Month: November 2020

Colleague Newsletter – November 2020

Dear Colleague,

Hello and welcome to your November Colleague Newsletter. In this edition you’ll find out who the latest Reward and Recognition award winners are, information on the extended furlough scheme, new dates for Access HR appointments and a chance to have your say on the charity initiative we will support as a business throughout December.

Reward & Recognition – Winners Announced!

Each quarter we recognise the teams and individual colleagues who go above and beyond in their role in the Westgrove Reward and Recognition Awards. We want to say THANK YOU to everyone for their hard work and commitment and well done to all the nominees for Quarter 3.

During Quarter 3, there was a lot to contend with including coming out of national lockdown and the re-opening of centres which saw colleagues stepping up and displaying professionalism and compassion. It was humbling to read the stories behind each nomination and to realise the work that goes in behind the scenes to keep our centres operating on a daily basis.

It is with pleasure that we announce our Quarter 3 R&R winners, you can see the full list of winners by clicking HERE.

Well done to all our winners and everyone who was nominated for an award this quarter, it was so difficult to pick the winners out of all the outstanding nominations – you are all amazing!

Extended Furlough Scheme

As you will be aware, England is currently in Lockdown to try and prevent the spread of Covid-19 in communities across the country. Please continue to follow the Government guidelines and any further guidance supplied by Westgrove. We all have a duty of care to ourselves and others too.

Some colleagues will have been impacted by the furlough scheme which has now been extended and will cover 80% of wages up to a maximum of £2,500 a month. If you are placed on to furlough you will receive 80% of your normal pay for November when you are paid by Westgrove in December.

Any questions, please ask your Business Manager or email the HR team, hr@westgrove.co.uk.

We are here to support you.

Have your say! Vote for our Christmas Charity

During December we will be supporting a charity as voted by Westgrove Colleagues.

Please vote for the charity you would like the Westgrove community to support during December 2020. Voting closes at 5pm on Wednesday 18th November.

Westgrove Colleagues can vote using the link in their email.

Details of the winning charity and information on how you and your team can get involved during December will be issued in due course.

Access HR – Book your appointment now

The next available dates and times for an Access HR session are:

  • Wednesday 25th November, 10 – 11am
  • Thursday 26th November, 2 – 3pm

Please email hr@westgrove.co.uk with your preferred date and time and confirmation that you are able to use Zoom or if you require an alternative arrangement. HR will confirm your appointment by email.

Our Outstanding Colleagues – Quarter 3

Our people are what make us special.  From saving lives and preventing crime to helping people in need and much more.  Our Reward and Recognition scheme is our way of saying thank you to our Colleagues for the amazing work that they do each and every day, often going above and beyond in their role.

During Quarter 3, there has been a lot to contend with including coming out of national lockdown and re-opening centres which has seen Colleagues stepping up and displaying professionalism and compassion.

Well done to all our winners and everyone who has been nominated for an award this quarter – you are all amazing!

The winners are:

Site Manager of the Quarter

Richard Pope for showing an exceptional level of leadership and stepping up at a critical time (lockdown and re-opening).  Richard has shown exemplary attention to detail and is a valued member of the Centre Management Team at Riverside Shopping Centre.  

Team of the Quarter

High Chelmer Cleaning and Security.  The team recently played a huge part in the clean-up operation of the biggest downpour the city has seen.  The team’s quick thinking and fast actions ensured the safety of shoppers and the centre remained open throughout.

Cornbow Cleaning & Security.  The team have stepped up throughout the Coronavirus pandemic and remained professional even when faced with challenging circumstances.  The team have remained positive despite having to deal with difficult situations and continued to work as a team.  

Telford Cleaning Team. The team have worked tirelessly to ensure the cleanliness of Telford Centre despite being short staffed.  The team have ensured contractual hours have been covered and that standards remain high.

Birchwood Park Security Team.  This team have ensured the safety of the whole site throughout difficult circumstances, keeping occupiers and buildings safe and monitoring all movements on site.  The team always pull together during times of need and provide excellent customer service to the client, occupiers and the on-site teams. 

Colleague of the Quarter

Samantha Newton, The Core.  Sam is a valued member of the team, stepping in to assist with additional duties to ensure the smooth running of the centre.  She has remained positive, ensuring standards remain high and is a great support to her colleagues and to the centre manager. 

Michael Palmer, Bramley Shopping Centre. Mick is a dedicated Security Guard and although he had an extremely touch year, he has shown dedication to his role and the same enthusiasm he always has. 

Clare Danks, Head Office, for being a great support over the lockdown period to her sites.  Clare adapted to the new ways of working and supported her sites giving them sound advice and support when it mattered. 

Mohammed Osman, Queens Square.  Mo is a valued member of the Queens Square team.  He is always helpful and remains professional.  He has been described as a real gentleman with excellent customer service skills. 

Newcomer of the Quarter

Tony Warburton, Runcorn – a great asset to the team with excellent customer service skills.  Tony is professional, friendly and has great observational skills. 

Sering Sallah, Market Place Bolton – Outstanding customer service, greeting customers and making them feel at ease during the re-opening on the centre after lockdown.  Sal has adapted easily to the new ways of working.   

Angela Hudson, Templars Square – Angela has shown fantastic customer service skills and represents Westgrove in a positive light.

Covid Spirit Award

Security Team, Quedam – The team have been complimented by tenants including Primark for the way their queues have been managed when the centre re-opened. 

Steve Travis and the Security Team, Arcades – From implementing new safety precautions and managing rosters to meet both work and family needs, it has been a difficult few month for the Arcades team, but they have pulled together and navigated the ‘new normal’ in order to get their job done. 

CSR of the Quarter

Wayne Morgan, Cleaning Operative, Quedam – For implementing new waste procedures and creating real cost savings for the centre and helping greatly towards its sustainability.

Outstanding Acts

July

  • Gloucester Quays, Security Team, Gloucester Quays

August

  • AnnMarie Croft, Housekeeper, QVC Knowsley
  • Jaspreet Singh, Security Officer, Queens Square Shopping Centre
  • Sharon Griffin, Housekeeper, Telford Centre
  • Michael Rodford, Cleaning Operative, Quedam Shopping Centre

September

  • Syed Shah, Security Officer, Queens Square
  • Yvonne Howell, Housekeeping Team leader, Telford Centre
  • Damon Kosmalski Pearson & Tanya Tate, Dual Service Supervisor and Customer Support Officer, Riverside
  • Martin Wain, Majid Khan & Paul Greenslade, Customer Service Supervisor and Officers, Templars Square Shopping Centre
  • Marc Hunt, Rebecca Waldron & Renay Snelson, Security, Guest Service & Ambassador, Runcorn Shopping City
  • Eduart Cota, Abu Hanif, Derek Spencer, Security Officer, Royal Priors

Service Excellence

July

  • Vitor Azevedo, Cleaning Supervisor, Tata Technologies
  • Dave Phillips, Denise Phillips, Debra Taylor, Nizam Patel, Gill Davidson, Security & Cleaners, Market Place, Bolton
  • Whole Team, Castle Quay
  • Amarjit Bhullar, Security Officer, Queens Square Shopping Centre
  • George Moriata, Cleaner, Lion Yard
  • Barry Burnham, Customer Service Supervisor, Templars Square

August

  • Damon Kosmalski Pearson & Karl Hobbs Dual Service Supervisor and Cleaner, Riverside
  • Jaspreet Singh, Security Officer Queens Square

September

  • Joanne O’Neill, Business Manager, Westgrove HQ
  • Paul Clarke/Ian Plumbley, Security Supervisor/Security Officer, Birchwood Park
  • Daniel Jackson   Guest Service Ambassador – Security Officer, The Galleries Shopping Centre
  • Shannon Blount / Steven Buckle Cleaning Operative, Gloucester Quays
  • Asif Nazir, Assistant DSM, Lion Yard
  • Security Team, Stamford Quarter
  • Jon Walton & Shaun Buckley, Security Officers, Telford Centre
  • Sandra Perry, Customer Service Officer, Templars Square

Please remember to nominate your colleagues through our Reward and Recognition programme. You can find out more and nominate here.

Welcome to New Colleagues

This week we are delighted to welcome new colleagues to our business – security, cleaning, concierge and maintenance teams join Westgrove from Touchwood Shopping Centre in Solihull and Morgan Quarter in Cardiff in what can only be described as unprecedented times!

We’ve learnt a lot since the first lockdown in April with one of our key learnings being how to mobilise and welcome new colleagues across the UK into the business remotely. It is important to us to make all colleagues feel valued and to share our sense of community even without being able to see them face to face.

We needed to adjust our ways of working but as a dynamic and flexible business we have found different ways of communicating with our colleagues and Partners throughout the UK including regular emails and video calling so we’re as face to face as we can be right now.

The Westgrove Group can’t wait to be able to welcome all our new colleagues in person but until then we will continue with our new ways of communicating and adapt to whatever is thrown our way!

We would like to take this opportunity to welcome our new colleagues from Cardiff and Solihull and assure them we are here for them every step of the way during their career with Westgrove.

Pictured – Welcome Pack and cakes for our colleagues