Staff Matters October 4, 2019 Issue 225 Week 14
CARING ABOUT OUR STAFF HAVE YOUR SAY IN THE STAFF SURVEY!
We are excited to announce the launch of our 2019 Staff Survey, managed by our independent survey partner, The Voice Project! In 2017 many of you completed the online staff survey and the results we achieved as an organisation were the highest The Voice Project have ever recorded. As a result, Afford were announced as winners of the national ‘Change Champion Award’ in the large business category for 2018! These surveys are important to our organisation, as we are committed to continuously improving our standards and ensuring our workplace is one that makes you love coming to work. The survey gives all staff a voice to let the business know their feelings around a number of key areas and initiatives. The Voice Project have managed our two previous Staff Surveys, which happened in 2017 and 2015. Having worked with us for so long, they have an indepth knowledge of our business, and ensures that the questions asked are meaningful to our current business.
In This Issue 1
Have Your Say In The Staff Survey Joke of The Week Afford Trivia
2
Parking Rulez Reminder
3
All Ability Gala Day!
4
Afford Living Across The Eastern Seaboard
Reminder
Handyman Timetable Upcoming Events Afford Trivia Answer Selfies of the Week
The survey itself is an opportunity for everyone to be completely honest in their answers as it is 100% confidential. Once all the responses are collated, it provides us with a fantastic platform to implement change from. Both positive and negative feedback, contribute to growth, enhancing offerings and the continuation of successful initiatives. We welcome your honest and genuine feedback in your survey responses. Staff will each be sent an online link to enter the portal and complete the quiz. It should take approximately 15 - 20 minutes to complete, and it is a brilliant opportunity to be able to have your voice heard. The time taken to complete the survey will be paid. We strongly believe in delivering excellent Customer Service to our clients, we need a happy and engaged workforce and the survey shows us if we are succeeding in that. We will continue to do our utmost to look after our Staff and maintain a positive culture that promotes strong teams and tribes through our robust Employer of Choice initiatives. Please take the opportunity to take part in this really important part of our Engagement Program. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact our National Training and Engagement Manager – Maureen Brown.
AFFORD TRIVIA
What year did our pallet manufacturing plant in Minto open?
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Staff Matters
STAFF PROFILE NAME: Jillian Sellwood POSITION: Lifestyle Assistant LOCATION: Caboolture, QLD FAVOURITE MUSIC/SONG? You Are My Sunshine FAVOURITE MOVIE? Any Christmas movie FAVOURITE HOBBIES? Gardening FAVOURITE FOODS? Dessert
October 4, 2019 Issue 225
PARKING RULEZ! There is no denying that our fleet of eye catching vehicles makes a huge statement on our roads. Driving around no matter where you are, you will likely see an Afford vehicle. Due to our vans being so recognisable with our branding, we need to ensure we are parking in areas that minimise disruption to other residents in the streets we visit. It is important that we maintain a great relationship with the community and always promote the positive culture we encourage at Afford. This is particularly important for our Day Program sites as many of our sites are run out of residential homes, and may have a number of vehicles parked on site. In NSW we have a number of sites which have specific parking rules when visiting and it is important to take note and adhere to these rules: • Ashfield Day Program: Don’t park our vans on Bruce St. If anyone is visiting Ashfield, please park at Ormond or Wallace St.
IF YOU COULD BE AN ANIMAL, WHAT WOULD YOU BE? A monkey
• Belmore Day Program: Company vehicles are not to be parked beyond our building towards the station, they are also not allowed to park in front of the childcare on Redman Parade Road.
WHAT IS YOUR DREAM HOLIDAY DESTINATION? I would love to see Italy
• Blacktown Day Program: Park on land next to Day Program. The street parking is timed.
IF YOU HAD THE POWER, WHAT WOULD YOU CHANGE ABOUT THE WORLD? Make people more understanding IF YOU HAD TO TEACH SOMETHING, WHAT WOULD YOU TEACH? Compassion SOMETHING NO ONE KNOWS ABOUT ME? I danced at a dance school for a year
• Bexley Day Program: No staff park out the back of Bexley Day Program.
• Condell Park Day Program: Do not use neighbours driveways to make U-turns. • Chipping Norton Day Program: Staff and visitors need to park on Holly Ave. • Canley Vale Day Program: No parking within 2 metres of any neighbours’ driveways. • Green Valley Day Program: All staff must park on Capricorn Boulevarde or nearby, don’t park on San Cristobal Street. • Jamisontown Day Program: Staff can only park in front of our building on Anakai Drive. If that is taken we need to drive down to the vacant land and park on the street, being mindful not to park in front of any driveways. DO NOT park in the dead-end street or on the grass beside the building. Do not park in front of any neighbours’ house. • Oran Park Day Program: Don’t park our vans on the Straight, or make any U-turn on any of the neighbours’ driveways. • Rouse Hill Day Program: Staff are to park up the street either on the left hand side or right. Staff cannot park out the front or directly across the road. No parking allowed on 115 Mile End Road or in front of neighbours. Park across the road, there are designated spots. Parking rules can always be found on the Intranet via this link: http://intranet/documents/Human%20Resources/Instruction%20-%20 Parking%20Rules%20in%20our%20Day%20Programs.docx
www.afford.com.au
October 4, 2019 Issue 225
Staff Matters ALL ABILITY GALA DAY!
On Friday last week Afford and Heroes with Ability proudly launched the inaugural Heroes with Ability Gala Day! Afford is so proud to be involved with the Heroes With Ability initiative organised by NSW South Manager, Kathy Bullock and founded by George Tonna and Marco Quintao. The event has allowed people of all abilities to participate in a modified competition of touch football. Sites have been training hard for the last 10 weeks for this event, developing their skills, learning how to pass and kick the ball, as well as work in a team. The initiative has allowed people of all abilities to participate. Teams were mixed sites, allowing the opportunity for our clients to meet new people and make new friends. From the moment everyone started to arrive at the park, the excitement was in the air. To kick off the day, teams were divided into 4 groups representing NRL teams: Bulldogs, Eagles, Tigers and Rabbits. The top two sides went head to head in the final to become the first ever champions of the Heroes with Ability Afford Shield. A huge congratulations to the winners of the Afford Shield, the Bulldogs team for becoming the inaugural Champions of the Heroes With Ability Afford Shield! At the end of the grand final, all teams were awarded medals for their participation and staff members who participated were awarded certificates of participation. Many clients’ skills had come a long way since the first training session. It was wonderful to have such a vibrant atmosphere of inclusivity and friendship for all who participated. Marco Quintao from Heroes with Ability interviewed Kathy Bullock on the day and asked her what she thought, and if she had seen a change in the participants over the 10 weeks of training. “Today was just amazing, to see the looks on the guys' faces when they were playing, it was just a dream come true to them. Something that they would never have been able to achieve. They were following directions and having fun. In the end, it was just an absolutely brilliant day. From the first day I got here, the guys were not following directions and were all over the place. Now they can actually play a game. Watching them playing a game was amazing to see the transformation. Afford are with you all the way.” Afford's partnership with Heroes with Ability, is another way in which we go beyond traditional service offerings to give individuals opportunities to realise their dreams and participate in activities they enjoy.
Reminder!
General reminders for ALL Staff: • Do not administer medication if you have not completed Medication Training
• Always follow the SAFE medication procedure • Add in all communication you have with stakeholders into CIMS correspondence logs
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October 4, 2019 Issue 225
Staff Matters AFFORD LIVING ACROSS THE EASTERN SEABOARD The Afford Lifestyle offers our residents support, care, opportunity, independence and a place to call home. We love to share the amazing stories and achievements that occur daily in our group homes, which is why we have a dedicated ‘Afford Living’ newsletter. Over the past year, we have seen exciting growth interstate into Queensland and Victoria and now have residents enjoying the Afford Lifestyle in those regions. As we expand, it is important that we capture these life changing stories across all our homes nationwide. Before our expansion interstate, this newsletter was predominantly written about the adventures and achievements of our NSW residents. So it is with great excitement that last week we launched Afford Living across the eastern seaboard! It is important as an organisation to share all the amazing stories and achievements we witness every day with the community. Please make sure to regularly send marketing newsletter stories, which will can feature in our weekly external newsletter, the Afford Buzz. Email your stories and photos to marketing@afford.com.au We look forward to going on this adventure of storytelling our residents’ achievements and successes across all 3 of our states. Welcome home!
Handyman Timetable
Meet Our Handyman Tahier
Our Handy Man, Tahier, will be at the following sites this week: - 7th October: PUBLIC HOLIDAY - 8th October: Billabong, Dolphin & True Blue Group Homes - 9th October: Lurnea, Green Valley & Prestons ADE - 10th October: Minchinbury, Mt Druitt & St Marys
SELFIES OF THE WEEK
hlee and Selfie Above: As m Jamisontown fro ) As (LS , Shanice la Day. Ga y at the All Abilit
Pawsome Ardler-LindSelfie Above: Kyle furbaby, Smsay, NSW LSA and udge!
UPCOMING EVENTS DATE:
EVENT:
7 October
Public Holiday
17 October
NSW Annual Client Gala Ball
1-31 October
Girls' Night In
1-31 October
Walktober
Afford Trivia Answer: 2003
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