Staff are being put at the forefront of a housing and care charity’s strategy to plan its future direction as it prepares for life with COVID-19.
Blackwood will be assessing the responses of all of its 549 employees and using them to implement strategies to improve the work and lives of everyone involved in the charity.
Staff were asked to answer two surveys over a six week period to assess opinions on a range of issues.
Blackwood Operations Director Angela Currie said: “We couldn’t care for our customers without the hard work of all of our staff, from those on the frontline providing care and housing services, to our corporate team.
“Many of us have felt the additional pain and pressure of working in the social care sector during the pandemic. The vital, company-wide support we have had from our colleagues has been a huge factor in our management of the pandemic.
“At Blackwood we believe it is essential to ask for the input of all of our staff. We recognise how important feedback is in creating a strong organisation. We want our staff to be a part of our planning and influence how we move forward, especially as we look to progress out of the pandemic to a more ‘normal’ life.
“All of our employees were sent the surveys, which take into account how staff are feeling about working from home, their work-life balance, and what they would like to see more of in the future.”
Blackwood’s commitment to staff has been evident throughout the pandemic. The charity launched a campaign, #ImInAwe, to showcase its appreciation for the vital work of front-line social care workers, which can often go unnoticed.
As part of the campaign, Blackwood gifted all 284 of its care staff a £90 Aldi voucher to help with their essential shopping.
In addition, Blackwood have further endorsed its desire to recognise the impact of its workforce by giving its support for World Patient Safety Day.
Angela added: “Our colleagues have gone above and beyond over the past few months, we cannot thank them enough.
“Through World Patient Safety Day we celebrate and value our teams as they continue to put customers first in unprecedented times. Utilising practical solutions to empower our staff, even outside of the work environment, is the key to a safer Scotland.
“Working with our colleagues on this survey will hopefully provide us with some interesting insights on how staff are feeling, and how we can retain some of the more positive elements of working we have seen over the past six months.”
Blackwood aims to help people live their life to the full, by providing services which support individuals to live independently. It specialises in technology and design innovation to support the role of its housing and care staff across Scotland.
For more information, please visit: https://www.blackwoodgroup.org.uk
