One of Nightingales Golden Care Registered Manager Ben Chudley’s favourite jobs is delivering big cheques. The company has a policy of rewarding carers with a £500 bonus after ten years of continuous service.
Jackie Chapman is the latest staff member to be the recipient of a long service bonus – she joined Nightingales back in September 2010.
Although ten years might sound like a long time in an industry that has seen staff turnover rates rise year on year; Ben says he’s pleased at just how many staff go on to celebrate these milestones:
“It’s something we all look forward to,” Ben added.
“When staff get closer to that anniversary we all share their sense of pride and achievement. I love to hear how they’re planning on spending it. Maybe they will book a holiday or have a blow out Christmas.”
The company has been going since 2002 and Ben says he’s hopeful that they will soon be celebrating even bigger anniversaries, with some carers approaching their twentieth year.
“Obviously we’ll need some even bigger cheques.
It’s an incredible achievement, we are really very proud.
And it’s down to just how much our clients value the continuity of service delivery that makes this such a big cause for celebration.
If you have a staff member that’s been with you for a long time, you really can’t underestimate the skills they acquire over that length of time.
Their experience, the relationships they build and the familiarity that they can bring, mean everything to this client group and their family members.
We have service users and carers who have been working together for up to 18 years – day in and day out. These staff really know what’s important to that client and how to make a difference in their lives.
We know that service users and their families really like seeing familiar faces, and they don’t want to have to keep explaining how things are done to a new person every day, so it’s also useful for these established members of staff to buddy-up and shadow any new starters.
You can do all the training you like but everybody likes things done a certain way, and it’s when they work alongside the clients’ regular carers that staff really start to feel confident and settle in”
Ben Chudley – Nightingales Golden Care Registered Manager
