Welcome to Active Gloucestershire! We are excited to have you join our team and are keen to make sure that your time with us is inspiring, rewarding and essentially spent doing something that you enjoy.
We want this handbook to give you an insight into who we are, what we do and what makes us tick and as such, we encourage you to use this handbook to understand a little more about the values that drive us, the issues that matter to us and the way in which we operate.
This handbook won't tell you how to claim expenses or fill in a sickness absence form nor will it explain how to use our IT system or what to do if you get called for jury service. For further information on our 'must-have' policies and other useful guidance, please ask to see our policies manual, safeguarding handbook and our health and safety handbook. Think of this handbook as less of an instruction manual but more a tool to help you settle into your brand-new adventure!
About us
Our Vision
Our Mission
Our Challenge
Our History
What we believe in
Settling in
Work life
Office life
Your life
We are a charity, based in the heart of Gloucester, working to increase the physical activity levels of the least active in our county. We passionately believe that physical activity can have a transformative impact on the lives of people and their communities and our core purpose is to drive positive change.
“Everyone in Gloucestershire living healthy and happy lives”
“We are an inclusive community that connects and inspires people in Gloucestershire to improve their lives through physical activity.”
During our last strategy period, we identified the need for a step change in our approach to getting people more physically active. In the past, most health campaigns tended to make already active people slightly more active, leaving inactive people further behind. We knew we needed to try something new.
Since 2018, we have been testing a new whole systems approach to tackling inactivity in our county, a social movement, called we can move. At its core we can move acknowledges that many factors influence how physically active someone is and that no single organisation can effectively change the status quo on their own. The movement unites actors from across the system behind its mission to get the least active people in our county moving more and by addressing all aspects of our daily life, aims to create an environment in which everyone can become physically active.
As the coordinating body for we can move, we have transitioned into a backbone organisation that connects leaders, individuals and organisations from across the system and inspires and enables them to get more people moving more and leading healthier and happier lives.
Covid-19 heightened health inequalities across Gloucestershire
Before Covid-19, around one in five people in Gloucestershire were not moving enough to benefit their health, a result of gradual improvements year on year. But the pandemic affected everyone in different ways and more people became less active. This especially affected groups we’d already identified as having the greatest health inequalities.
Across England, compared with pre-pandemic (May 19 – May 20), the impact on the groups we focus on is stark:
Group | Change in inactivity during the pandemic* |
Black people | An increase of 2.6 percentage points to 32.3% |
People living with disabilities | An increase of 2.1 percentage points to 42.4% |
Older adults (75+) | An increase of 1.9 percentage points to 48.7% |
*based on November 2020 - November 2021
Jon McGinty, Active Gloucestershire Trustee, November 2021
In developing the we can move approach, we have reflected on and identified the behaviours that matter most to us and that best embody who we are and what we believe in.
The best way to see if something works is to give it a go.
Gather learning, Insight and data and look to understand the experiences of those with perspectives furthest from your own.
Everyone owns the movement. Ask for help when you need it, offer it when it will be useful and be prepared to grow ideas together.
Focus on strengths, emphasise the positive and gently challenge the negative.
Invest in others as much as in getting things done.
Starting somewhere new can be daunting, so if you have any worries or concerns, we encourage you to talk about what's on your mind to other colleagues or your line manager. Whether it be about the project you're working on, how you're finding things, or checking how you should do something-just chat to one of our team and we will be happy to help!
When you start with us, in addition to a formal induction, you will also have a mentor - another colleague who will navigate and support you through your first few weeks in your new role and potentially beyond. Your mentor will have been where you are now and so will be well placed to make sure you're not just 'figuring stuff out' on your own and that you have as easy and stress free a start with us, as possible. Mentor support within our organisation isn't only on offer to you during the first few weeks of your induction. If you think it would be useful to continue to have a mentor, to bounce ideas off, advise and guide you during your time with us, just let us know.
Our team is our greatest resource. Their knowledge, skills and expertise are pivotal to achieving our outcomes and realising our vision. At Active Gloucestershire, we want you to have the opportunity to expand your knowledge and skills set and boost your aspirations. We offer an extensive staff training programme, which runs throughout the year and provides our team with the opportunity to undertake a variety of courses from equality and diversity, safeguarding and first aid training, to training more specifically tailored to their role, including behaviour change, systems evaluation and facilitation training.
We are also keen to support those in our team who want to undertake leadership coaching and provide both internal leadership opportunities and access to formal leadership development courses. We encourage you to investigate the types of courses, seminars and events that interest and excite you and share your thoughts with your line manager.
| Communication is keyHere at Active Gloucestershire, we are big believers in talking things through, so whether you want to mind map some new ideas, get some feedback on something, or you just have something you need to get off your chest, we encourage you to talk to your colleagues or your line manager to get their perspective and input or just to get some reassurance that you're on the right path. As well as discussing our projects at our 10@10 team catch up meetings on Mondays and more formal one to one meetings and appraisals, we also like to share and celebrate our successes with each other over a cup of coffee, at one of our team lunches or during our regular staff socials. Staying flexibleRecent research has shown how many British workplaces operate an 'always on' culture, leading to employees feeling anxious, inadequate and incapable of 'switching off'. We recognise that our employees have lives outside work. We are happy to consider and accommodate various working patterns and arrangements, so that you can balance your personal life with working productively. We offer a ‘core hours’ working pattern and have fully embedded hybrid working, where all staff have the choice to work from home, the office, or from other sites. We also actively encourage our team to try out several different meeting formats including stand up, walking and outdoor meetings (when the weather permits!) to discover what gets those ideas and conversations flowing Staff wellbeingAt Active Gloucestershire, the wellbeing of our staff is of paramount important to us. Whilst we understand that stress can often be unavoidable in today’s busy world, we also know that too much of it can lead to burnout, disengagement, sickness and strained relationships. In order to mitigate the effects of stress on our staff, we have pulled together a varied and comprehensive wellbeing package, that we hope ensures all our team feel valued, supported and cared for. As well as a formal employee assistance programme offering staff mental health support, we also fund and organise various health and wellbeing sessions for staff, that run during the working week. Sessions have included sleep health, financial wellbeing, compassionate mindful resilience, meditation and online cookery. Our team also has access to the Headspace meditation app, eyecare vouchers and a range of benefits and discounts through Caboodle/Salary Extras. We believe that birthdays should be spent doing the things you enjoy best with the people you love the most. So here at Active Gloucestershire, staff are gifted their birthdays off. Whether you’re heading out for a birthday meal, taking a trip away or having a party with friends and family – take time to celebrate your day, your way. Getting to know each other...Keeping our team motivated and working well together is paramount and as such we create opportunities for our staff to connect and spend time with each other. As well as regular team away days and our annual Christmas meal out, we also hold team lunches, regular coffee and catch up sessions and optional staff socials where we do something fun together after work. ...and our communityOur relationship with the local community underpins much of what we do and so when we can, we like to get out and about and volunteer with neighbouring organisations, to better understand them and the work they do. We also offer each of our team the chance to undertake some employer supported volunteering with an organisation of their choice, during their time with us, so be sure to pick this up with your line manager, if you think it is something that might interest you. |
http://hrnews.co.uk/always-on-work-cultures-putting-british-employees-at-risk/
| Hybrid officeAs our team has grown, so our office lay out has changed. It balances open spaces which support collaborative work with quieter zones when staff need some thinking time or just want to get their head down and concentrate. Whether you are looking to mind map some ideas, start conversations with colleagues, host a formal meeting with stakeholders and partners or just seek some seclusion, we have a variety of spaces you can choose from. FacilitiesYour health and wellbeing matter to us. If you’re in the office and you fancy a run at lunch, just bring in your trainers, or if it’s a game of table tennis you’re after, just ask one of the team for a knock around. There’s also a bike available for you to zip around to meetings on and avoid traffic jams. Or, if it’s your mind that needs nurturing, book out some time in meeting room 2 and try some yoga or mindfulness. Working comfortablyIf you prefer to hot-desk or think a standing desk will boost your productivity let us know! If you feel an ergonomic keyboard and mouse will make typing easier or a laptop riser will allow you to work better at home, just put your request in to us. If you need additional tech supplies or stationery for a meeting, event or just day to day work, tell us. Whether in the office or working from home, we want you to be able to work as comfortably and conveniently as possible. Working responsiblyYou are part of a team at Active Gloucestershire, so whether it is locking up the office in the evening, recycling your waste or clearing up your lunch dishes we ask that you don’t leave it for someone else to do. Pass on phone messages, hand out the mail and keep your colleagues informed of where you are. Working considerately helps to keep our office running smoothly and our team content. |
| Taking time out
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Chair |
Trustee |
Trustee |
Dan Constable Trustee |
Trustee |
Trustee |
Lêla Thomas Trustee |
Tom Beasley Chief Executive Officer 01452 393602 | Kirsty Dunleavy-Harris Director of Physical Activity 01452 393618 | Alan Inman-Ward Director of Insight and Operations 01452 393603 alaninman-ward@activegloucestershire.org Book a meeting: www.calendly.com/alaninman-ward | ||
Strategic Manager (Extended Workforce) 01452 393609 |
Physical Activity Specialist Strategic Lead for People, Partnership & Workforce 01452 393605 |
Physical Activity Specialist Strategic Lead for Facilities and Active Environments 01452 393619 richardfishlock@activegloucestershire.org | ||
Physical Activity Specialist Strategic Lead for Health & Active Ageing 01452 393611 |
Physical Activity Specialist Strategic Lead for Children and Young People 01452 393607 |
Head of Communications and Marketing 01452 393616 lizziehomer@activegloucestershire.org | ||
Operations Manager 01452 393610 |
Senior Project Officer - Place, Workforce and Insight 01452 393615 |
Senior Executive Support Officer 01452 393612 geethadean@activegloucestershire.org | ||
Ben Langworthy Senior Project Officer - Active Ageing & Disability 01452 393613 benlangworthy@activegloucestershire.org www.calendly.com/benlangworthy |
Active Children Lead 01452 393601 |
Finance Manager 01452 393600 carlyjewett@activegloucestershire.org | ||
Senior Project Officer - Children and Young People 01452 393617 | Charlotte Rooney Operations Administrator 01452 393614 charlotterooney@activegloucestershire.org |
Active Lives Coordinator 01452 393608 guystirlinglee@activegloucestershire.org www.calendly.com/guystirlinglee | ||
Rob Toomer Senior Project Officer - Programme Support 01452 393606 | Tom Handley Digital Communications Officer 01452 393606 |
Thank you for taking the time to read our handbook!
We hope you know us a little better now.
If you like what you've seen and you know of anyone who might be interested in joining us, please ask them to check out our vacancies below.
https://www.activegloucestershire.org/vacancies.php
If you have any questions about anything we have shared with you, please email info@activegloucestershire.org