Cornwall Council
Best wellbeing innovation
Information
Cornwall Council is the first local authority in the country to be accredited as a fertility friendly employer by the Fertility Matters At Work organisation. Initiated by the women’s forum – one of the Council’s employee voice groups – in 2022/23 the council introduced a holistic programme of fertility wellbeing support for affected colleagues and their partners. Cornwall Council’s innovative wellbeing package includes comprehensive guidance for staff and managers, unlimited time off for appointments, high quality manager training, and regular peer support cafés. As the first local authority to gain accreditation, Cornwall Council is already proactively sharing its learning with other areas.
Category
Best wellbeing innovation
About Category
This award is open to a single council or where appropriate a partnership of councils, or a council- owned company. Private sector partners can enter on a council’s behalf, with the permission of the council itself.
Entries should focus on demonstrating how other councils could learn from, replicate or adapt the innovation for their own area and include the voice of staff within the submission.
Staff wellbeing is essential for the happy and productive teams needed to deliver vital council services. Whether managing complex regeneration projects, working directly with some of the most vulnerable members of their communities or collecting the bins jobs in local government can be physically and mentally demanding, and never more so than after more than a decade of funding restraint.
This award is aimed at a council that has demonstrated a commitment to the mental and physical wellbeing of its staff, and that really stands out from the crowd with its offer. In recognition of the diversity of council workforces it could be an initiative aimed across the whole workforce or targeted at one specific service area.
Judges will want to see how the initiative improved staff wellbeing and how its success was measured. It does not have to be a new initiative, but the outcomes should be specific to the 12 months prior to March 2023.
Entries should include :
Evidence of actions and activities delivered that were designed to improve staff wellbeing
Data (including from the staff survey where applicable) demonstrating the effectiveness of the action or actions
The thinking behind the approach and how it was developed
How the new approach sets you apart as an employer
Any evidence of positive impact on the wider organisation
Any obstacles to introducing the new approach and how you overcame them