MAJOR CASH BOOST FOR WORK-LIFE BALANCE INITIATIVES

11 Jun 2002 10:12 AM

Alan Johnson announces projects to help employees 'juggle not struggle' with their working week.

A new round of Government funding will help more than three quarters of a million employees reach a better work-life balance.

Employment Relations Minister, Alan Johnson, today announced almost £5m for 233 companies employing more than 830,000 people throughout the country.

British Airways, Tesco, Age Concern and The Prince's Trust are just a few of the organisations who will be using the Challenge Fund cash to promote innovative working practices to help workers enjoy a better work-life balance AND improve business performance.

In this round 91 private, 109 public and 33 voluntary organisations will each receive a share of the £4.8 million funding which provides free work-life balance consultancy support to help flexible working become a reality. Also, following Secretary of State Patricia Hewitt's pledge to increase the number of women workers in the IT sector in January, twenty-one of the 233 winners represent ITEC companies. Overall £11.3 million has been paid out under the Challenge Fund over three years.

Announcing the winners at the Challenge Fund Fair in London today, Employment Relations Minister Alan Johnson said:

"It is great to see so many companies recognising the benefits of work-life balance and actively seeking help to get smart working practices in place.

"This year saw record entry levels for the Challenge Fund and this latest round of funding has enabled us to double the number of companies who will benefit. The Challenge Fund is now helping companies of all sizes and sectors across the country achieve the work-life balance goal.

"Work-life balance is not just about working less, it's also about how, when and where people work. Flexibility in the workplace has already helped previous Challenge Fund winners to gain improvements in recruitment and staff retention and reduce their absenteeism levels. Whether you are a construction company, a fire brigade unit, a large food retailer or a county cricket club - work-life balance is a win- win situation for everyone."

The wining companies will use their share of the funding to implement work-life balance practices such as job-shares, flexible working locations and hours. For example, British Airways will investigate options which match both the business and employee needs, and Tesco will develop support packages for employees and managers to extend their flexible working options.

The Challenge Fund provides assistance to all businesses - small, medium and large employers. The winners represent a broad range of groups across the private, public and voluntary sectors, including banking, accountancy, construction, retail, local authorities, NHS Trusts, fire brigades, prison services and charities. A full list of winners and case study follows.

Notes to Editors

1. Alan Johnson was speaking at the Challenge Fund Fair on 11 June 2002.

2. The Challenge Fund provides free consultancy advice for private, public and voluntary employers who want to introduce innovative working practices which benefit their business and improve their employees' work-life balance. 166 companies have already received support through the fund. All projects measure financial savings, reductions in staff absenteeism, staff retention levels and the take-up of work-life balance options by staff.

3. This round of the Challenge Fund produced 419 applications in total. 233 entries were successful bringing the total number of companies to benefit from the Challenge Fund to 399. The latest round of winners will officially start their projects in September this year.

4. The Government's plans for a Work-Life Balance Challenge Fund were announced in the discussion document Changing Patterns in a Changing World in March 2000.

5. Funding is routed through consultancies to simplify
administration for employers. The Fund meets the costs of consultancy advice, tailored to the needs of the individual organisation and its workforce. Successful applicants allocate some resource to the project and work constructively with the consultants, playing a part in helping us disseminate learning outcomes.

6. Consultants target advice to match the specific needs and circumstances of successful applicants. It might involve looking at the hours employees work, where they work, when they do their work, particular measures for parents and carers. Some employers have needed help to develop a work-life balance strategy and policies, assess the costs and benefits of changing, employee work patterns, find out what kind of working arrangements employees would like and explore solutions which meet both individual and business needs.

7. Funds are allocated to organisations that best demonstrate: - how they will benefit from support from consultants to address work-life balance issues;
- top level commitment to improving work-life balance, reflected in the staff resource and time allocated to the project;
- there will be a number of measurable outcomes to the work-life balance project they wish to undertake; and
- they are prepared to share their learning and best practice achieved as a result of the project, with other employers not selected for funding.

8. The selection panel consists of a PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) Challenge Fund project manager, an expert on management
consultancy, an expert on work-life balance good practice and a Departmental official. All applications are scored according to the above criteria. They are sifted by the panel for scoping on the basis of the scores, whilst trying to ensure a balanced
representation by size, sector and region.

9. The total size of the fund for 2000-2003 is £11.3 million, of which £4.8 million has been allocated for this round.

10. Twenty four consultants were selected through open competition, help employers introduce and develop their work-life balance policies and practices. The size of each consultancy project is determined by the needs of the employers.

DTI CHALLENGE FUND WINNERS

Organisation Size Sector Contact Name Tel.

All Regions
Enable, Barclays Bank plc L Private Amanda Jones
01565 614637
River Island Clothing Company Ltd L Private Melanie Parks 020 8991 4580
Tesco Stores Ltd L Private Julie Markey 01707 360828 The Prince's Trust L Voluntary Tessa Drysdale 0207 543 7418

East of England
Agency Drivers Register Ltd S Private Emma Gouton 01727 862863 Branston Potatoes Ltd L Private Simon Telfer 01522 794411 Cambridgeshire Fire and Rescue Service L Public Cheryl Rolph 01480 444572
Camelot Group Plc L Private Catherine Nye 01923 425184 Essex County Council L Public Yvonne Skingle 01245 430678 Grifols UK Ltd S Private Barry Barber 01223446900
Hertfordshire Careers Services Ltd M Private Mo Osborne 01462 705000
Norfolk County Services Ltd M Public Clare Stubbings
01603 223 368
Norwich and District Citizens Advice Bureau S Voluntary Ian Spinney 01603-878815
Norwich and Peterborough Building Society L Private
Lorraine Bunning 01733372198
Peterborough City Council L Public Shona Kent 01733 452212 Premier Prison Services Ltd L Private Mike Webb 01295 225 321 Quality Hotel St Albans S Private Karim Hirji 01727 857858 Scottish and Newcastle Retail L Private Linda Mann
01604 612560
South Essex Mental Health & Community Care NHS Trust L Public Jo Eastland 01375 364561
Stevenage Youth Training Scheme S Voluntary Caroline Collins 01438 728 788
Team Consulting Ltd S Private Dianne Aston-James
01763 848959
Tendring Construction Co Ltd M Private Christopher McEwan 01255870758
The Cert Group of Companies L Private Clive Harper
01992 822939
TXU Europe Group Plc L Private Jane Bowring
01283 519048

East Midlands
City of Lincoln Council L Public Mrs Sandra Simmonds
01522 873397
Community Enterprise & Training Association Ltd S Voluntary Tony Prior 01332 604066
Derbyshire Fire & Rescue Service L Public Bernie Cahill 01332 771221
District of Bolsover L Public Linda Keeling
01246 242411
Geo. Adams & Sons (Holdings) Ltd L Private Gerry Kingston 01775 766161
Leicester City Council L Public Shilpa Arya (Ms)
0116 2527093
Nottingham City Council L Public Lynn Griffin-Pearce
0115 915 4414
Queen's Medical Centre Nottingham L Public Pauline Hodgson 0115 924 9924 ext 35028
Shoefayre Ltd L Private T. Orton 0116 2785264
Word Association S Private Sarah Jobling 01455 614333

London
Abbeyfield Richmond Thames and District Society Ltd M Voluntary Veronica Geasley 020 8948 3977
Amicus Group L Private Eileen Harding 01795 431134 Brent Council L Public Francesca Okosi 0208 937 1091 Cloisters S Public Gerald Newman 020 7827 4050
Coca-Cola Enterprises Ltd - Edmonton Factory M Private Maryanne White 0208 036341
Eastwards Trust (services for elders) M Voluntary
Kayani Gandhi 0208 4727100
Emap Advertising L Private Gary Hollins 02072955386 English National Opera L Voluntary Holly Pertwee
0207 845 9325
Epsom & St Helier NHS Trust L Public Michelle Schofield 0208 2963651
Harding Housing Association M Voluntary Cheryl Gowdie 020 8870 7577
Homeless Link S Voluntary Elisabeth Pritchard
020 7799 2404
Infraco Sub-Surface Ltd L Private Lorraine Reynolds
020 7646 1905
London Borough of Havering L Public Niamh Murphy
01708 432706
Newham Training and Education Centre S Voluntary
Chris Leigh 02085195843
Nomura International Plc L Private Joan Buechler
020 7521 2471
Oxleas NHS Trust L Public Janna C Maxfield 01322 625772 Reform Synagogues of Great Britain S Voluntary Nikki Landall 0208 349 5642
Reynolds Catering Supplies Ltd M Private Jim Paton
0208 988 6278
St Pancras & Humanist Housing Association Ltd M Voluntary Stephen Harriot 020 7209 9210
St. Barnabas C E Primary School M Public John Hicks
020 7641 4207
ST. Luke's Communications Ltd M Private Karen Anderson 0207380 8888
The Bromley by Bow Centre M Voluntary Alison Trimble 02084728570
Turning Point L Voluntary Karen Delgado 0207 553 5515 Virgin Management Ltd M Private Caroline Walters 020 13135003 The National Autistic Society (National Body) L Voluntary Viv Chartres 0207 903 3571
Paraxel International Ltd L Private Jo Tucker 01895614381 The Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales L Private Diane Lester 01908 248345

North East
AMEC Downstream Oil Gas and Process L Private David Massey 01325 460644
City of Sunderland L Public Sue Stanhope 0191 5531 747 Dewhirst Corporate Clothing M Private Lynn Haley 0191 5181888 District of Easington Council L Public Mr R Gott
0191 527 0501
Durham County Council L Public Peter Crowther 0191 383 3411 FUDA International Trading Co Ltd S Private
Gillian Bernardi 0191 258 2233
Headteachers of Newcastle Upon Tyne Schools M Public
Margaret Kerridge 0191 273 9383
Newcastle City Council L Public Peter Bower 0191 211 5200 Northumberland Fire and Rescue Service L Public
Michael Brewis 01670534706
Northumberland National Park Authority M Public
Gail Westherson 01434 611502
South Tyneside Metropolitan Borough Council L Public
Peter Fanning 0191 424 7322
Stockton on Tees Borough Council L Public Judith Walker 01642 415510
Storey Sons & Parker M Private Adam Langman 01912326291 Teesdale District Council M Public Frank 01833 696274 Tyne & Wear Metropolitan Fire Brigade L Public
John Hindmarch 0191 235 9208

North West
Age Concern Metro Rochdale S Public Alan Haughton 01706712515 Age Concern Stockport S Voluntary Margaret J Brade 0161 480 5490
Allerdale Borough Council L Public Kathryn Higgins
01900 326 523
Beaumont College L Voluntary Katie Roebuck 01244 403676 Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council L Public
Harry Catherall 01254 585299
Blackpool & the Fylde College of Further & Higher Education L Public Tim Marsh 01253 504 170
Bury College L Public Alison Todd 0161 280 8261
Cheshire Fire Service L Public Ursula Jones 01606868726 Chester & District Housing Trust L Voluntary
Alyson Saddington 01244 305 408
Connexions Cumbria M Private Andy Irons 01228 597600 Cumbria Early Years Development & Childcare Partnership S Public Helen Sykes 01128 606 320
Everton Development Trust S Voluntary Janine Hyland 0151 298 2478
Marple Cottage Surgery S Public Pat Hart 0161 426 0011 Moore and Smalley M Private Adrienne Collinge 01772821021 New Charter Housing Trust Group L Public
Eleanor Brown 0161 331 2172
Rochdale Metropolitan Borough Council L Public
Nadine Jolly 01706 86525
Royal Liverpool & Broadgreen NHS Trust L Public
Mrs. Jane Mullin 0151 706 3892
Southport & Ormskirk Hospital NHS Trust L Public
Phillip Orme 01695 656661
Thameside and Glossop Acute Services NHS Trust L Public Rob Allan 0161 3316055
The Duckworth Group M Private Helene Francis 0161 872 0225 Total Quality Managemnet International Ltd S Private
Beverley Mobbs 01928 739191
West Lancashire District Council L Public Clive Walsh 01695 585019
Wyre Borough Council L Public Eric Downes 01253 887 505

Scotland
Aberdeen City Council L Public Ruth West 01224523078 Aberlour Child Care Trust L Voluntary Susie Osborne 01786 450335
Central Scotland Countryside Trust S Public Shona MacDonald 01501 822015
Central Scotland Fire Brigade L Public Graham Young 01324 716 996
City of Edinburgh Council L Public Michelle Hughes
0131 469 3374
Dumfries & Galloway Constabulary L Public Fiona Gauld 01387 269544
East Dunbartonshire Council L Public Valerie Watts
0141 578 8039
Falkirk Council L Public Jess Kennedy 01324 506266 Fife Constabulary L Public Lee Christie 01592 418587 Midlothian Council L Public Stuart Gray 0131 271 3250 North Ayrshire Council L Public Murray MacFarlane 01294 324651 One Plus : One Parent Families L Voluntary Lynne Blue 0141 333 1450
Scottish Ambulance Service L Public Tom Pickett 0131 446 7021 Scottish Crop Research Institute L Public Vivian Blok 01382 562731
Strathclyde Fire Brigade L Public Angela Webb 01698338230 The Highland Council L Public Kateryna Zoryk 01463 702055 University of Teesside L Public Mrs Lesley Graham 01642 342208 Glasgow Council for the Voluntary Sector S Voluntary Rebecca Smith 01413322444
Shepherd & Wedderburn WS L Private Lucy Armstrong
0131 473 5249

South East
Amberhart Ltd S Private Laura Benfield 01923770675
Anne Veck Hair S Private Keith Mellen 01865 744612 Ashford Borough Council L Public Sally-Anne Myers 01233 330481 Bexley Council L Public Denise Johnson
020 8303 7777 ext 2285
Brighton & Hove City Council L Public Bill Brown 01273291290 Brighton Healthcare NHS Trust L Public Steve Richards 01273 696955 ext. 7643
British Airways L Private Barbara Pryce 020 87383386 Charlton School M Public Neil Rees- Davies 0208 853 4547 Cosmographics S Private Matin Curran 01923 210909 Hampshire Constabulary L Public Janet Ogburn 02380599897 Heery International Ltd M Private Victoria Mansfield 01932 252725 Henley Management College L Private Sandy Jelfs D34 01491 571454 Initial Style Conferences Ltd L Private Debbie Walker 0118 933 4432
Intergroup Insurance Company Ltd L Private Helen Smith 01420 566353
Kent County Cricket Club M Private Paul Millman
01227473602
Kingswood Sportscentre M Private Georgina Jupp 01268 535911 London Borough of Croydon L Public Suja Chacko 0208 760 5720 M & G Investments Ltd L Private Beverley Holloway
01245 390 520
MCCH Society Ltd M Voluntary Marianne Drawater
01622 769 161
Newhaven Community Development Association S Voluntary Amber Wells 01273 612539
Oxford Citizens Housing Association M Public Lisa Whordley Hughes 01865 782554
Slough Primary Care Trust L Public Dave Rowson 01753 635682 South Downs Health NHS Trust L Public Kate Paxton
01273 696 011 ex 3430
South Wight Housing Association M Public Fran Osman-Newbury 01983861905
Sussex Ambulance Service NHS Trust L Public John Kirby 01273 489 444
Swan Housing Group M Public Debbie Viner 01277 844721 The Martlets Hospice M Voluntary Claire Ferrari 01273273405 The Old School House Day Nursery S Private Linda Baston-Pitt 0638 507178
United Glass Ltd L Private Sheena Leimon 01279 773 112 Warden Housing Association L Private Paula Losan 020 8582 2315 West Kent Housing Association M Voluntary Christie Overy 01732 749404
Wokingham District Council L Public Maureen Vaughan-Dixon 0118 974 6073
WWF-UK L Voluntary Sarah Jones 0148341211

South West
Bournemouth Borough Council L Public David Long 01202 451132 Brunelcare L Voluntary Carol Amesbury 0117 9144 244 Channon McColl Media Ltd S Private Fiona Wilson
01285 654 777
Dartington College of Arts Ltd M Public Kathy Taylor 01803 861609
Devon & Cornwall Constabulary L Public
Chief Superintendant Bunt 01392 452215
Devon Fire and Rescue Service L Public Bruno Daniel 01752 333667
Dorset Police L Public Rachel Anderson 01305 223766 Forest of Dean District Council L Public Carol Cole 01594812630 Kennet District Council L Public Mrs. Anne Ewing 01380 734 627 Keynsham Primary School S Public Mrs Mountsteven 0117 986 2039 Lizz Clarke Marketing Ltd S Private Lizz Clarke 0845 345 6969 Northam Lodge S Voluntary Jo Duff 01237 477238
Poole Borough Council L Public Colin Hague 01202 633452 Poole Hospital NHS Trust L Public Marie Cleary
01202 442 389
Portman Building Society L Private Paul Villiers
01202 563 427
Priority Youth Housing Ltd S Voluntary Christopher Parker 01179530404
Ribston Hall High School M Public Mrs. Hillary Winter 01 452 382249
Somerset County Council L Public Virginia McCririck 01823355556 South Gloucestershire Primary Care Trust L Public
Maria Hennessy 01179566025
Stroud & Swindon Building Society L Private Sara Phelps 01453 768293
Swindon & Marlborough NHS Trust L Public Joan Potter
01793 425031
The Cornwall Enterprise Company M Public Andrea Popple 01872 322926
The Orchard Trust M Private Michele Blinman 01594 861137

West Midlands
Birmingham City Council Environmental & Consumer Services L Public John Richmond 0121 303 6178
Birmingham Civil Justice Centre M Public Susan hooper 0121 681 3493
Bromford Carinthia Housing Association Ltd L Private
Marianne Skelcher 01902 393700
County of Herefordshire District Council L Public
Amanda Attfield 01432 260251
Coventry University Enterprises Ltd M Private Joanne Dobson 02476236000
Hereford Hospital NHS Trust L Public Mr P J Mogg 01432 364051 Lear Corporation (UK) Ltd L Private Malcolm Gent
0247686255
Millenium Bright Kid Company S Private Tricia Tolley 01527 852165
MIRA Ltd L Private Beccy Garner 0247635 5610
Newman College of Higher Education M Public
Senga Whiteman 0121 476 1181
Open Care Agency S Private Lloyd Wynter 01384242056 Peace of Mind Homecare/Training Services S Private
Stephen Burrell 01952 414030
Resource Development International M Private Linda de-Lay 024 76515700
Shropshire Private Care Ltd M Private Dr. Christopher Gillie 01746 767912
Staffordshire University L Public Clare Ridgley 01782 295 842 Telford & Wrekin Council L Public Jayne Davies 01952 237729 Warwickshire County Council, Dept of Planning+Transport L Public Julia Brook 01926412811
West Midlands Fire Service L Public Zoey Fencott 0121 704 3434 West Midlands Police L Public Karen Hicklin 0121 626 5305

Yorkshire and Humberside
Age Concern Calderdale M Voluntary Tim Swift 01422 252 040 Doncaster Metropolitan Borough Council L Public Len Hull 01302 737027
East Leeds PCT M Public Sally Haylock 01133918308
East Riding of Yorkshire Council L Public Ray Ward 01482 394600
Humberside Police L Public Mrs Wink Sharman 01482 220057 Joseph Rowntree Foundation L Voluntary Janet Coles
01904 615924
Leeds & Holbeck Building Society L Private Alison Webster 01132257644
North Yorkshire Youth Offending Team S Public Steve Walker 01723341367
Norwich Union Life L Private Helen Webb 01904 684 517 Ryedale District Council L Public Marie-Ann Jackson 01653 600666
South Yorks Fire and Rescue Service L Public Maria Tonks 0114 2537349
South Yorks Metropolitan Ambulance & Paramedic Service L Public Gordon Smith 01709 827814
The Hull Nuffield Hospital M Private Mrs Jackie Richardson 01482623500
The Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust L Public Ken Baker 01132066053
The University of York L Public Julie Meadowcroft 01904 434 850 The Wilf Ward Family Trust L Voluntary Paul Mead 01723 355 378 Ufi Ltd L Private Rose Ann Innes 01142915433
Wakefield Metropolitan District Council L Public Karen Weaver 01924 306733
York St.John College L Public Julie McClelland 01904 716 620

ITEC Organisation Sector Size Contact name Tel.

All Regions
Electronic Data Systems Ltd Private L Catherine Smith 0208 754 834

East of England
Artline Solutions Ltd Private S Keith Booth 01442 260070 ASMEC Electronics Ltd Private M Sally Jackson 01462 441 155 BAE Systems Operations Ltd Private L Anne Perry 01752722271 Davin Opptronics Ltd Private M Nigel Jinks 01923 206961 Focom Ltd Private S Sarah Glavin 01442 200000
Sigmer Ltd Private S Niall McCrae 0870 870 8737

London
e-Consulting.Net Private S Julie Bamo 02072632888

North West
Complementary Technologies Ltd Private S Barry Lowe 01942 851 800 Healthwise Helpline Private M Andrew Mackey 0151 703 7771 Mancos Computers Ltd Private M Margaret Roberts 0161 946 0000 PSE Ltd Private S Eleanor Walsh 01282 877 031
Zetex Plc Private L Ken Clitherd 0161 622 4811

Scotland
Castle Computer Services (Edinburgh) Private S
Neil Campbell 0131 317 1314
McLaren Ltd Private M Fiona Wilson 0141 227 7600
Pointer Ltd Private M Carol Harkins 0141 564 2538

South East
Cavendish Communication Private S Nicky Walker 01273 615600 Clock Ltd Private S Syd Nadim 01923 224409
Digital Steps Private S Leigh Tarver 01483 469 480 TA Group Ltd trading as Advantage Business Group Private M Cathy Hunsley 01252 738 517

South West
Taylor Made Computer Solutions Private S Alison Taylor 01329 239 900

PREVIOUS CHALLENGE FUND WINNERS: CASE STUDY

With a staff turnover rate running at 30%, Kinderquest, a nationwide workplace nursery provider, looked to work-life balance practices to help solve this difficult business problem. Denise Wren, Managing Director of the Northampton based firm, explained: "The problem is an increasingly tight labour market in an expanding business sector. In addition to this, the sector has traditionally always had a high rate of turnover so recruitment and retention have always been major issues for us."

Kinderquest set out to solve this problem by giving more flexibility, and ultimately more power of decision, to local nursery mangers. The process began with a series of manger workshops to discuss the staffing issues and develop ownership and responsibility for solving these problems. At the centre of this was the concept of flexibility, as Debbie explains, "Many of our managers needed to shift their focus away from what potential recruits could not do - work full time for example - and concentrate of what sills and talents they could bring to the organisation."

Nursery Manager Ginny Middleton was impressed with the project: "We hadn't realised that senior management trusted us enough to let us go on and things differently. None of this was forbidden before, but I guess too many assumptions were made about what was possible. The flexible options have given us the opportunity to recruit a more diverse workforce, for instance older people with different things to offer. And now even I am working four days a week - this was just not an options we had considered for nursery mangers before."

To date, Kinderquest has seen good results. "It's too early to be conclusive" says Denise, "but anecdotal evidence suggest that retention is much better, with turnover down to around 18-20%. The project has transformed the way nursery managers work alongside reduced turnover, we are seeing more energy and enthusiasm which is fantastic."

For further information on the case study above or details of more national, regional and sector case studies, please contact Sarah Schofield on 020 7839 4321 or 07958 734686 or email
sarah.schofield@fishburn-hedges.co.uk

Press Enquiries: 020 7215 5979/5966
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Department of Trade and Industry 1 Victoria Street London SW1H 0ET Fax 020-7222 4382