Elida Faberge European Board targets a 5% improvement in employee satis...

Dyson Date of Study: 2000 Size: large Sector: private Region: South West Type of Business: manufacturing Summary: Living balanced lives is a common value throughout the fast-growing Dyson company. Based in a rural location with virtually no unemployment, they also need to offer part time work to recruit a big enough workforce. Profile: 'Family friendly is something we've recently begun looking at', says Katie Peters, HR Director at Dyson, 'although we've still got a long way...

Department for Work and Pensions Date of Study: 2001 Size: large Sector: public Region: UK Type of Business: Government department Summary: Flexible working patterns have helped to improve the work-life balance of many staff and also helped to meet particular business needs, such as an evening service to customers Profile: The Department for Work and Pensions (formerly the Department of Social Security and now incorporating the Employment Service) is the largest Government d...

Corbett Hospital Date of Study: 2000 Size: large Sector: public Region: West Midlands Type of Business: hospital Summary: “Quality of service is paramount here, and I would rather have a good nurse half the week, than a mediocre one full-time,” says Corbett Hospital Ward Manager Graham Russell. “There is a skills shortage in the NHS and we need to retain experienced people.” Profile: "Graham is the most understanding, flexible and helpful manager...

Contributions Agency Date of Study: 1999 Size: large Sector: public Region: North East Type of Business: government agency Summary: Home working, twilight and weekend working and Family Care Expenses initiatives have had two way benefits for both staff and the Agency, particularly in terms of improving customer service. Profile: Commitment to new ways of working is emphasised at the Contributions Agency (7,961 employees in 1999) in its Equal Opportunities Policy which states...

Cogent Investment Operations Ltd Best Boss 2002 Date of Study: 2002 Size: large Sector: private Region: South East Type of Business: financial services Key Policy Area: flexible working Summary: Introducing flexible working has proved a win-win initiative all round for City of London company Cogent Investment Operations Ltd. Annualised hours and homeworking have resulted in the London office being open longer hours, with higher productivity and greatly improved staff ret...

Citigroup Employer of the Year Innovation Award 2003 Date of Study: 2003 Size: large Sector: private Region: London and South East Type of Business: financial services Summary: Citigroup formally implemented multiple initiatives under one heading to help employees balance better.Their "Symmetry" work-life balance suite of policies were introduced in Spring 2003, following widespread consultation with employees, management sponsorship and hard-hitting presentation...

Call Connection Ltd Highly Commended for Britain’s Best Boss 2007 Date of Study: 2008 Size: large Sector: private Region: Eastern Type of Business: insurance Summary: Summary of Graeme Kalbraier’s nomination:Having a boss who is approachable, knows your name and who genuinely cares about his employees as individuals has resulted in a positive and highly motivated workforce. The need for work-life balance is at the forefront of Graeme’s mind. Employees can...