S C O T L A N D

THE MAGAZINE FOR MEARS GROUP PEOPLE

IN THIS ISSUE

PAGE 04Care ConferenceCare that Counts

PAGE 08Mears FundayAt the M&D’s Theme Park!

PAGE 19Red ThreadSay what you see survey 2017

MEARS MATTERSCONTENTS

ContentsWELCOME 03

BUSINESS NEWS 04 - 06

FRIENDS 4U 07

MEARS FUNDAY 08

CIH MANCHESTER 09

MEARS HEROES 10 - 11

HELPING HANDS 11

WHAT CARE MEANS TO ME 12

EMPLOYEE COMMUNITY BENEFIT FUND 12

MEARS ARTICLES 13

FIVE-A-SIDE FOOTBALL 14

MILLION MAKERS 15

BUSINESS ARTICLES 16 - 17

TRADESWOMEN 18 - 19

RED THREAD 20

WE MADE THE FINALS! 21

SOCIAL VALUES 22 - 25

COMPLIMENTS 26

MEARS FOUNDATION 27 - 28

LONG SERVICE AWARDS 29

LEARNING SPOTLIGHT 30

Welcome

to your Mears Matters

Welcome to this edition of Mears Matters – 2017 seems to be flying by and as with all years at Mears, we have seen lots happening both on the housing and care front.

Housing has been much in the news this year both for the right and the wrong reasons.

Our focus is always on service and safety and it is a real positive to see an increasingly consistent and good level of performance across our repairs branches.

Housing Management is providing much of our growth, with Mears providing a wide range of innovative solutions providing people with a secure, well maintained home. Read more about one of these innovations on page 16.

We are always looking to recruit the very best people, and an innovative project looking at how the housing sector can attract more women into the maintenance sector concluded in August. It’s an impressive piece of work, providing unprecedented insight into the size of the problem as well as proving real help and solutions, including starting at grassroots level by educating teachers and schoolchildren – read more on pages 17-18.

Care service quality is also our main driver, indeed our cover focuses on the Outstanding regulatory rating given to our service in Bristol. This is a brilliant achievement by the local team and we hope to see more branches replicate this.

Unfortunately over the last 12 months, we have had to hand back some care contracts, where it was simply not possible to pay our staff a fair rate. We now have a much more sustainable care business and we want to thank everyone who has helped us achieve this.

As well as investing in people, we are also investing in technology, with the recent introduction of our new HR system called Workday as well as continued improvement in our core operational systems. As always, we would very much welcome your feedback

We hope you enjoy this issue of Mears Matters – which you can either read on the go, or in branch. If you have any comments, or you would like to send us a story for a future edition, please contact internal.comms@mearsgroup.co.uk

The Executive TeamDavid Miles, Alan Long, Andrew Smith

In this edition, we cover some of the biggest stories and topics currently happening across our business.

If you have a great story to share, or just want to highlight more news and features from your area please get in touch with our Internal Communications colleagues at internal.comms@mearsgroup.co.uk

MEARS MATTERSWELCOME

Care Conference Care that Counts!

NEWSBUSINESS

MEARS MATTERSBUSINESS NEWS

Our Care Conference held at Drayton Manor was themed on ‘Care that Counts’, underpinned by Trust, Training, Teamwork and Technology.

During the day, delegates heard from colleagues on a range of areas including:

• Review of strategy, progress updates and feedback from frontline staff, from Bernadette Walsh.

• Quality, Compliance and Inspection, from Steve Quinn

• Apprenticeships and Training, from Heather Hughes and Lara-Jo Morrison (Lifetime Partnerships)

• The Future of Rostering, from Sue Weller

• Care Recruitment – the objectives and processes, from Scott Haber

• Information Governance, from Michael Read

A few words from Bernadette Walsh, Chief Operating Officer for Care:

“Thank you to everyone who attended and contributed to our very successful care conference. The input acrosss the teams and support services was an outstanding example of a one team approach to delivering on our strategic objectives and driving business improvement.

“There were a number of commitments made at our conference as set out below and it is encouraging to see positive inroads being made on all fronts. I will continue to undertake care worker surgeries and feedback, so that we can remain focused on what matters.

“I want to thank you all for your contribution and ongoing commitment to achieving our shared goals.”

Jo, Group HR Director, talk us through some important changes with Workday – and how it will change the way we work.

“We are pleased to report a successful launch of Workday on 24 July 2017. The six month deployment was always going to be a tight window to implement a completely new HR System across the whole Group, but thanks to all your help and support, as a team, we delivered on time!

“Over the next few months we will be ‘fine tuning’ some of the data that has been loaded and beginning to help you extract information from the system.”

Important Changes:

• Payslips: One of the key changes will be electronic payslips. Paper copies will stop at the end of the year. Please make sure that, by then, you are online and accessing Workday, so that you know where to go! If you do have any queries about this, then please speak to your digital champion in the first instance.

• Holiday Booking: Hopefully, you will have already used Workday for booking your leave. From January 2018, you will be able to book holidays only through Workday.

It’s really easy, but your digital champion will be able to help if you need some guidance.

“It has been really great to see so many photos uploaded onto Workday. If you haven’t loaded yours, please do, as we need everyone’s on the system as soon as possible.

“It doesn’t stop with the pictures, you can update your own personal information at ay time.

• Get Connected! You can find out ‘who is who’ within the company, and get colleague contact information, along with their reporting structure.

• You can access Workday anywhere! Remember, you don’t have to use a company device to access Workday, just load the app onto any android or apple device, and get instant access using your login credentials.

“This year, we are going to use Workday to record all our appraisals. This will provide a great opportunity to ensure all our goals and ambitions are linked together in support of the Group. It will also offer huge improvements to capture and utilise information which will help us manage performance more effectively within the Group.

“These areas are a starting point, and there is so much more to come from Workday in the coming months. Our aim is to introduce new elements and analysis on a regular basis, but in a time frame that allows everybody to absorb the information available.

“Thank you all for your help!”

If you have any queries, or would like to know more, please contact your Digital Champion or visit the Workday Community.

Workday Updates

MEARS MATTERSBUSINESS NEWS

INTERIM RESULTS for the six months to 30 June 2017

methods. That initial round of branch closures was commenced and substantially completed in the second half of the 2016 financial year. We have continued to place significant emphasis on maintaining a portfolio of contracts that can provide clear and sustainable margins. Further closures have been made during the first half of 2017, predominantly in the Midlands and London region, covering a further 10% of revenues. Given these closures in the last twelve months, which account for around 30% of Care revenues, it is encouraging to note the strong progress made in securing new orders at higher fee rates such that the Care division has reported a reduction in revenues of just 10% in the period.

• The shortage of available care workers remains one of the biggest challenges in Care. Every Care branch needs to focus upon improving retention and recruitment. We continue to push various recruitment initiatives including the reward for introducing a friend to the Group.

• Whilst generating a profit is important for any business, it is more important to manage ones cash. In today’s economic environment, this is more important than ever. That is why we place so much focus on good working capital management – billing our WIP and collecting our debt. Our cash performance for the last twelve months has been one

of our poorer outcomes, converting 70% of profit into cash (2016: 91%). We will inevitably receive some criticism from investors. This will remain a key area of focus moving forward.

• The Group’s Order book now stands at £2.8 billion, reducing from £3.1 billion reported in December 2016. Our new contract bidding performance in 2017 has been really quiet. In Housing, our conversion rate for what we tendered was slightly below our historic one-in-three historic average. It was disappointing to miss out on strategic priorities such as City West and Slough. However the bid pipeline contains some exciting opportunities which gives us cause for optimism. In Care, we had a good year in both the conversion rate and the £ quantum tendered with notable successes in Norfolk and Cambridgeshire which are both ten year contracts. We remain highly selective in terms of what we bid for.

• Most importantly, we should highlight that none of the achievements of Mears over recent years could have been achieved without the continued commitment and energy from the Mears team. The success is underpinned by the quality, professionalism and loyalty displayed by the Group’s staff. We hope to report a successful second half year in six months’ time.

• We announced that the total Group turnover for the 6 months to June 2017 was £471m, an increase from £466m in 2016. This increase was entirely ‘organic growth’ which means it comes from revenues which we have tendered and won ourselves (as opposed to acquired revenues).

• The Housing numbers are fairly solid. Given the full impact of the new contracts mobilised in 2016, we reported revenue growth of around 3%. We reported an increased Housing margins to 5.2% (2016: 4.8%) reflecting the fact that we have had few mobilisations in 2017 which are typically quite costly. As in any low margin business, we still need to control costs tightly.

• The first half year has seen a number of demobilisations; our Gateshead, Tamworth, Midland Heart (response), Town & Country and Notting Hill contracts have coming to an end. We have few Housing contracts coming up for re-bid the next 24 months which gives a period of stability.

• In our half year statement, we spoke of the tragic events at Grenfell Tower. Understandably, a number of our clients’ attentions have been diverted towards reviewing the commissioning and safety practices at their properties. These unexpected events will inevitably impact the timing of our planned workloads as clients focus on ensuring their housing portfolios are safe and fully compliant. Consequently,

we have reduced our forecasts and now anticipate Housing revenues of £800m in 2017 against an original expectation of circa £830m. In fact, we are likely to report lower revenues in the second half of 2017 than we did in the first half which is unusual for Mears. This reduction in forecasts is typically viewed negatively by shareholders and it would not be surprising if we see the Mears share price fall today. However the share price on a single day is actually not that important, and the Group remains well placed in both its Housing and Care markets.

• On a positive note, the delays referred to above, are expected to be temporary given the contractual nature of the work, and the order book is not affected.

• Care revenues for the six months were £68.7m (2016: £76.6m), a reduction of only 10% reflecting the significant progress made in rebalancing the Group’s portfolio of Care contracts so as to focus upon those which have a better mix of longevity, certainty of spend and price. As previously announced, during the second half of 2016, following a detailed contract by contract review of charge rates and care worker pay rates, the Group commenced a restructuring of the Care division. This resulted in a reduction in Care revenues of some 20%, a significant proportion of which arose within our North region, which had the lowest charge rates and traditional procurement

NEWSBUSINESS

Group Customer and Communications

TWO BECOME ONE

MEARS MATTERSBUSINESS NEWS

With Stuart Wilson (Group Head of Communications) leaving the business, we have merged the two central teams -Communications and Customer Success Teams to become one.

Gary Jackson has been appointed as Group Director of Communications and Customer Success, who will now cover Communications, Marketing, Customer Experience, Social Value and Red Thread.

To make it easy for you to contact the right person, we thought we would introduce you to the key ‘go to’ people in the team.

We are working on several exciting projects including our Brand New Website, A Mears Connect Mobile App, our Interactive Customer Journey Map, our Opti channel solution for Customer Feedback and upgrades to our Social Value Calculator and Insight Tool.

If you have any questions about any of the above, please contact the Communications and Customer Success Team on C&CS@mearsgroup.co.uk

New Care Contract Win with Lancashire County Council

We are delighted to announce that our care branches of Rossendale and Fleetwood have been awarded contracts with Lancashire County Council for the provision of Homecare for older people and people with physical disabilities. We have been successfully awarded the maximum lots for this contract – delivering 6867 per week hours of care per week.

We will also provide approximately 785 hrs per week of Homecare for People with Learning Disabilities and Autism, which is a significant increase from what we currently provide.

The bid was for new business, however all existing work will also transfer into the new framework.

Victoria Lockheart, Regional Director, “We are delighted to have won this contract, it is a testament to our team’s hard work and fantastic level of service. We look forward to continuing our partnership with Lancashire County Council.”

The contract is due to commence in November 2017 for a period of 4 years.

Congratulations to the local operational teams and bid team for their achievement.

NEWSBUSINESS

FRIENDS 4U

ARTICLESMEARS

Mears Facilities Management Tannochside and West Lothian branches teamed up with assistance from Mears Scotland to provide a safe and secure disabled access garden area for a local Friends 4U group.

The Friends 4U Group was started by a local group of carers who wanted to bring together adults in the local community with disabilities and learning difficulties to provide a safe environment for all to socialise and take part in activities.

The group utilise a local community centre in Carfin to provide fun activities and daily lunches to the attendees. They are completely self-funded and raise money through their attendees and carers creating crafts such as necklaces and keyrings to sell to the public.

Last year they started their wheelchair accessible garden with help from donations and workforce from Mears client, North Lanarkshire Council. The Council provided slabbing and raised planting beds suitable for wheelchair users. The carers running the group needed help to turn this starting point into the garden that they envisioned for their members to grow their own plants, herbs and vegetables in a safe and secure garden that the group members and their carers can use even outside of the group times.

With help from a £250 donation from the Mears Foundation and materials provided by Jewson, Buildbase and Greenside Garden Centre, we were able to fully achieve the outcome they desired.

Electricians, plumbers and apprentices from our West Lothian office attended the site to fit security lights, an outdoor water tap and outdoor electricity point. Mears Scotland fencing team joined in to put up the 6ft fence and garden shed, and members of our FM head office got involved with the cleaning up and preparing the garden area for use.

Thanks to the donation from the Mears Foundation and the generosity of the local garden centre on the day, we were also able to fill each of the planting beds and provide a variety of flowers and herbs to start the group off with their planting plans.

The Friends 4U Group are now able to use the garden area as intended for wheelchair users to plant and grow flowers and herbs. The Group believe this is a garden that encourages the users to work and achieve goals independently and provides a safe environment for them to socialise.

Mears FM Tannochside and Mears West Lothian Team Up for ‘Friends 4U’

MEARS MATTERS

MEARS FUNDAY SCOTLAND

MEARS MATTERSMEARS FUNDAY

We had a fantastic day at our Mears Funday in Scotland at the M&D’s Theme Park!

It was the perfect occasion for all our employees from Scotland to get together with family, friends and colleagues, for a day full of thrills, fun and laughter.

HERE IS WHAT OUR COLLEAGUES HAD TO SAY!

“The kids love it! It’s been brilliant, especially the way everything has been set up.

It’s perfect!”

Alana Jane, Nurseplus

“Absolutely excellent, especially for the kids. It has been very well organised.”

Owen Barry, Coatbridge

“It’s been brilliant. We really enjoyed everything – especially bacon baps! This is the first Mears Funday that I have been

to – and it’s really worth the long journey!”

Michelle Fell, Dunoon

“It’s loads of fun, there is so much to do! It’s been

a fantastic day for all!”

Robert Cochraine, Coatbridge

“We had a great time! The kids love it – we couldn’t get

them out of the sandpit!”

Douglas Wilkie, Coatbridge

MEARS MATTERSCIH MANCHESTER

CIH ManchesterAs the leaders in the housing sector, Mears had a major presence at Europe’s largest housing event of the year - The Chartered Institute of Housing (CIH) housing event in Manchester! Here is a glimpse of CIH 2017!

Mea

rs H

eroe

sMEARS MATTERSMEARS HEROES

Sharon Ross and June Ferguson, our colleagues from Mears Care Clackmannanshire went above and beyond their call of duty to save the life of service user Mr. Dawson.

Sharon and June provide double up care to Mr John Dawson who is 69 years old, and lives at home with his wife Margaret. He is a diabetic, who has had a stroke previously, leaving him with a right sided weakness and epilepsy.

When they arrived at the Mr. Dawson’s home to attend day care, they found that he had overslept and was just getting up on their arrival which was very unlike him.

Sharon and June went straight to Mr Dawson to wake him, but he was unresponsive and found his breathing to be very laboured. They knew that the service user had really tickly feet so tried tickling them, but he continued to remain unresponsive but still breathing – they called 111 immediately.

June took instructions from operator and relayed to Sharon who was advised to get Mr. Dawson flat on his back with his head tilted and then to listen carefully to breathing and when he didn’t take a breath to immediately start compressions, and to continue to do so until told to stop. They continued to follow the instructions till the ambulance arrived.

When the paramedics arrived and took over, they said that Sharon and June had done an excellent job, and both had played a vital part in providing emergency first aid!

Mears Carer, Sharon Ross, said, “When I look back and think of our actions, I believe that the training and ongoing support from Mears has been absolutely vital in helping me deal with situations exactly like this, and the support I got after this from the management team was just so sincere and heart-warming.

“I couldn’t have done it without June Ferguson, she is such a professional and a pleasure to work alongside. The best outcome from this though is for Mr. Dawson to continue on the road to recovery and return home.”

Susan McCormack, Service Manager at Clackmannanshire, said, “I think that the most impressive thing that anyone can do in their role is to strive to continually improve and go out of their way.

“Both Sharon and June consistently demonstrate this in their roles with regular and positive feedback from both service users and their family members, so it isn’t surprising at all to hear of their recent actions and their modest reactions to this.

“I am in no doubt at all that their quick thinking and actions saved Mr Dawson’s life. Both Sharon and June are a definite asset to the Clackmannanshire team, and are so deserving of recognition for going above and beyond.”

Well done to our Mears Heroes – Sharon Ross and June Ferguson!

Neil Claxton and Matthew Bell, our colleagues from Scotland went above and beyond their call of duty to help a tenant who collapsed at the property they were visiting to test the electricals.

Mrs. Mcghee said that when she opened the door to the operatives, she felt unwell, and mentioned it to Neil and Matthew, she then collapsed in the hall.

When they picked the lady up, and placed her on the couch, they realised that she was struggling to breathe. Neil and Matthew immediately called an ambulance for the tenant to be taken into hospital.

Mrs.Mcghee later called into the office, and said that she cannot thank the Mears operatives enough, for their quick thinking had saved her life. She said that she had had a heart attack, and if Neil and Matthew had not come to the door at the time and helped her, the outcome would have been very different as she was in the property by herself!

Mrs. Mcghee has just been released from hospital, and we will complete the works to assist her recovery. She said that she cannot thanks Mears enough for our assistance.

Well done to Neil Claxton and Matthew Bell – our Mears Heroes!

HEROES FROM CLACKMANNANSHIRE

MEARS HEROESNEIL CLAXTON AND MATTHEW BELL

Mea

rs H

eroe

sHelping Hands

Our colleague Robert Johnston from Mears Thenue was a true Mears Hero when he helped a lady who collapsed in front of his van in Main Street Bridgeton.

Rob was in his van when he noticed the lady while she was crossing the road, and it seemed like she was taking a funny turn, and she then collapsed in front of Rob’s van.

He quickly got out to assist her alongside another workman in the area, and together they placed her in the recovery position, and covered her to keep her comfortable.

The lady had burst her head open during the fall, and was initially unconscious, but she came round shortly after. Rob phoned for an ambulance and waited with the lady until the ambulance came and took her to hospital.

Rob said, “I was only doing what anyone else would have done. It could have been my mother or aunt. Everyone who assisted was fantastic”

Well done to our Mears Hero – Robert Johnston

The Re-Tune Project in Glasgow was set up to help ex-servicemen and refugees reclaim their potential by making musical instruments from discarded wooden objects.

On Mon 31st July, it was destroyed by vandals who smashed the windows of the workshop, spray painted the walls and destroyed all the work of its members.

One of our employees Kenny Fitzpatrick, who is also an ex-serviceman, read about the damage in the newspapers and on the Scottish News, and asked if Mears could help.

Kenny visited David, the founder of the project to assess the damage to discuss if Mears would be able to do anything for them. David said that what they really needed was protection for the windows, and they had been unable to afford grills but had been fundraising to buy them.

Kenny contacted Mears subcontractors Greenock Glazing and Buildbase who also agreed that this was a worthwhile project and they would be happy to donate materials.

Mears operatives replaced the glass on the windows, renewed an internal door and supplied and fitted grills for the windows which should make the building more secure against vandalism.

Glazier Alan McDonald also held a fundraiser in his local pub by organising a music night and raised over £1,000!

ROBERT JOHNSTON

MEARS STEP IN TO HELP AFTER VANDALS WRECKED VETERAN’S CHARITY WORKSHOP

MEARS HEROES HELPING HANDSMEARS MATTERS MEARS MATTERS

Before she left, we asked Charlotte to share some of her thoughts and experiences.

Hi Charlotte, can you tell us a little bit about working with us, and what your job entailed?

I was employed as a support worker and every day was different, with different challenges that I coped with. All of my clients were lovely people who became friends. I once worked in the retail trade which was sometimes boring. This job was never boring and was a rewarding career.

What is it like working for Mears?

I have met a lot of lovely people (clients) over my 16 years of service. I did not feel like I was working a lot of the time but visiting friends who just needed a bit of support with chores. Sadly many of them passed away over the years but I will always remember them and have great memories.

Would you recommend the role to others?

It is a very satisfying job to do, you always feel that you have done something worthwhile at the end of your day.

I started with the Company in 2001, and thought I was going to do a year but I have now finished my role in 2017, 16 years later, and I think that says it all.

It is definitely a worthwhile career to have.

Craig Bunyan, HR Administrator from Mears Care Alva, said, “Charlotte was a reliable and flexible Support Worker for many years, her commitment to her role and the many service users she supported is unquestionable. Charlotte was a fantastic role model to all new and existing staff, and will be missed in her well-deserved retirement.”

What Care Means to Me Charlotte Zerbinati, from Mears Care Alva worked in us for 16 years, and retired this September.

WHAT CARE MEANS TO ME EMPLOYEE COMMUNITY BENEFIT FUNDMEARS MATTERS MEARS MATTERS

MEARS ARTICLES

ARTICLESMEARS

Exceptional service“Local school children and people in the ECHS had also been involved in the ‘paint pals’ project, which involved coming to the service to complete art projects together. Other projects included a volunteer shop that was held at the service two days a week.”

The inspector noted that “the range of social and community projects available for people to become part of reflected a significant effort on the part of the registered manager, staff and people using the service. This was an exceptional aspect of the service and greatly enhanced the lives of people receiving support.”

The Bristol Care Manager, Sue Appoo, said she and team were delighted to have received this rating and had worked very hard for a number of years to go from ‘Good’ to become ‘Outstanding’.

Sus said: “We achieved this by using many methods, such as person-centred planning, but also finding that special little something that would mean the world of difference to the person and change their life for the better.”

Bristol Care’s manager Sue Appoo shares her top tips for managerial success…

Never say no 1. Never say ‘no’ to new ideas or ways of working – when colleagues, clients, service users, or anyone comes to me with ideas, I try to find a way to make it happen, even when it’s easier to say ‘no’.

2. Look for the little things that can make a big difference to someone – things that aren’t necessarily in the contract.

3. Use all the skills that your team have, not just what’s required of them – if people are pianists or artists or accountants, using their skills gives them extra job satisfaction. The same goes for service users – we have an ex-CEO who I run problems and ideas past, which is useful for me and satisfying for her.

4. Build trusting relationships with everyone and anyone – it takes time, but I’m now seen as an expert who pulls no punches, so I have clients calling for advice on all kinds of problems and ideas.

5. Deliver all you’re asked to deliver, but do everything you can to make people’s lives better – if it’s important to that person, then it’s important to me.

‘Outstanding’ CQC Rating’ for Mears Care BristolIn July, our Bristol care service received an Outstanding rating from the Care Quality Commission (CQC) – a remarkable achievement as just 2% of all adult social care services in England have received this top rating since 2014 in 33,000 inspections. So, how did our Outstanding team achieve this?

On the face of it, our care service in Bristol is unassuming. It mainly provides care to 47 people living in an extra care housing scheme (ECHS), where elderly people or those with mental or physical disabilities live in their own flats in the complex with Mears care staff on site to help them live as independently as possible. The service also provides home care services to 75 people in the local community. Both services are commissioned by Bristol City Council.

But as the CQC inspectors wrote in their report, the Bristol team “often went above and beyond their contractual obligations”. Or as one resident put it: “Coming to ECHS has changed my life”.

The inspectors were particularly impressed with how the team organised events and activities to combat loneliness and isolation, saying the scheme “had become a focal point for the local area and this enhanced the quality of life for all concerned”.

Innovative interaction The inspectors report noted how the residents “were empowered to take responsibility and make decisions about aspects of their lives within the scheme”. This included encouraging them to apply for a National Lottery grant to fund social and community projects. The application was successful and funded a community open day as well as a week of music events, including lessons in ballroom dancing.

The scheme is also taking part in an innovative project with the University of Bristol, using specially-developed apps to record memories and life histories, using audio, photos and text, as well as helping co-design engaging community spaces where older people can interact with evocative objects to aid memory and story-telling.

The inspectors said: “We saw the space that had been created within the scheme and this included memorabilia items such as old telephones, a record player and LPs. The registered manager told us the space had been used to invite local school children to come in and work with people on electronic tablets. Through this project, people had been supported to make books about themselves and their lives.

MEARS MATTERS

“Mears are setting an excellent example for how care can be delivered. I’d like to congratulate all of the staff on their Outstanding CQC rating. The CQC report highlights many areas of good practice and it is clear that Mears have shown a real commitment to going above and beyond to improve the quality of life for the people they support.”

Cllr Helen Holland, Cabinet Member for Adult Social Care at Bristol City Council.

FIVE-A-SIDE FOOTBALL MEARS MATTERS

We held our annual Five-A-Side football tournaments this summer!

The Southern and Central event were hosted at St George’s Park, training camp of the England national team, and the Northern game was held at the Manchester City Football Academy.

After some tough competition – we have the winners!

LEEDS ABCDE FC WERE THE WINNERS OF THE NORTHERN FIVE-A-SIDE TOURNAMENT

JOES MINIONS FROM CANTERBURY WINNERS OF THE MEARS FIVE-A-SIDE TOURNAMENT MIDLAND & SOUTH

Mears Group Five-A-Side Football Tournaments

Don’t miss the Mears Million Makers Charity Dinner at Drayton Manor this year!

This fantastic event organised by the Smile Makers for the Prince’s Trust will be held on Thursday 12 October which includes a Dinner Dance, and is a fantastic networking opportunity for you to meet with colleagues.

Bring your suppliers, family or invite your team along as a thank you! You can enjoy a three course dinner, followed by live music from Geoff Mullholland (X Factor finalist) and a chance to play the casino tables, then let your hair down and dance the night away with our DJ.

Tables are priced at £700 for a table of 10 guests (individual tickets are £70)

Numbers are limited so don’t hesitate to buy your tickets.

Please register your interest by sending an email to customer.success@mearsgroup.co.uk, and we will respond with all the information you require in order to secure your ticket.

This week offers each of us a brilliant opportunity to raise awareness of the customer experience within our teams and offers ideas of how we can continually ‘Place the Customer at the Heart’ each day.

NCSW 2017 is a fun, uplifting and interactive week with branches setting up events across the business to celebrate National Customer Service Week at Mears.

Working in collaboration with ICS (Institute of Customer Service, we are pleased to share with you the following daily activities you could run to observe NCSW.

NCSW is a great way to engage with your teams and colleagues, motivate, inspire and recognise what great customer service looks like. It allows us to increase our knowledge of exceptional service and delight our customers, raising standards along the way.

For more details and resources, please visit the National Customer Service Community (https://apps.ce.collabserv.com/communities/service/html/communityoverview?communityUuid=2f5759da-bbda-4bf7-846a-34d9cfc058c9)

YOU ARE INVITED!Million Makers Charity Dinner

MEARS MATTERSMILLION MAKERS

Get set for National Customer Service Week (NCSW) 2017!

MEARS MATTERSBUSINESS ARTICLES

ArticlesBringing Empty Properties back into useIncreasingly, clients are asking us to convert redundant office buildings into residential use, or to bring back high cost void properties, which can’t justify public funding . The latter can include property in a regeneration area, which without our investment, may sit empty for some time.

Mears Housing Management (MHM), use private sector investment to refurbish these homes and bring them back into use for the prevention or relief of homelessness and for use as temporary accommodation.

The benefits of using this model could include:

• Reduced cost for security

• Reduction in vandalism/anti-social behaviour

• Reduction in high cost bed and breakfast accommodation

• Council tax income generation

How does this work?

This model has been designed to bring empty properties back into use through private sector investment.

By using our existing range of rental schemes which are focussed on homeless prevention cases to recover our initial investment over time. This arrangement generates a guaranteed income stream for the Local Authorities / Registered Provider as well as providing a range of benefits for the local community and the environment.

Tenants “Drop In” to see usMears Housing Management (MHM) worked in partnership with the London Borough of Newham to hold two drop in sessions in local community centres for tenants in Canning Town and Custom House.

This was a great opportunity for tenants to meet staff from MHM and Newham and to talk about issues they have with the impending major regeneration plans Newham has for the area, as well as informing us of outstanding repairs and queries with rent statements.

Over two evenings Lisa Newton, MHM’s new Customer and Community Officer along with James Cryer, MHM Repairs Manager, and Liane James, MHM’s Portfolio Manager for the area, listened to over 30 tenants taking down as much information as possible and relaying this back to the service delivery teams to take forward.

There appeared to be recurring trends from tenants on issues such as lack of communication and follow up and repairs taking a long time to complete. As a result of this feedback, we will be developing monthly operational meetings with the local authority to ensure we are improving our service delivery along with our communication methods.

Lisa Newton said, “It’s been great to meet tenants face to face and to hear about what they are facing. Some have had some very difficult experiences and it’s therefore essential for us to show and demonstrate that we are listening to people and more importantly acting on the feedback they are giving us. Following the success of these initial drop in sessions I intend to hold weekly sessions so that we are more visible to local people and can respond more quickly to their needs. I will also be engaging in outreach with tenants to build up a picture of what else is going on in their lives and how we can best support them”.

Some of the tenants had not received any information about the regeneration in Newham for a long time and it was great that this was available to them as well as the opportunity to talk to colleagues from Newham about re-housing and finding employment.

We hope this is the start of a much closer working relationship between Mears Housing Management and the London Borough of Newham.

ARTICLES

THE SCHOOLS TOOLKIT

MEARS MATTERS

In 2016, Mears secured funding from CITB to support the continued work and further develop the Tradeswomen’s ideas. A Schools Toolkit was developed which the Ambassadors deliver in a classroom environment to children and young people, supporting Key stages 2, 3 and 4.

The Schools Toolkit:

• Is linked to the National Curriculum

• Enhances career talks by engaging learners in trade inspired activities

• Gives girls and young women information, advice and guidance on careers in Social Housing Building Maintenance.

• Includes images which show women working in the trades to gain the interest of girls

• Can readily be used with boys and young men.

The Toolkit is delivered in schools and communities as part of the Mears Social Value Strategy.

Mears’ Tradeswomen attended a second event in early 2017 where they were updated on the progress of the project and the development of their ideas as well as being introduced to the Schools Toolkit. The Tradeswomen enjoyed two days practicing presentation skills and exploring strategies on supporting learners

Mears Ambassador, Victoria Naylor (Electrician): “I am keen to get involved in using the Schools Toolkit and hopefully inspire girls in particular to choose a career in maintenance”.

Jane Nelson, Group Executive Director of Mears: “It isn’t enough for companies to send tradeswomen into schools to talk to girls about a career in the trades. We have to equip our tradeswomen with the skills to get the message across and give them the tools to use that will capture the interest and imagination of girls and all pupils and students – and then we need to go back to the same schools and do it again, year after year.”

Top Tip: Don’t assume that all tradeswomen are confident and comfortable going into schools to act as a role model - some will need support. It is hard to keep the attention of a class of schoolchildren and get key messages across - help tradeswomen to do this by providing presentation skills and confidence building techniques - and use the Mears Tool Kit.

Mears Group have worked collaboratively on this project with:

The Guinness Partnership, Sovereign, CIH, NHMF, Nottingham City Homes, United Welsh, Construction Youth Trust, National Federation of ALMOs, Women into Construction, WISH, NHF.

What they said…

Bob Blackman MP, Sponsor of the Homelessness Reduction Bill, said:

“There is an acute shortage of suitable housing and far too many people ending up in situations which can lead to them becoming homeless. That is why I have been working to significantly reform England’s homelessness legislation through the Homelessness Reduction Bill.

“This Government is committed to helping families and the most vulnerable when they become homeless and with temporary emergency accommodation in such short supply interim schemes such as Marston Court in Ealing are providing a much needed lifeline for many.”

Councillor Jasbir Anand, cabinet member for housing at Ealing Council, said:

“Like all London boroughs, Ealing is facing a massive housing crisis and we believe that some radical thinking is needed. The Marston Court development is just one of a number of projects that we are undertaking to repurpose underused brownfield sites and transform them into assets that benefit our local community in as cost-effective way as possible.”

Offering innovative emergency accommodationHomelessness remains a problem for many thousands of people across the UK, as local authorities struggle with a lack of available housing.

Increasingly, local authorities find they have no alternative but to house people without homes in unsuitable accommodation – figures show that at the in 2016, each night over 75,500 households stayed in temporary accommodation and 6,900 families in B&Bs.

So what’s the answer?

One solution now being offered by Housing Management is the use of prefabricated, re-purposed shipping containers.

The first such project finished in April in Ealing, west London, on a site previously occupied by largely disused 1970s garage blocks, which attracted fly tipping and anti-social activity.

After just 14 weeks, a new development of 34 fully-furnished apartments – 10 studios, 16 one-bed and 8 two-bed apartments – was ready to house 72 tenants in desperate need of a safe, clean and comfortable home.

The use of temporary modular accommodation – to give it its proper name – is an innovative approach to development and land use, particularly useful in cramped urban settings, and features moveable and re-usable parts.

The Marston Court development is a joint project between Ealing Council and Mears Housing Management, with QED Sustainable Urban Developments and CargoTek.

Articles

Only 1% of the construction trade workforce in the UK are women. Less than 2% of trade apprentices are female. We want to do better than that at Mears and we want to support the social housing sector to do better, too.

We believe that it is important to build a diverse workforce which represents the communities we serve.

Mears’ Tradeswomen into Maintenance Project is a CITB supported project which aims to increase the number of female trade operatives and apprentices in Mears and throughout the Social Housing Building Maintenance sector.

The Project will produce: A Research Report, Online Schools Toolkit, Taster Courses, Best Practice Guide, Resources Booklet and Legal Guidance.

We have made sound progress on researching the barriers women face when entering and sustaining employment within the sector and built case studies on how women have achieved and progressed into higher level positions.

Our Schools Toolkit was launched at the NHMF Maintenance Conference this year and was met with great interest. The Schools Toolkit will be used in Schools by our Ambassador Tradeswomen to raise awareness of opportunities within the Social Housing Building Maintenance sector. The Toolkit includes trade inspired activities in Plumbing, Electrical, Carpentry and Painting and Decorating supporting Key Stages 2, 3 and 4 and is referenced to the National Curriculum covering Maths, English, Science and Design Technology.

Tradeswomen will also share with students their experience of working in trades and reasons why they entered into this non-traditional area of work.

Mears’ Tradeswomen said:

“I wanted a job where I wasn’t in the same place every day and love seeing an end product to my work”.

Heather Newton, Electrician

“Being an Electrician is not a stereotypical job for females but it is certainly one that women can do and there are plenty of routes for progression”.

Victoria Dempsey, Electrician

“It is something different and interesting and enables me to be out and about meeting new people”.

Michaela Walsh, Heating Engineer

Thirty of our Tradeswomen Ambassadors, colleagues and external partners attended a two day Ambassador Training event which successfully introduced them to the Schools Toolkit and how to present this in a classroom environment. The benefits of using the Schools Toolkit not only supports recruitment and raising awareness of the industry but also includes delivering the Mears Social Value Strategy.

In April 2017, we continued our development opportunity for Tradeswomen with the introduction of a Mentor Programme. The first seven Tradeswomen have completed a Level 3 Award in Teaching and Training delivered by Mears Learning. The course aims to develop skills in leading and mentoring other tradeswomen when working with schools and supporting Mears Apprentices.

Mears Learning will continue to offer further courses throughout the year to ensure that Mears Tradeswomen across the country receive the opportunity for personal development.

The project has delivered six Taster Courses across the country giving women a chance to learn trade skills and give them an insight into employment and training opportunities in Social Housing Building Maintenance.

We have worked with several organisations to deliver taster courses ncluding:

November 2016 – Celtic Horizons / United Welsh HA

November 2016 – Nottingham City Homes

February 2017 – Southwark Council

March 2017 – Be Wise Dover,

April 2017 - The Pankhurst Trust, Manchester Women’s Aid, The Guinness Partnership

April 2017 – Wandle Housing Association

The Tradeswomen into Maintenance Project #WIMProject

Construction Youth Trust have led on the delivery of the Taster Days introducing women to trade activities such as plumbing, electrical, carpentry, plastering, painting and decorating. The women attending the Taster Day also came together to build benches which have been donated to women’s charities. Women into Construction have supported attendees in identifying training and employment opportunities on completion of the course.

Wendy Heller, Training, Development and Curriculum Manager at Construction Youth Trust said:

“The women attending the workshops have come with little to no experience of the building repairs and maintenance sector. After participating in various workshops, many have now confirmed they would happily consider a career in the sector. Clearly, knowledge is the key here; knowledge of the industry itself, knowledge of potential opportunities, skills knowledge and the assurance that given these opportunities, women can enjoy a long, productive and successful career in the building repairs maintenance sector.”

Andrew Millross of Anthony Collins Solicitors has kindly contributed his time to draft the Legal Guidance. This includes clauses and questions for social housing procurers to include in tender documents to encourage bidders to put some weight behind recruiting more tradeswomen into the sector. The Guidance is well underway and will be published by July 2017. It will form a standard part of the NHF Form of Contract going forward.

Work continues on creating other publications which will be available in hard copy and on line:

• A Best Practice Guide that shares best practice from maintenance companies and social housing providers along with providing some practical training tips.

• A Resource Booklet, which provides careers information highlighting links between the Maintenance sector and schools, colleges and youth groups; as well as sign-posting for women who are currently unemployed or in low-skilled unstable employment to accredited training and sustainable roles within the sector.

Our sector leading work in this area has been made possible thanks to the guidance of a voluntary, national steering group and we thank all those who give their time to making a difference to this important aspect of diversity and inclusion, including:

The Guinness Partnership, United Welsh, Nottingham City Homes, Sovereign Housing Association, WISH, the Chartered Institute of Housing, the National Federation of ALMOs, the National Housing Federation and the National Housing Maintenance Forum as well as the Construction Youth Trust and Women into Construction.

Gainor Keeton, Project Manager, said, “We are extremely proud of what we have achieved with the Tradeswomen into Maintenance project. Mears is determined to recruit and retain a diverse workforce. We have some fantastic tradeswomen who are keen to be mentors for the next generation.

“Only 1% of construction trade operatives in the construction sector are female. We are determined to do better than this and to increase the number of tradeswomen across the social housing building maintenance sector. We also support other organisations to get the message out that there are good careers for women to be had in social housing maintenance. This is not only the right thing to do but we know that the best workforce is one which reflects the communities in which we serve.”

The Tradeswomen into Maintenance Project #WIMProject

ArticlesMEARS MATTERSTRADESWOMEN

MEARS MATTERSRED THREAD

We are all part of the Mears Red ThreadThe Mears Red Thread defines our culture, it’s the way we do things around here.

Whether you’re working in care, looking after vulnerable people, or in one of our housing teams, as part of our repairs and maintenance service, everyone has a role to play in our success. Red Thread can help us achieve more as individuals, as a team and as one Mears.

Why Red Thread matters• It helps to create a great place to work

• It supports our common purpose – to make people smile

• Our customers receive exceptional service

• It helps unite our brand

Our people are our greatest asset, and being part of the Red Thread is essential to the continued commercial success of our business.

Doing things that little bit better every time, can positively affect the bottom line.

Why ‘Say What you See’ is so important:The Say What You See (SWYS) survey gives everyone a voice and a chance to make a positive difference. Your feedback helps us understand what’s good and what we can do better.

How does this work?

• Branches are measured against our six strand and given a Five Star rating

• Each branch is rated between one and five stars – five being the best

This creates confidence that colleagues are listened to and strives to improve engagement, awareness and understanding, which in turn creates trust and an environment of openness and continuous improvement.

The UK Customer Experience Awards is the biggest and most compelling CX event in the world, is judged by panels of independent businessmen and women.

The awards finals was held on the 28th of September.

MEARS MATTERSWE MADE THE FINALS

Mears Customer Success Team have been shortlisted for the UK Customer Experience Awards.

WE MADE THE FINALS!

• Mears Tradeswomen Into Maintenance Project has been shortlisted for the Most Effective Project In Improving the Lives of Women or Communities Award

• Mears Executive Director, Jane Nelson, has been shortlisted for Landmark Achievement Award

The award finals will be held on 2nd November in Manchester.

Mears has been shortlisted for two awards at the 2017 Women in Housing Awards!

WE MADE THE FINALS!

VALUESSOCIAL

HOW TO REGISTER:

• Each team costs £80 to register

• Each team will need to commit to fundraising £500 to support disadvantaged young people

• Each team consists of four individuals

• The team captain will be the driving force who is responsible for recruiting the other three members of their team

• Link to register : www.princes-trust.org.uk/therace

JOIN #TEAMPRINCESTRUST AND RECEIVE:

• Access to Virgin Active Clubs on the day

• A unique and inspirational event experience including special guests

• A Prince’s Trust t-shirt

• Training plans and advice

• A fundraising pack, full of ideas to help you and your team smash your sponsorship pledge

• Dedicated support and expert fundraising advice from The Prince’s Trust event team

THE CHALLENGE: The Race is a brand new indoor bike challenge taking part in various UK locations on Thursday 23rd November that sees teams of four race to glory against other teams across the UK.

As part of a team of four, each member of the team cycles for one hour led by the amazing Virgin Active instructors to see how far they can go.

See how your team rates against the UK and take on the challenge to be winners of The Race 2017.

Each team must fundraise at least £500 which will go directly to support disadvantaged young people across the UK, who are in need of vital help to get back into education, find employment or gain further training.

LOCATIONS:

Our hosts for the day are Virgin Active, who are opening their Clubs to The Race participants across the UK.

Choose from the following Virgin Active Club locations:

• Leeds

• London – Aldersgate

• London – Mansion House

• Salford

• Solihull

Get involved and support The Princes Trust to make a difference to young persons’ life today

Enter the Race Challenge We are delighted to continue working with The Princes Trust through our corporate partnership with the Prince’s Trust.

We believe that every young person should have the chance to succeed. So, we help 11 to 30 year-olds who are unemployed or struggling at school to transform their lives.

The Prince’s Trust is well known for opening doors to young people, to increase their skills, confidence, and help them realise their potential. Many of the young people we help are in, or leaving, care, facing issues such as homelessness or mental health problems, or have been in trouble with the law.

We give vulnerable young people the practical and financial support needed to stabilise their lives, helping develop self-esteem and skills for work.

THEY NEED YOUR SUPPORT!

As a charity, their work wouldn’t be possible without the amazing support of partners and supporters, so please consider joining The Race Challenge.

For more information please visit the www.princes-trust.org.uk/therace or email therace@princes-trust.org.uk

Please confirm your team with customer.success@mearsgroup.co.uk, so we can track all the teams across the Mears Group.

MEARS MATTERSSOCIAL VALUES

Mears go golfing for St Andrew’s Hospice Mears Scotland were delighted to hold another charity golf day in aid of St Andrew’s Hospice. This is the third golf day organised by Mears for the hospice, raising over £30,000.

Mears organised the day with the support of their supply chain partners who kindly entered teams on the day and donated prizes for the auction and raffle.

19 teams took part in the competition and a great day was had by all with some people already enquiring if we are holding another golf day next year.

The day was hosted by Tam Cowan, a Scottish Football journalist, radio presenter.

Louise O’Donnell, Deputy Head of Fundraising at St Andrew’s Hospice said: “We are so grateful to Mears for organising this event for us. Mears, their staff and apprentices are great supporters of the Hospice and we can’t thank them enough for holding another golf day for us. The money raised from this event will help us to continue to provide specialist palliative care to patients and their families from communities across both North and South Lanarkshire.”

Pet SensoryOur colleagues from Supported Living Services team, based in Alva, held a Pet Sensory event at the Helix and Kelpies Park in Falkirk.

The team invited all staff and service users to bring along their pets, and many of our colleagues from the office also took their pets along.

One of our service users, Bruce Anderson, was thrilled to be able to bring along his own dog - the Doctor Who character K-9, who he walked round the park with the other dogs.

This was a great opportunity for some of our service users, who have learning disabilities, to meet and interact with pets of all shapes and sizes, and was a great success!

The event was organised as part of their social value initiative to help combat loneliness. Despite some blustery conditions the weather was kind and allowed everyone to have a fantastic time!

Raising funds for the Forget Me Not HospiceMears Leeds raised a fantastic £941.33 to support of their colleague Richard Cawood for the Forget Me Not Childrens Hospice. The Hospice supports children with life shortening conditions and their families across West Yorkshire.

Richard and his partner had a daughter who was born with DiGeorge syndrome. They had initially prepared for the worst, however, she seemed to be making some progress, until sadly as a result of complications, she tragically passed away at only a few weeks old.

Throughout the illness, Richard and his family were supported by the Forget Me Not hospice, and following this tragic event, he took real pleasure in being able to give something back which everyone in Leeds was proud to support.

Craig Simpson, General Manager from Leeds, said, “Richard and his family went through a tragic event and one which will stay with them forever. The support, generosity and efforts from everyone within the branch was truly humbling and something the Leeds team should be extremely proud of.

“The way people came forward to support Richard and the Forget Me Not Hospice showed real solidarity and hopefully the funds raised will provide much needed support and care for other families affected in similar ways.

If you would like to make a donation to this brilliant cause, visit:

http://www.forgetmenotchild.co.uk/about-us

MEARS MATTERSSOCIAL VALUES

VALUESSOCIAL

Championing Football for Young PeopleMany of our colleagues are coaches and mentors to young people, and champion the spirit of team work through the game.

Here are some shining examples:

David Kellett, coached the girls team for Feile 2017, and the girls reached the semi-final stage for the tournament this year!

David, said, “This is a remarkable achievement for the girls, and a testament to their hard work. It really shows how far they have come as a team. I would just like to Mears for all you have done to help with our preparation for the tournament.”

Mears apprentice, Ryan Campbell played a pivotal part in last season’s run to the Division 1A League Championship which saw him selected in the Central Scottish Amateur Football League select squad. He was also recognised by the Scottish National Amateur team and made the trial squad on 2 separate occasions.

It’s not just Ryan’s talent on the field that has been noticed. He has on numerous occasions helped coach the younger kids in the academy and has recently underwent his level 1 SFA Coaching Badge. The younger kids in our academy look up to Ryan. They love watching him play and after the game he spends time talking to the kids and encouraging them to keep improving their game.

The kids in the academy unanimously support Ryan as their favourite player!

Mears Elgin Organise Afternoon TeaElgin Care Branch hosted an Afternoon Tea Party for their service users. It was organised for everyone to get together and enjoy a cup of tea and freshly made cakes made by the staff. Service users thoroughly enjoyed having a chat with their care workers, couple of social workers and branch staff.

The team received thank you cards from some of the clients who have already said they would love to come again.

One of the ladies has been to this event twice and said that this has made such a difference to her life.

Before this, for a whole year after her husband passed she wouldn’t get dressed…but now there is no holding her back!

She is up every morning, washed and dressed. She is even going back out socialising.

Well done to all involved for working hard to make the event a success.

MEARS MATTERSSOCIAL VALUES

VALUESSOCIAL

Mears Student Life donates Mattresses for charity

Cupcake Day! Tackling Social Isolation

Mears Student Life generously donated 20 single mattresses to the Help for Kids Charity!

The team had some spare mattresses after refurbishing student accommodation in Dundee and had some spare. They generously donated the charity who have helped over 15 families so far.

Help for Kids is a local children charity based in the heart of Dundee. The charity supports children who are disadvantaged through social and economic circumstances, or through health and disability.

Dementia is the number one cause of death in England and Wales. It doesn’t discriminate and currently there’s no cure.

Last year, dedicated Cupcakers around the country united to raise a mighty £330,000 against dementia. That’s more than enough to fund 11 PhD researchers for a year, giving them the opportunity to undertake vital, potentially lifesaving work.

This year we wanted to help in the cause to raise even more by joining together for Cupcake Day 2017 to help create a better world for people affected by dementia today, but also to find a cure for tomorrow.

Mears Customer Success Team were one of the teams taking part in the Cupcake Day to support and raise funds for Alzheimer’s awareness.

The team raised a fantastic £383!

Well done to all involved!

Mears Care Peterborough organised an event to help raise awareness for tackling the problem of social isolation.

Our colleagues and service users kindly donated several wonderful items for the raffle and a table top sale. Our care colleagues Hayley Allaway and Ednith Harry made some delicious cakes and cookies, and even homemade soaps!

The event was very successful and the team raised a fantastic £125.55 which will be donated to Alzheimer’s Society.

Well done to Team Peterborough for a successful event bringing people together.

MEARS MATTERSSOCIAL VALUES

VALUESSOCIAL

MEARS MATTERSCOMPLIMENTS

GERALDINE MCADAM AND GRAEME QUEEN

MEARS NORTH LANARKSHIRETenant Mr McAlavery who is disabled and is reliant on the use of his shower, contacted Mears to offer praise and thanks to planners Geraldine McAdam and Graeme Queen from our North Lanarkshire branch for their assistance in arranging for his new shower to be renewed so quickly.

ROD PATERSON

MEARS GLASGOWRod Paterson, recently came to the assistance of a disabled man. The gentleman is in his late 70s and very shaky on his feet. He was out on his mobility scooter when it broke down.

Rod made sure the gentleman and his broken down scooter got home safely. The gentleman and his wife were so appreciative of Rods actions that they even offered him money for his troubles - which Rod of course refused to take.

KYLIE HAY MEARS EDINBURGHService user Jean’s daughter Shona, informed us that she was in her mum’s house when Kylie was doing her service and she was so impressed with how Kylie was with her mum. Shona said that Kylie went the extra mile, including noticing that Jean needed clean clothes, and her feel nice by helping her put on some perfume and jewellery. Shona said her mum looked lovely, and thought it was lovely that Kylie wanted to do these things for her mum. She really appreciated Kylie taking the time to not only do the tasks that were required but also giving a bit extra to make Jean feel nice.

HELEN ROBERTSON

MEARS CLACKMANNANSHIREMrs Horne has been a service user for over 10 years now, and called the office to let us know what a wonderful carer Helen Robertson was. She said that she consistently goes above and beyond, and is always on hand to reassure her when needed. She is most considerate and has such calming effect on her.

Mrs Horne advised that Helen’s meals are always very appetising, and says that this is down to the presentation of her food - which is always spot on!

Mrs Horne always look forward to her visiting, saying that every time Helen comes in the evening to put her to bed, she always seems to sleep extremely well and believes that this again is down to Helen’s most calming effect. Mrs Horne wanted to tell us that Helen was just great at her job.

MEARS BELHAVEN DAY CENTREAlzheimer’s Scotland held a 5k Memory Walk down Prestwick Beach, and they had put out an appeal to local businesses and general public for help or donations for the day. The team decided to offer a hand by providing the finished walkers with water and snacks.

Alzheimer’s Scotland posted a lovely ‘thank you’ on their Facebook page which reads:

“We had a wonderful surprise this week from Mears Belhaven Day Centre. They generously provided the post walk refreshments for all of our walkers, and even delivered them. How Fantastic! Huge Thank You to all of the team there. Most of my team were able to participate and help out were required in Sundays Walk which was cold and very wet, but even the wild weather didn’t dampen their spirts!”

Compliments Scotland

MEARS MATTERSMEARS FOUNDATION

THE MEARS FOUNDATION DONATES £250 TO THE RED LIPSTICK FOUNDATION

KPI & Performance Manager, Alison Pennicott donated £250 on behalf of the Mears Foundation to the Red Lipstick Foundation, based in Lowford, Southampton.

Jax Missen who received the cheque on behalf of Red Lipstick was grateful for the donation.

The charity offer services to families in Hampshire who have been bereaved by suicide.

They provide a fantastic range of services such as counselling, befriending, practical and emotional support, holistic therapies, and emergency financial assistance.

Alison and the team are also hoping to provide some Social Value hours to help with the charity’s new premises. We look forward to hearing about any future developments for this brilliant cause.

For more details, you can visit http://www.theredlipstickfoundation.org

FUNDING FOR CAM EVERLANDS SCHOOL

The Foundation received a request from the Cam Evelands School for funding towards their outdoor area for the children.

The children and their families are part of the community that Mears provide maintenance services for with Stroud District Council being our client in the area.

The children would really benefit their well-being with an outdoor learning area.

Our colleagues from the Stoud branch will be meeting with the school soon to start putting together a project plan.

We look forward to more updates about this excellent project!

PENNIES IN HEAVEN

Also, colleagues are encouraged to support The Foundation, by supporting the Pennies from Heaven scheme.

Did you know you can support our efforts to tackle loneliness and social isolation simply by donating the loose pennies in your monthly salary?

Our Pennies from Heaven campaign encourages colleagues to donate each month the pennies from their net pay to the Mears Foundation’s Tackling Loneliness Fund. The most you will pay per month is 99p, which will go to help branch events and projects across the Group. Every time you are paid, your net pay is rounded down to the nearest £, with the odd payslip pennies donated to The Mears Foundation.

Mears, along with the Foundation is committed to tackling this serious and growing social issue.

MEN IN SHEDS PROJECT

After applying to the Mears Foundation for funding for a ‘Men in Shed’s’, project, Mears Customer & Community Manager, Debbie Kerr, presented a cheque to Chairman Tom Brownlee.

The project is based in South Tyneside and will help with combatting loneliness and isolation

A few projects which have benefitted from the support of the Mears Foundation…

With every branch making a yearly social value pledge to provide help and support to the communities served across the UK, the opportunities to collaborate with the Mears Foundation are plenty.

Please get in touch with any of the board members if you think your next big social value project would benefit from some funding. You never know, we may well be able to help

Mears Foundation Together We Can Make a Positive Difference!

After a fantastic funday event at the M & Ds Theme Park in Scotland – Mears Foundation has raised £856.15!

Thank you to all for your generous donations!

MEARS FOUNDATION AUTUMN WALK As thoughts begin to turn to autumn, we are delighted to announce the date for the Mears Foundation autumn walk.

Autumn is a time of wonder when the natural world turns a kaleidoscope of colour and landscapes come alive.

SAVE THE DATE … FRIDAY 10TH NOVEMBER 2017!By popular demand - Kew Bridge to Vauxhall Thames Path. The River Thames was once a major location for import and export and as it gets into London the river’s banks were originally lined with many warehouses and wharfs.

You will pass many historic landmarks and raise money for a good cause.

More details to follow soon.

ISLE OF WIGHT CHALLENGE A TEAM OF 10!Ten of our colleagues are taking on the Isle of Wight Challenge for the Mears Foundation.

The Challenge is to walk 106Km around the island continuously starting at 9am on the 5th May 2018 through the day and night and finishing 24hrs later on the 6th of May.

All fundraising goes to the Mears Foundation to support local charities and vulnerable people around the UK and you can donate at https://mydonate.bt.com/fundraisers/kevinmorrow1

The Mears team - Kevin Morrow, Steve Osborne, Dave Pearce, Martin Gaffney, Andy Derry, Ryan Nicholson and Simon Bloodworth

DO YOU HAVE AN UNWANTED KINDLE TO SEND TO SOUTH AFRICA? You can support Bob Holt’s initiative to improve basic reading skills of children in rural areas!

Please send your kindle donations to Diana Green

Where: Mears Group PLC 1390, Montpellier Court, Brockworth, Gloucester GL3 4AH

If you would like to know more -please contact Bob Holt at bob.holt@bobholt.com.

MEARS MATTERSMEARS FOUNDATION

RAISING FUNDS WITH THE FOUNDATION WALKS Every year Mears colleagues are invited to volunteer to join our Chairman Bob Holt on one in the series of Foundation’s annual fundraising walks this year? You can raise money for the Mears Foundation or for a charity of your choice.

The walks, which are all between 10 and 12 miles long, are great fun and as well as raising money, it’s a good opportunity to get together with colleagues from other Mears operations in the area.

We have had 140 walkers, we have raised £7000 so far across 15 different charities!

MEARS FOUNDATION SUFFOLK WALK The Stetchworth, near Newmarket, Suffolk Mears Foundation walk, was a great day had by all. Weather was fantastic and all walkers seemed to enjoy the scenic walk.

The atmosphere was lively with plenty of banter along the way!

All are looking forward to the walk next year.MEARS FOUNDATION MINCHINHAMPTON WALKThe final leg of the Mears Foundation walks was a great success with 22 walkers completing the 10miles, although some (Bob) questioned the “mostly flat” description of the walk!

We had stunning views and met quite a lot of the local animals, including cows, horses and some donkeys.

The team had great fun running through a field of wheat, had a lovely lunch at the Ragged Cot and then finished off the day with a stop-off at Winstones Ice-cream Factory.

Mears Foundation Together We Can Make a Positive Difference!

UPCOMING FOUNDATION EVENTS

MEARS MATTERSLONG SERVICE AWARDS

Long service awards: Congratulations to our long service achievers!

40 YEARS:Paul Baker Homes for Islington

Jim Kenny Homes for Islington

Danny Ewens Homes for Islington

John Mannion Northwards Housing

John Moran Northwards Housing

David Laws East Durham Homes

Philip Jackson Leeds

Neil Ollivant Leeds

David Cheshire Manchester Working

David Wood Manchester Working

Harry Lunn Manchester Working

Barry Cocksey Manchester Working

Philip Rutter Manchester Working

Cliff Simmonds Heathrow

David Rea North Lanarkshire

John Thomson North Lanarkshire

30 YEARS:David Wise Peterborough

Frank Readings Welwyn Lump Sum

Richard Clayton Sedgefield

John White Tower Hamlets

Joe Grima Tower Hamlets

Jonathan Felstead Thurrock

Fitz Cooper Lambeth South

Jhangir Abbas Northwards Housing

Trevor King East Durham Homes

Lee Liddle East Durham Homes

John Dodd Home Group NE

Frank Jackson Home Group NE

Allan Woodward Rotherham (MFS)

Richard Evans Rotherham (MFS)

Allen Hibbert Leeds

Patrick Hassett Leeds

Simon Jackson Manchester Working

Davie Gallacher Scotland

Alan Forsyth North Lanarkshire

Edward Davis North Lanarkshire

Edward Devine North Lanarkshire

Thomas Gilchrist North Lanarkshire

Dougie Hepburn North Lanarkshire

Mark Allen North Lanarkshire

Thomas Campbell North Lanarkshire

Paul Robertson North Lanarkshire

20 YEARS:Gary Rose IT

Paul Welsby Wigan

Sean Fleming Wigan

Iain Campbell Sedgefield

Philip Pierre Tower Hamlets

Caroline Percival Milton Keynes

Simon Davies JL Wardley

Craig Thompson Rotherham (MFS)

Craig Walton Rotherham (MFS)

Daniel Gawthorpe Rotherham (MFS)

Michael Lunn Rotherham (MFS)

Chris Bryson Terraquest - Applications Processing

Sylvia Osbourne Melksham

Janet Melling St Neots

Janet Taylor Stowmarket

Michelle Burridge Stowmarket

Patrick Bamrick North Lanarkshire

Richie Reynolds North Lanarkshire

Robert Anthony North Lanarkshire

David Denholm North Lanarkshire

Billy Erwin North Lanarkshire

John Dunbar North Lanarkshire

James Whitelaw North Lanarkshire

Elaine Muir East Kilbride

10 YEARS:Ann Marie O’Connor Health & Safety Department

Peter Woods Central Finance

Bob Hiller Broadstairs

Stuart Walton IT

Darren White IT

Paul Lucas IT

Kim Watson Peterborough

Gary Cater Peterborough

Ian Cater Peterborough

Steve Cater Peterborough

Andrew Spelman Peterborough

Spridge Spridgeon Peterborough

Shane Mawby Peterborough

Kevin Aubrey Compliance

Mark Lovett Southern Housing

Mick Birchall Wigan

Dan Fagg Task Team

Finbar O’Sullivan Octavia

Karen Johnson Welwyn Lump Sum

Pete Gritton Sedgefield

Peter McKinnon McGuire Moat Housing

Col Young Moat Housing

Scott Williams Moat Housing

James Taylor Brighton (MEA)

Lynn Kerry Medway

Jeremy Farnham Eastbourne Homes

Teresa Steggles 3C Mars

Gwen Williams Milton Keynes

Siji Oworu Barnet

Katie Holman Energy Insurance Services Limited (EISL)

Joseph Pigrem Thurrock

Jason Kelleher Hyde

Christopher Burgess Northwards Housing

Kevin Jones Northwards Housing

Daniel Lewis Northwards Housing

Kieran McKnight Northwards Housing

Aisha Sultana Northwards Housing

Donald Berry JL Wardley

Craig Freeman Home Group NE

Thomas Blair Home Group NE

Lewis Shiels Home Group NE

Jamie Lee Home Group NE

Debra Roberts Home Group NE

Lyndsey Mastin Rotherham (MFS)

Laura Miller Rotherham (MFS)

Victoria Naylor Rotherham (MFS)

Emma Pryce Rotherham (MFS)

Kaylee Devonport Leeds

Colin Wake Leeds

Paul Freeman Leeds

Karl Newsome Leeds

Martin Holmes Leeds

Peter Godwin Manchester Working

Caroline Gerrie Manchester Working

Samantha Skelton Manchester Working

Nigel Bell Riverside SE (MFS)

Llyod Downer Riverside SE (MFS)

Les Harris Riverside SE (MFS)

Piotr Laczny Terraquest - Other Overheads

Anwarul Hoque Chiswick London Ctr

Susan Cable Kings Lynn

Amanda Mulhall Peterborough SC

Oluwatoyin Shodipe Chiswick - Hammersmith

Mary Omotayo Chiswick - Hammersmith

Bridget Barclay Chiswick - Hammersmith

Douglas Shaw Stoke

Paula Postlethwaite Melksham

Fenella Seward Fisher Hove HI

Toby Clemenson Terraquest - PPQ Other Overheads

Tracey Frost Waterbeach

Chris Antony Waterbeach

Martin Vosika Old Stratford

Paula Cooke Rotherham

Janet Hobson Rotherham

Ivy Nyashanu Stowmarket

Maria Best Stowmarket

Karen Archer Nottingham

Claire Davies Torbay

Rattan Johal Derby MC

Parmod Chhabra Derby MC

Lee Millington Scion TSL - Oxford CC

Richard Bradbeer Scion TSL - Ferndown

Lynn Rixson Omega Lettings

Zuhre Uregul Omega Lettings

Sheila Clay Coventry

Fatou Bayo London Central

Paul Finnigan Fleetwood

Rasheedat Yusoof Ipswich

Rosalee Simpson London West

Edna Mathema Hammersmith ECS

Sandy Fraser North Lanarkshire

Margaret Elliott North Lanarkshire

Kevin Lyall Highland Schools (PFI)

Petya Stoyanova Russell Highland Schools (PFI)

Doreen Webster Aberdeen

Grace Mcskimming East Kilbride

Annmarie Gaffney East Kilbride

Donna Watson East Kilbride

Gail Baxter East Kilbride

Moyra Pirie Aberdeenshire SL

Grace Nimmo Prestwick

Cheryl Porteous Troon

Karen Kinnaird Clackmannanshire MC

Tracy Paton Clackmannanshire MC

Andrew Harkness Stirling SL

Diane Young Stirling SL

Brenda Henderson Stirling SL

Lynne Welsh Edinburgh CAH

Angela Drummond Edinburgh CAH

MEARS MATTERSLEARNING SPOTLIGHT

TELL US ABOUT YOUR CAREER SO FAR

When I was young I thought about becoming a nurse as that is the job my mum does. However, going to university wasn’t right for me and I joined Mears Care as a care worker in 2012. I’ve been here ever since and have now progressed to care co-ordinator.

WHY DID YOU CHOOSE TO DO AN APPRENTICESHIP?

I wanted to further my career and expand my knowledge around the care industry. An apprenticeship will allow me to gain a qualification whilst I work full time and earn a wage.

WHY DO YOU THINK IT IS IMPORTANT FOR CARERS TO GAIN QUALIFICATIONS?

When you are doing full time caring it is really important that you get the recognition for the job that you do. Caring is a really important job and I would like to see carers have more recognition for their role. The job is really demanding and there is always new pressures and challenges, particularly liaising with medical staff for example. Qualifications support recognition of a difficult job well done.

WHAT SUPPORT HAS MEARS OFFERED YOU TO DO YOUR APPRENTICESHIP?

My manager allows me to complete Lifetime visits and work when needed. We are a flexible branch when it comes to learning.

HOW IS YOUR RELATIONSHIP WITH YOUR TRAINER, HOW DO THEY SUPPORT YOU?

Becki is really good and understands my commitments out with work. She let me submit work through digital voice recording to save me having to type everything. It is really important to me that the people who talk to me about my job have experience of the care industry and know the problems that we face.

WHAT ADVICE WOULD YOU GIVE SOMEONE THINKING ABOUT AN APPRENTICESHIP?

DO IT! But be prepared to invest time into the qualification.

WHAT’S NEXT FOR YOU, WHAT ARE YOUR FUTURE AMBITIONS?

I would like to progress within the company and develop my skills and career opportunities. One day I would like to see myself in the branch managers’ role.

If you are already studying with Lifetime Training, and have any concerns or challenges, please speak to your Regional Trainer as soon as possible. Alternatively, you can send an email to: larajo.morrison@lifetimetraining.co.uk

Lifetime Training promote a collaborative approach to learning. Using a learn, share, apply, dig deeper method our goal is to support your learning and enable you to achieve a nationally recognised qualification whilst working at Mears.

Sasha Read has been working with Mears Care for over 5 years and enrolled on her Health and Social Care Level 3 in April 2017 with Lifetime Training.

We caught up with her where she works in the Norwich branch to find out about her and her apprenticeship with Mears.

Learning Spotlight Mears Carer - Sasha Read

Learning Spotlight