Survey reveals Trust staff have a great work life balance

Published by Laura Beckett for Halton Housing Trust in Housing

A survey carried out by Halton Housing Trust has revealed that staff are the happiest they’ve ever been thanks to the introduction of flexible working.

95% of Halton Housing Trust staff now work more flexibly due to the removal of set hours, whilst 82% spend less time commuting to work, reducing time spent stuck in traffic.

The survey also highlighted that 96% felt they worked more productively, showing that staff work more effectively if they manage their own hours.

Katie Hamlett, governance officer, has two young children aged two and four. She says that without flexible working, she would have to pay higher childcare costs; an extra expense that deters many mothers from returning back to work.

Katie, 35, said: “Flexible working is great for juggling work and family life.  It has meant that I'm able to carry out my job whilst doing the school run and being there for my family at the end of the day. It’s transformed the way I work for the better'.

Sue Baxendale, director of human resources and operational development, is thrilled with the results. She said: “The survey results are extremely positive as they show that our staff are happier since flexible working was introduced.

88% of employees now work when they would have otherwise taken a sick day, because they can either work comfortably at home or take a shorter day.”

“Flexible working has made us more productive, reduced our staff sickness levels and given staff more control of their work life balance. I thoroughly recommend that other businesses embrace this new way of working.”

Working mums are not the only group to benefit from the new culture.

Director of regeneration & investment, Paul Mullane, can now take his children to school. He said:  “As a father it’s important to me to be there for my children and flexible working lets me do that. My role can be very busy at times but I can now choose my own working hours so I can easily spend time with my family.”

He goes on to say: “This is not “flexi hours” but a whole approach to working in a flexible way!  A key aspect to this is the principle that work is not somewhere you have to come to, but it is something that you do”.

The results show that flexible working benefits all employees, not just parents.

Many staff have taken up a sport or further study since flexible hours were introduced, taking advantage of daytime classes and off peak gym memberships, whilst others have saved money by cutting down on their transport costs due to working from home.