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Stephanie Moore and Elaine Williams Credit: Jonathan Wilson

It’s time to make wellness a business priority

As we face increasing economic turbulence and unprecedented challenges to our collective wellbeing, looking after the health of our teams has never been more important to maintaining a resilient workforce.

Research by McKinsey in April 2021 revealed that 79% of consumers believe wellness is important and nearly half consider it a top priority. Further research by Ceridian found that 74% of British workers have experienced burnout. For businesses, high staff turnover and low morale is far more damaging and costly than investing in your employees’ welfare. In the post-pandemic era, health, wellbeing, resilience and self-care have become a real focus, with people increasingly looking for ways to become more resilient and manage stress better. Acclaimed ‘home of speed’, Goodwood, recognises this and has assembled a team of industry-leading experts specialising in resilience, stress management, brain function, performance psychology and nutrition. Isobel Starbuck, Director of Estate Sales, explains: “Over the last 18-months we’ve seen a significant increase in businesses requesting something more than the stereotypical away-day content. They want to demonstrate to their employees that their health and wellbeing matters, worklife balance matters. They recognise that this investment will not only aid employee retention, but also the professional performance of the individual and the business as a whole.”

Goodwood’s Directory of Wellbeing experts allows you to pick and choose the content; whether it’s a business mini-retreat, weaving wellbeing sessions into your strategic ‘away days’ or ensuring your employees have the necessary skills and knowledge to support a healthier, smarter and more productive way of working. All sessions take place at The Goodwood Hotel and Health Club with a key focus on gut health; drawing on their organic field-to-fork philosophy and organic farming principles, with sustainably sourced produce of the very highest quality. The key retreats at Goodwood are spearheaded by The Duchess of Richmond, and include:

The Gut Health Programme is a five-day holistic retreat expertly designed to have a restorative effect on both body and mind. Run by celebrity nutritionist and health guru Stephanie Moore. The Executive Programme is a lifechanging 5-day retreat designed to address the mental and physical toll of a high-pressured life. It includes personalised private sessions and talks with executive coaches and specialists in residence, such as clinical health psychologist Julie Stokes OBE and ex-international rugby star Lee Mears.

The Menopause Retreat is a three-day wellness retreat full of advice and evidencebased information you need to take control of your menopause. It’s designed to help women take control of what can be a very debilitating time in their lives, with specialist input from naturopathic physician Kate Fismer and Stephanie Moore.

The Wim Hof Method Retreat combines specialist techniques with the principles of good gut health to encourage natural healing, both mentally and physically. Based on decades of scientific study and self-exploration, its methods are proven to boost energy and mood, reduce stress and strengthen the immune system, among other benefits.

When it comes to ‘practicing what it preaches’, Goodwood is firmly committed to offering a comprehensive wellbeing programme for its own team, as Isobel explains.

“Our managers are all trained in mental health awareness, with designated mental health first aiders available on the Estate.

“Discounted private health screenings are also provided to our team, along with weekly fitness classes, workshops on managing stress, sleep and menopause, unlimited access to a 24/7 virtual GP, and much more.

“Goodwood is very conscious that the way we work has a hugely positive impact on our people, so we very much want to lead by example.”

Discover more about Goodwood’s Health and Wellbeing packages at goodwood.com

“Goodwood is very conscious that the way we work has a hugely positive impact on our people, so we very much want to lead by example.”

Isobel Starbuck

Director of Estate Sales, Goodwood

Community Transport Sussex on track to help reduce social isolation & isolation in the county

Community Transport Sussex (CTS) is the leading provider of community transport services in Sussex, working in practical and creative ways to reduce social isolation across the county through the provision of safe, accessible, supported, door-to-door transport for those who have difficulty accessing the mainstream transport network.

Matt Roberts

CEO, Community Transport Sussex

CTS was formed in 2016 when Crawley Community Transport, Bluebird Community Partnership and Horsham District Community Transport all merged. In 2021, it welcomed Dial A Ride Southern Services to the group. As a group of charities, it covers the Horsham District, Crawley, a large stretch of the Sussex coast and the Mid-Sussex District, which includes Haywards Heath, Burgess Hill, East Grinstead, and the surrounding villages as well as Worthing and soon a depot will open in Chichester which shows the strategic ambitions of the organisation. Pre pandemic CTS was delivering 120,000 passenger journeys per year and heading towards those levels again. In the year up to October 2022 there were 4500 active members for whom 118,000 journeys were delivered. Having evolved from a small service with a handful of minibuses to a nationally recognised award-winning transport provider. It looks set to achieve its overall aim of a wholly integrated community transport network across Sussex. The services covered by this organisation have become a lifeline for thousands of residents of Sussex as support is given to anyone in the community who struggles to access public transport due to age, sickness, disability, or a lack of accessible transport in their area. Community Transport is so much more than getting people from A to B – it is a way for people to feel connected and engaged. The organisation has grown exponentially. Turnover has more than doubled and they have managed to deliver more services whilst maintaining the charities sustainability. Matt Roberts, CEO, has been the powerhouse behind the charity for the last 15 years, pushing it forward to be agile as well as entrepreneurial in decisions on projects and services to reach and support as many people as possible especially in the rural areas across Sussex. Matt said ‘Our work at CTS is all about connecting people to reduce social isolation and loneliness. Transport is often the forgotten issue when we think about reducing loneliness in society. We take an innovative approach such as our Travel Buddy scheme to alleviate this but everything we do connects people. Time and time again people who use the service tell us how they depend on our services and how it just makes their life better and that is what motivates me and my colleagues to always do our best because we know so many people depend on us’, Synonymous with implementing high standards of delivery and service, CTS has now evolved to become a leading infrastructure organisation for community groups for whom transport is an element of their delivery. In achieving this, it has become a truly collaborative focused organisation at the heart of the county which feeds into planning processes by engaging with parish councils to contributing to local council plans. In October 2022, Arun District Council became the first in West Sussex to engage CTS to deliver a dedicated Community Transport plan for their district. Through their work with local authorities, NHS and Other VCSO’s during the pandemic, they have now a countywide reach across West Sussex and are able to help many more members of our community. Bringing together statutory, voluntary sector groups, health care professionals and networks in meaningful working partnerships is a core strength. The ethos of CTS is rooted in collaboration with partners as well as ensuring value for money and reinvestment into the running of its services. This was evident for example during the Covid pandemic which led to meaningful relationships across the board to help get hundreds of Sussex residents to their local vaccination centre and appointments and services never ceased. They have provided or facilitated more than of 2500 journeys to vaccine centres, to those who would not otherwise been able to get there The services span an impressive list including Dial A Ride, special educational need school contracts, excursions, community group hire to volunteer car drivers to Travel Buddy schemes. Embedded deep in the community in which it operates, CTS has helped many different sectors of our community from assisting refugees and asylum seekers to get about to delivering bikes to Ukrainian refugees. The scope of the work is vast and impressive and means so much to people who without it would be cut off from living a full and engaged life in their local area. Their mission is to support communities to stay connected with accessible transport for anyone who needs it across Sussex. They use top rated local businesses to provide services ensuring the smooth running of the organisation such as ABCOM IT Solutions. Given the history, achievements, strategic plans, loyalty of service users and level of commitment of staff, volunteers, and trustees, it is on track to not only reach its notable mission but to exceed it.

CTS is also delighted to have received funding from Motability to launch the first electric vehicle car club in Sussex.

This innovative new initiative will see 2 EV’s provided to a rural community where transport links are sparse. CTS will recruit a volunteer coordinator and volunteer drivers around those cars, to help those without transport to get out and about. At all other times when the volunteer drivers are not using the cars, they will be available to the wider community to hire as part of the Local Community Car Club Initiative(LECCI). It is hoped that this will reduce second car use and be a real asset to the community. If this 18-month proof of concept is successful, then more will be rolled out across the county.

For more information contact:

www.ctsussex.org.uk Tel 01444 471919

THE CHAMBER FOUR SERVICES

CHAMBER HR • CHAMBER LEGAL • CHAMBER HEALTH & SAFETY • CHAMBER TAX

CALL 01455 852037

Unique Business Christmas Lunch on Board the Bluebell’s Famous Golden Arrow Dining Train

Featuring 1920’s Pullman cars ‘Fingall’ and ‘Christine’ and 1950’s first class Ocean Saloon car ‘Saphire’, this silver service dining train recreates the glamour of travel in a bygone age. Dining trains depart from Sheffield Park station at noon on Thurs 1st, Fri 2nd, Weds 7th, Thurs 8th, Weds 14th, Thurs 15th, Fri 16th, Tues 20th and Weds 21st December. Tickets cost £95 per person (inc. VAT) including travel by steam train and lunch and coffee. Drinks are extra and can be purchased on board. The journey lasts approximately 1 3/4 hours.

More details at www.bluebell-railway.com/ the-golden-arrow-christmas-luncheon or contact bizevents@bluebell-railway.com

3 for 2 on Premier Case Studies

Market your business and help your prospects along the sales funnel with compelling customer success stories. Premier case studies give you a readyto-go marketing pack including social content, branded pdf for your sales team, bullet-point marketing summary for angles and takeaways for promoting your case study and a 500-word article which can be used for relevant industry or chamber of commerce media.

www.thecontentmaven.co.uk Free Staff Wellbeing support for Mid Sussex Organisations

We would like to highlight our Free staff wellbeing service across Mid Sussex.

The Wellbeing Service has launched virtual support for Mid Sussex based employees and continues to offer FREE health talks and one-to-one support.

The current services provided are: Health talks - covering topics such as Menopause, Stress & Resilience, Sleep and Breaking Habits. We also have Physical Activity sessions for staff, up to 6 one-to-one sessions around lifestyle and 30 Minute Wellbeing MOTs.

If you would like to book any of the Free staff wellbeing support above, please E-mail Julia.meckael@midsussex.gov.uk or contact me on 07395283602.

Up to 15% off wine cases

To celebrate the festive season we are offering exclusive discounts across our mixed and single variety wine cases. Buy a case of 6 and receive 10% discount, buy a case of 12 and you’ll get 15% off. No code needed, simply add the case to your basket and proceed to checkout.

Discount already applied: www.bolneywineestate.

com/product-category/english-wine 15% off all drone services

Greyhawk Media is delighted to offer 15% off all drone services to Chamber members.

www.greyhawkmedia.co.uk

Support for Flexible, Hybrid and Remote working environments

We have been working in a flexible, hybrid, remote and international environment for a couple of decades. Contact us for an informal chat and decide on your custom hybrid work strategy. We can impart what we have learned, find out what works for you, help you manage your staff and managers in this challenging environment.

Call Richard on 07831 196534 Website: www.associate-planet.com/blogs.shtml