Regeneration

IT’S TIME TO REVIEW

YOUR BUSINESS TRAVEL POLICIES

Many things have changed since the pandemic, and possibly the biggest change is to working patterns. Permanent home-working or hybrid seem to be here to stay, which generates major changes to business travel.

Companies must think innovatively about how their people travel, and if the mobility policies they had pre-pandemic are going to work in a post-pandemic world.

Employees are commuting less, and business journeys may now involve more use of personal cars.

We know from research and experience that many privately owned cars are older, more polluting models which will fall foul of the growing number of low emission zones being created around the country. This will be of concern to companies for a number of reasons:

• Allowing employees to use their own cars and reclaim mileage allowances, known as “grey fleet,” is costly, at a time when businesses are working hard to recover.

• Businesses are increasingly being pressed to reduce CO2 emissions and staff-use of older cars may conflict with corporate targets and ambitions.

These issues are leading many corporates to take a closer look at their approach to business travel policies, and to set controls in place that ensure employee choices actively contribute to safer travel and a greener environment.

Enterprise Car Club is a key part of the travel policy of many businesses. Employees have access to modern, low emission vehicles and employers can choose how to structure the service to meet their needs. The vehicles can be based at a company’s premises for exclusive use, a dedicated service, or employees can access Enterprise’s nationwide car club fleet. In Liverpool, we have a number of vehicles around the city and work closely with the council who use this service.

Booking and access to vehicles via an app makes the process simple and convenient and means businesses only pay when a vehicle is needed.

We know that business travel is vital in driving our recovery, while at the same time transport and travel remains under the spotlight as the government presses ahead with its decarbonisation policy.

The good news is that innovation is ensuring the number of sustainable, low and zeroemission travel options are increasing.

WORKING TOGETHER TO

SUPPORT OUR TRUST AND TO SAVE MORE LIVES

Hospitals nationally have faced immense pressures over the past 2.5 years, and our staff at Liverpool University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust have worked tirelessly through a time that they have never quite experienced before.

Throughout all of this, our priority as Liverpool University Hospitals Charity has of course been to raise funds to support and improve the lives and wellbeing of our patients and our incredibly hardworking staff. We will forever be blown away by our Merseyside community and beyond who pulled together to help our charity to generate funds to support them.

You can find more information about how we invested the funds raised here (https://fb.watch/b0TNbOvwSt/)

As we transition out of the pandemic and look forward to moving into our incredible new Royal Liverpool Hospital, our charity will also undergo a little change. Some of you reading this may remember us as ‘R Charity’ but after our trust merged with Aintree University Hospitals, and regenerated itself with a new name, we’ve become Liverpool University Hospitals Charity. Whilst the wellbeing of our staff and patients will continue to be a priority, we look forward to investing funds raised into innovation to ensure that our trust has world class equipment, services and environments to treat and save more lives.

We’re planning what we hope will be our biggest charity evening to date on Friday 30th September at the Titanic Hotel & Rum Warehouse, and it would be incredible to have the support from Chamber members. We may be biased, but our Charity Ball is always incredible! We are extremely grateful to our Headline Sponsors Avrenim Group Ltd and If Finishes, and we look forward to celebrating significant milestones and successes for our LUHFT and Charity, what we have achieved and hope to achieve for our trust and most importantly for our patients.

To find out more about the Enterprise Car Club please contact Kate Jones on

kate.l.jones@ehi.com

We would love for you to be a part of this special event because together we can achieve something incredible for our patients.

For more information, to book your table at our ball, or to arrange a catch up about how we might work together collaboratively to support our trust and to save more lives, please email

aimee.clare@liverpoolft.nhs.uk

The Women’s Health Information & Support Centre (WHISC) is a charity dedicated to improving the health and wellbeing of women and their families throughout Liverpool and the surrounding areas. Founded as a grass roots organisation in 1984, our centre is currently based on Bold Street, in the heart of Liverpool City Centre. WHISC is for all women, including women who are amongst the most vulnerable, isolated and marginalised members of our communities.

Our vision is to help women thrive and our mission is to empower women in the Liverpool City Region with knowledge and person-centred support, to become the best version of themselves. We do this through information, education, skills building and psychological support.

WHISC is a community hub of recovery focused services, offering an immediate service at the point of contact. Activities include sessions on health promotion, skills building, support, creating connections, advocacy, wellbeing and mental health. Our aim is that women become empowered to seek optimum physical and mental health for themselves and we do this by reducing barriers, increasing positive health behaviours, improving confidence and building resilience. We work closely with local partners and invite them in to WHISC, to speak with women in a space where they feel safe and comfortable.

For many vulnerable women, this can be the catalyst to accessing mainstream services and making informed choices. Offering improved access, choice and autonomy in decision making, means that women have greater control of their health and wellbeing outcomes. At the centre, we deliver activities and services through one to one sessions, group work, peer support, volunteering, coaching, training, information and signposting. We also deliver targeted outreach services, in communities of high deprivation and greatest need. Current activities can be found on https://whisc.org.uk/ whats-on-at-whisc-the-womens-charity/ Increasingly, since the global pandemic began women are accessing WHISC for support with food vouchers, toiletries, sanitary products and baby goods such as baby milk, nappies, wipes and baby clothes. 33% of women accessing WHISC this year, have at least one child. Women are walking for miles to reach us, just so they can provide basic essentials for themselves and their families. This includes women who have some form of employment.

Only 18% of women who attend WHISC are in regular employment and with increasing strains on daily living costs, poverty and associated mental health symptoms, are one of the reasons women are currently presenting at WHISC. Thanks to the generous donations we receive from individuals and organisations across Liverpool, we are able to support with some basic essentials in the short term and in the longer term, we can refer to our partners who provide anti-poverty support.

WHISC also has an incredible team of volunteers, some of whom have previously accessed our services. We also have volunteers who are professionals from health, education and community services, as well as students with a particular interest in health and social care or women’s services. Our volunteer staff support and strengthen the work we do, though the wealth of skills, knowledge and experience they bring, as well as dedication and commitment to the work we deliver.

Our service also has a proud history of working with local universities, offering placements and research opportunities to students in health and social care. Many of these students’ volunteer at the centre beyond their placement, as they witness the impact of our services and want to stay involved.

Women are often the experts in their own lives, but the effects of poor physical and mental health, job losses, poverty, bereavement and the impact of violence against women and girls can be devastating and long lasting. Our aim is to offer hope and a safe space, where women can begin to recover from painful experiences and life events. Through creating strong connections and building resilient communities, women can support each other to achieve lasting and positive change.

If you would like any more information or to donate, please visit www.whisc.org.uk/donate