The trackinsideonrailmail TRAIN THOUGHTOF AUTUMN 2022 Commonwealth GamesThe Big Interview Rowland Hill Fund A performanceRoyalwinningMailRicky McAulay on ourreinventingbusiness I didn’t want to admit that I needed help A yourhoteltwo-nightbreakofchoice WIN!mybundleplus.myroyalmail.com courier @linney.comWeneedto change to win Update | Inspire | Celebrate
*Figures are based on a 20% tax payer with no additional optional extras (unless otherwise stated) on a 36 month, 5,000 miles per annum selection for a Peugeot E-208 5 Door Hatch 50kWh 136 Electric Active Premium Plus. Insurance has been included for a 40-year-old driver living in postcode PE4 and may vary. Pricing as at 04/05/22 and subject to change. Contact Zenith for more information. Includes all maintenance and servicing, road tax, insurance, breakdown and recovery, tyres, glass and accident management. Offer excludes manufacturer price increases. Images are for illustration purposes only. Terms and conditions apply. Early termination fees are payable. Full details about the scheme can be found at mybundleplus. myroyalmail.com. The benefit is available to current, permanent Royal Mail Group employees only, subject to eligibility and availability. 1 of 5 Vue cinema tickets worth £50 Prize Draw: terms and conditions apply, please visit zenith.co.uk/prizedraw for more details. **With salary sacrifice, you can save on BiK tax if you choose an EV. Average saving over the length of the vehicle term when comparing the salary sacrifice car scheme to personal contract hire using the same car and the same vehicle term, annual mileage and driver age and postcode. See what you could save Log in mybundleplus.myroyalmail.com Email newcar@zenith.co.uk Call 0330 134 8792 If you choose an electric vehicle (EV) through salary exchange, you could typically save 30-50%** and a whole load of hassle. It’s a no brainer. Get more car for your money benefit from our hot deals thanks to our buying power and lower running costs if you drive an electric Order in just a few clicks browse, quote and order online with a large range of models from all leading manufacturers All-inclusive package a brand-new car, insurance, maintenance and more and no upfront payments or credit checks DRIVE ELECTRICBRAND-NEWACAR THE ROYAL MAIL MYDRIVE SCHEME £96 OR £417 per week* PEUGEOT E-208 FROM per month* DRIVE ANWINELECTRIC1OF 5 £50 VUE GIFT CARDS Get a quote by 31st August for your chance to win.
GET IN TOUCH
We want our trusted posties to keep going everywhere, every day. Just in a different way.
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To notify HR of a change of address, employees should email HRSC.Personal.Data@royalmail.com or write to The HR Service Centre, Pond Street, Sheffield S98 6HR Pensioners should write to: Pensions Services Centre, PO Box 5863, HRSC, Pond Street, Sheffield S98 6AB
THE SIMPLE TRUTH IS THAT WE ARE AT A CROSSROADS.
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We need to change –and change now
MAMS, 4 Middleton Grove, Leeds LS11 5BX
And our customers have told us they want that too.
Share your feedback and stories.
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DISTRIBUTION
Before the pandemic, we were a letters business in decline. But over the 18 months, thanks to the e-commerce boom, almost £6 out of every £10 we earn now comes from parcels.
Workplace.com 3
For instance, we are asking our team to work on a Sunday every now and again. To work fewer hours per day when we are quiet and more hours when we are busy. And to start later in the day so we can deliver midnight e-commerce orders the next day. The average length of service at Royal Mail is 17 years. We are an organisation where people stay because it is more than just a job. Our team is proud to provide our services to everyone.
We want to continue to offer our team the best terms and conditions in the industry and long-term job security. We do not want a race to the bottom. We do not want zero-hour contracts.
We are now a parcels business that delivers letters. We have spent £900m over the last three years on our infrastructure, so we can be fit for a parcel future. We are making these investments to meet the needs of our customers – both our retailers that send products, and the consumers that send and receive them.
Our future is as a seven-day parcel service, with ultra-low emissions, and delivered by a postie their customers trust – as well as continuing to deliver letters. Our operation is 100% optimised for letters. Now we need to be 100% optimised for parcels.
Team – I know that the current atmosphere in the company is not great. There is uncertainty everywhere, both inside and outside of Royal Mail. But the simple truth is that we are at a crossroads, and we must change now. I am afraid to say we are back to where we were before the pandemic – we are losing £1 million a day.
We want the best people to work at Royal Mail.Changeis
tough. We know that. But we do need to change – and change now.
To advertise in the next edition of Courier, email royalmailadvertising@linney.com for details of availability, suitability and rates. Courier is delivered to c.145,000 homes four times a year.
So, alongside building two giant parcelsorting Super Hubs, updating our mail centres to handle parcels efficiently and investing in low-emission vehicles, we also need to change our ways of working.
TEAM Rachel Brennan –Editor at Royal DamonMailParkin –Editor at Linney Create
WRITE Courier, Linney Create, Adamsway, Mansfield, Nottinghamshire NG18 4FW
MAILING
ADVERTISING
AUTUMN 2022 COVER Eddie Brown photographed for Courier at The Princess Royal Distribution Centre on 24 July 2022.
SIMON THOMPSON CEO Royal Mail
Download the Royal Mail Health app or scan the QR code to register.
Parcelforce’s Leads to Success has been rebranded Watch&Win – the same as Royal Mail’s ‘spotter scheme’.
Just what the doctor ordered
The name might have changed for Parcelforce colleagues, but the scheme is the same – thousands of pounds worth of rewards are still available if you identify business opportunities and submit leads.
We’ve partnered with Pharmacy2U – the UK’s largest online pharmacy – to deliver NHS prescriptions reliably and safely. This is a major step for our new business division, Royal Mail Health.
MIKE’S MEMORIES
09
GOOD TO KNOW
Based in our Midlands Super Hub, the flagship site will equip managers with industry-leading skills to accelerate our transformation and better meet the changing demands of our customers.
Chief commercial officer Nick Landon says the new Royal Mail Health business – and our ‘prescription posties’ – will allow us to expand into the growing healthcare at home industry.
“Whether this is a postie checking up on a vulnerable customer or developing our partnership with Pharmacy2U – we know that investing in alternative access to healthcare is what our customers want,” said Nick.
WATCH Scan the code for an RMtv feature on the Royal Mail Academy.
“This is about giving it your all and soaking up whatever knowledge there is to be soaked up,”
We’ve passed the significant milestone of 3,000 electric vehicles, with 70 delivery offices having made the transition.
Our new Royal Mail Academy is open, ready to develop the next generation of leadership talent in our business.
GET INVOLVED
Crown Award winner Philip’s crash drama. 21
Major prizes are up for grabs as our Workplace Fantasy Football returns. Win Premier League match tickets and UK breaks.
ROUND-UP
HIGH-STREET HERO
said parcel customer operations manager and Academy participant, Ali Tameem. “You’re going to be able to project that to the wider group.”
In issuethis
IT’S COMING HOME
Much-needed delivery office upgrades have been completed at 36 sites as part of the first 100. Work is beginning on 22 more.
CHARGING AHEAD
“Once you’ve made that first successful lead, it gives you a buzz to go on and spot others,” said Mohsin Ali, a regular spotter from Bolton’s finance team.
Autumn 20224
All NHS patients in England can now use the new Royal Mail Health app to arrange free delivery of their prescriptions following the exclusive launch of the service for our colleagues earlier this year.
FRESHEN UP
Spot a lead to win
Royal Mail colleagues can earn up to £1,000 by spotting and sharing just one successful lead – with Parcelforce people landing up to £1,160. Find out more at parcelforce.com/lead or royalmail.com/watchandwin
Young apprentice reflects on his first year as a postie.
Nurturing our future leaders
Normal prescription charges apply and the service is currently only available in England as other NHS bodies don’t yet offer online prescriptions.
KNOW
Use your smart device’s camera to scan codes throughout this edition of Courier for more features and interviews.
Happy birthday to ewe
The Lionesses also received a message of support from Buxton postie Janet Clark – a member of the first England Ladies squad in 1972.
Visit royalmailpensionplan.co.uk for more details and a short film to help you.
Lionesses make their mark
ROYAL MAIL APP
Capita will separately provide an update covering everything built up in the Royal Mail Statutory Pension Scheme before April 2012 and this should arrive around the same time. Members can combine the two to see the total benefits built up from both schemes.
My secret life as an iconic movie villain. 22
HORROR STORY
Be a flu fighter
Recipients of mail featuring a barcoded stamp can now watch an exclusive video featuring Shaun the Sheep wishing them a happy birthday.
The video, which can be viewed by scanning the stamp in the Royal Mail app, was created by award-winning British animation studio Aardman. It’s the third in a series of planned videos to be released during 2022 that will allow customers sending stamped mail to choose which video the recipient can see when they receive an item of mail.
USING QR CODES
Royal Mail Pension Plan members will receive a personalised annual benefit illustration at home by the end of this month. It will show the benefits built up since April 2012.
We applied a special congratulatory postmark to stamped mail from 1-6 August to celebrate England’s first-class victory in the Euro 2022 Wembley final.
WATCH Scan the QR code to learn more about Janet and to hear her message to the England
COURIER CATCH-UP Browse previous issues at myroyalmail.com/ courier or by scanning the QR code. This edition will appear online around three weeks after it’s been delivered.
Free flu vaccinations for Royal Mail people are available at Morrisons, Tesco, Lloyds, Superdrug, Well and Asda Pharmacies from 19 September. Visit digitalflu.co.uk to book your appointment and download a voucher using company code R5M9G7. Scan the QR code for details on how to receive your flu vaccination.free
team.Workplace.com 5
Benefits update lands in September
ROUND-UP TO
GOOD
Our business is at a crossroads and change is vital for everyone’s longterm job security. At our trading update for the first quarter of 2022/23, we revealed we’re losing around £1 million a day. CEO Simon Thompson said that this is ‘putting all our jobs at risk’. We’re proposing changes in several areas that will help transform Royal Mail and see the company grow.
CEO Simon Thompson and other Royal Mail leaders are touring the country for Workplace conversations with colleagues focused on transformation, growth and prosperity.
Simon Thompson met posties Gary Chapman, from Leatherhead Delivery Office, and Sophie Antonucci at Peterborough as part of a series of Workplace films answering your questions on our plans. He was joined by Francis Williams, from our commercial property and central programme team, who shared more details behind two key proposals: later start times and Sunday working.
The change we need
SIMON: What is it about the early finish?
SIMON: Later start times, Gary. What’s on the team’s mind? What are they worried about?
Autumn 20226 AUTUMN 2022
OUR FUTURE
Simon visited Leatherhead Delivery Office, with Francis Williams from our commercial property and central programme team, to meet postie Gary Chapman (above).
GARY: In the team’s view, it’s just another kick in the teeth. Personally, it’s the worst one. I’ve done 25 years’ service and the main reason is the early finish.
GARY: Being able to pick my kids up from school instead of seeing them every other weekend – it’s absolutely priceless. Childcare is expensive, as everybody knows. My mum is ill now and is in the first stages of dementia. You’re halving the time I’m going to be able to have with her.
Later start times
SIMON: Picking up on Gary’s point about the Amazon vans being out early and ours won’t be.
FRANCIS: We’re still looking to be starting at 8am. We’re not giving up the mornings. And we’re not going to be delivering until 9-10pm. For core deliveries, the majority of our colleagues will be back by 4-5pm at the latest. Mostly by 4pm.
SIMON: Francis, let’s start with the customer because what I’m hearing is everyone else is out in the morning and we’re deserting our customers – particularly things like 9am Special Deliveries. What’s your take?
GARY: 2pm. It gives you just about the right amount of time. My eldest is 23, he’s been in a relationship for four years, children are imminent. And for a grandparent to pick their grandchildren up – it saves an absolute fortune.
Amazon vans are going out earlier and earlier. Our vans are going out later and later. As a customer, the first delivery services you see are the organised ones. We’re going to look disorganised – summer with the heat and darkness in the winter.
FOR MORE Scan the QR code for details of the proposed network start and finish times model for your office.
Workplace.com 7
WE NEED TO BE SENSITIVE AND LOOK AT HOW WE MANAGE CHANGE.
SIMON: What’s the truth?
FRANCIS: We’re not deserting our customers. This is all about the customer. This is about growth, future growth and the prosperity of Royal Mail for everyone. A few years ago, we were a letters company delivering some parcels. Now, with 60p
SIMON: What time do you finish now?
in every £1 coming from parcels, we’re a parcels company that delivers letters. We’re talking about how we grow and take our market share of parcels.
FRANCIS: We expect 20% of walks or offices to move by an hour in terms of their start times today, about 70% between one hour and two hours and then another 10% above two or three hours. We need to be totally sensitive and look at how we manage this change over a few years.
SIMON: You think the start times are going to move to 12pm?
GARY: Are we actually going to have a premium service to give to our customers?
Options are for discussion only and not formal proposals. All options subject to negotiation and consultation where appropriate (including any timescales).
SIMON: Out of 1,286 delivery offices, 416 will do a Sunday. That means there’s a lot won’t be doing a Sunday. Even if it’s a Sunday delivery hub – not everybody in that hub will have to do the Sunday; actually there will be a broader catchment to cover off the Sunday.
FRANCIS: We’re not asking everyone in Delivery to work every Sunday. Currently, we have about 4,000 colleagues – half of them are Royal Mail people. We need to look at some duty patterns that work for everybody that are standard and allows us to work five days over seven. It’s not a blunt instrument to say everybody has to work on a Sunday – we have to make it fair. To make it
KEEP IN TOUCH Scan the QR code to follow The Change We Need group on Workplace for further Q&As on other key proposals, from allowances and absence policy, to flexible hours and an ‘above and beyond’ bonus.
FOR MORE Scan the QR code for details of the expected people requirements and a list of Sunday hubs and supporting delivery offices for Sunday working.
Sunday working
SIMON: What’s the voice of our people in Peterborough about Sundays? What’s your take?
SIMON: What’s your sense about growing Sundays as a business? Does it make sense to you?
SIMON: How can we make it work?
SIMON: Should we employ new people on weekend contracts?
Autumn 20228
Simon and Francis visited Peterborough Delivery Office to chat with postie Sophie Antonucci (above).
SOPHIE: That they don’t want to do them. It’s their weekend and they enjoy their Saturday nights and it’s not a working day for us.
SIMON: Francis, lots of the team are asking about the impact Sundays will have on childcare, family commitments and going to church.
FRANCIS: I agree – and we have. In the last couple of years, through advertising Sundays as a day of working, we’ve recruited over 7,000 colleagues. Currently, we’re looking for around 4,000 colleagues delivering on a Sunday. By the end of the year we’re looking for nearer 12,000. Clearly, we need to do this in a way that brings our customers and people with us and I’d say it will take a year to 18 months to get to that state.
FRANCIS: Yes, and that happens today.
SOPHIE: To have volunteers. There will be a handful of people who want to do it. But to make it compulsory, that’s not something I think people would buy into.
successful and grow we need to recognise we’ve got to do it.
SOPHIE: Completely, yes. We’ve got to keep up with Amazon and other companies out there that are delivering on Sundays – I’m completely behind that. In terms of making it a working day, the staff won’t come on board.
Today, he’s the youngest apprentice in the west, and growing in confidence every day, all thanks, he says, to the support of his workmates at Winterbourne Delivery Office in Gloucestershire.
“I saw the opportunity at Royal Mail and chatted to a neighbour who already worked there. The more I looked into it, the more I wanted it.
“You hear stories from other posties,” adds Mike, “but it’s the first time I’ve ever experienced anything like that myself.”
Mike kept a cool head, flagging down a passer-by to help while he called 999, then waiting for the ambulance. He discovered that the injury had been a serious fracture when a relative of the elderly woman stopped by the office to thank him.
It’s a modest recollection from a young man who, just a couple of months into the job, came to the aid of an elderly woman in distress while out on his round.
As the latest apprentices prepare to join our business, Mike has advice for our new recruits.
“I was so nervous on my first day,” says Mike, casting his mind back to September 2021. “But I’ve had so much help.”
During the pandemic, Mike, now 18, was in the first locked-down year group that didn’t sit their GCSEs. He left school with his predicted grades and spent a year training to be an electrician, but knew deep down it wasn’t for him.
Learn one thing at a time. No one can do it all at once. And ask for help whenever you need it. People will always support you. Prepare to be busy, not just at Christmas, but every day. No two days are the same and the time will fly. Remember, it’s normal to struggle sometimes –we all have those days. It will be hard work, but stick with it and enjoy the sense of achievement.
When 17-year-old Mike Coles took a chance on a Royal Mail Postal Apprenticeship, he never imagined he’d land an interview, let alone a shot at his first proper job.
“She was leaning against a bin, saying she’d hurt her back. She was clearly in a lot of pain. It was a quiet street and I was the first person she’d seen.”
Mike’s top tips for new apprentices
“I feel really lucky to have this as my first job.”
As we prepare to welcome up to 500 new Postal Apprentices, Courier meets Mike Coles, one of the youngest members of last year’s intake. And, as first jobs go, it’s already been an eventful one.
Workplace.com 9 POSTAL APPRENTICES OUR PEOPLE
The Postal Apprenticeship Scheme provides school and college leavers with the opportunity to achieve a level 2 certification while completing on-the-job training as a postie, as well as learning work and life skills to help set them up to succeed in the future.
Up to 500 apprentices will be joining our business this year as we continue to reinvent Royal Mail for the next generations.
Year in the life of modest Mike
Returning to his home town reminds operations development director Ricky McAulay of life as a postal cadet on a Glasgow round in the 1980s. His frontline experience drives his determination to deliver the change we need to secure our future.
Autumn 202210
ROUTESTOBACKMY
BETTER CONNECTED
fourth decade with a company he calls ‘incredible’. But he can’t escape a feeling that the changing nature of our industry means that the challenge facing Royal Mail has never been greater. Ricky’s experience delivers unrivalled insights into Royal Mail’s transformation. He’s heavily involved in talks with our trade unions, is leading the biggest restructure in Delivery we’ve probably ever experienced and is a prominent voice in proposing the changes we need to grow and stave off the threat of our competitors.
Workplace.com 11 THE BIG INTERVIEW RICKY
“It was an advert in the Glasgow Evening Times that my mum put in front of me,” recalls Ricky. “I’d just left school, I was 16 and it was a postal cadet advert. It certainly wouldn’t have entered my mind that, 36 years on, I’d still be here.
WE’RE GETTING TO THE POINT OF HAVING A LEADER WITH A SMALLER TEAM TO WORK WITH — AND THAT FRONTLINE LEADER’S RELATIONSHIP WITH THEIR TEAM IS THE MOST IMPORTANT IN OUR BUSINESS.
FROM postal cadet to operations development director and a career spent entirely with Royal Mail... there are few people better placed to reflect on the reinvention of our business thanRickyRicky McAulay.iswellintohis
BUILDPROTECT,CHERISH,
“A lot of cadets developed different careers. There are others who, when I go back to Glasgow, have been posties all their lives and are still going strong, looking after our customers.” Mc AULAY
That’s now. But how did he get to this point?
PAST, PRESENT, FUTURE Ricky visits The Postal Museum to explore its new exhibition, Sorting Britain: The Power of Postcodes, which runs until January 2023 and (above) meets colleagues in a London delivery office.
After two years as a postie at Rutherglen Delivery Office on the south side of Glasgow, Ricky’s leadership potential was spotted and, aged 20, he took his first managerial position as a line manager in East Kilbride. Further experience followed in Dumbarton, Cumbernauld and Dunfermline, before Ricky moved on to work in Sheffield, Liverpool, Rugby and London. These days, he goes wherever his role dictates. But stepping back to where it all began keeps him connected to today’s operation.“Iwasapostiealong time ago and the job has changed so much,” he says. “There are so many more parcels, different interactions through different technology. For example, our Special Delivery product was called ‘Registered’. It was a piece of paper a customer signed that you’d glue into a book and keep for several years, in case of enquiries. A lot goes through our PDAs now and we’ve so many different products and features.
CHRIS: Why do you want us to work later? With childcare, it would mean I have to leave. After 10 years of good service, it feels like a betrayal.
times went to 3pm from 1pm, so people have made these adjustments in the past. We need later start times so we can efficiently handle the growth in larger next-day parcels, whilst also lowering our emissions by using fewer flights. It’s responding to what customers want and, if we’re not relevant to customers, we lose our place in the market. We want the business to thrive and be successful.”
THE BIG INTERVIEW
LAURA: Are letters and the six-day Universal Service Obligation (USO) holding us back?
“For me, it was wooden pigeon-hole frames and two deliveries a day. I’d be out for two or three hours in the morning, back for a bit of breakfast, then out again. It’d be a 5am start and I was always done in time for Pebble Mill at One on BBC1.
RICKY: Letters aren’t holding the company back and are still massively important. The USO, however, needs to be sustainable; it can’t hold the company back and we know letter volume has been declining for many years. If you look across the world, some countries have moved to five or even three days for letters. We need to make sure the Universal Service stays relevant and financially sustainable.
Laura Cornish Courier Editorial Panel member and Mossley Hill postie
The reinvention of Royal Mail is in flight but is in danger of being held back. As revealed through our first quarter trading update in July, we’re in tough financial times and the change we need is faltering against a backdrop of unrest. Ricky, though, is adamant we will get to where we need to be.
Reinvention for relevance
Chris Robbins Courier Editorial Panel member and Bradford postie
OLD SCHOOL
RICKY Mc AULAY
Ricky says: “Part of our current considerations is to move the network back to a later time. We made a big change when finish
“It was 95% letters. The mailbag and shape of what we do now is fundamentally different. Unfortunately, most of our offices remain set up for letters – that’s one of our big challenges. How do we set up for the final mile and what is the best way to prepare letters and parcels for delivery?” Which brings us on to our proposals to shift the network.
RICKY: There is no doubt this is a big issue to resolve, and we should work to try and mitigate for some colleagues who just can’t adjust, even with a phased approach over a number of years. Later starts will help some colleagues in the pre-school window but there’s a challenge at the back end of the day. We would not be proposing this change if we didn’t consider it essential to everyone’s future; we need to reduce our reliance on the air network. It’s capacity constrained, quality of service is poorer than road and rail and emissions are significantly higher. We need more time in the middle of the network, which means letters and parcels won’t arrive as they do today – they will arrive a bit later. We need to organise our operation around what customers expect, not on the basis of how it looks today, that’s how we will grow.
Ricky begins life as a postal cadet.
“Royal Mail has an incredible history of reinventing itself when it needs to. Any organisation survives by being relevant to its customers. We’ve a plan to keep us relevant. What we don’t need is a long, prolonged, difficult dispute that turns our customers to our competitors. It’s not like it was 20-30 years ago when we had a monopoly on letters; the parcel market is fierce and our competitors are ready.
Holiday destination: The Alps and Pyrenees, particularly during the Tour de France.
Place: I live on the outskirts of Edinburgh but love going back to Glasgow for a night out.
Kamil Sterniczuk Courier Editorial Panel member and Stafford postie
The USO needs to be affordable. It can’t hold the company back.
Music: Varied – from classical to pop and a bit of rock.
Film: The Matrix trilogy.
KAMIL: What are our biggest threats?
RICKY: Our ability to change. Don’t worry about our competitors – they’ll do what they do. What we can influence is modernising and investing in the business, changing and innovating to remain relevant, speeding up the pace of change and working together to be brilliant for our customers.
Workplace.com 13
Sport: Cycling. I clock up the miles on my road bike.
RICKY: If the overall network runs later, then we’re able to connect a lot more of the current LAT volume into the core network. But it will depend on the final design. It will depend on where you are in the country and the shape of the overall agreement we eventually reach. The cost of delivering a parcel on core is much lower than on an LAT network in the afternoon, so it’s cheaper for us to deliver it in our core deliveries to make us more competitive. Plus, we typically have better quality in core. Dedicated parcel routes are important for the delivery of our larger parcels. That is unchanged. On later start times generally, we’re looking at how we can accommodate our people and are working through the details.
How will proposed later start times affect our Later Acceptance Times (LAT) model?
RICKY Mc AULAY
THE BIG INTERVIEW
leading people; how you build a successful team, deal with challenges and recognise and“We’recelebrate success.focusingonthe right people in the right roles. The vast majority are trying to make it work and are positively engaging and I’m hugely grateful to them for that.” And ever grateful he is, too, for his mum showing him that advert.
RICKY: The presence of senior leaders in the operation on a Sunday – and in afternoons, with parcel volumes increasing – needs to increase in proportion to where the operation is. Leaders need to be visible in the operation to understand what’s going on and to help fix any problems. We see it with Peak, of course, where senior leaders work across the weekend – and that’s only right. So, it’s something that we need to review and, as the volume grows, so does the demand for visible leadership.
PAUL: With more Sunday working for the frontline, will senior leaders work Sundays too?
“I was involved in the reduction of 68 mail centres to 37,” he recalls. “That was a huge change and impacted tens of thousands of people in Processing. We worked very hard with the trade unions to balance a big change programme that impacted many people, with no industrial action. We made our mail centres more fit for purpose for parcels and we did it together.”
Ricky meets with posties at one of our London delivery offices.
LISTENING MODE
“Weso. had 3,000 managers in the Delivery operation and 1,750 had no scorecard accountability. That’s 60% of managers whose contribution to the business is not visible. We won’t succeed in that way. We’re getting to the point of having a leader with a smaller team to work with – and that frontline leader’s relationship with their team is the most important in our business.
Paul Stewart Courier Editorial Panel member and Hedge End postie
Autumn 202214
Ricky speaks from experience.
“Driving our green agenda will differentiate us in the market. In parallel, we are making a huge investment in automation to drive down the cost of parcels and get much closer to Evri’s price point. With a more efficient network that delivers what customers expect, we can win and “Whengrow.wegalvanise and work together we can beat the competition, but we won’t beat them by fighting each other.”
Robyn ROBYN:CarlisleKrieseMailCentre
“It’s a massive change and I don’t underestimate the challenge people will find transitioning from a way of working that’s been established for a long time, to a new way,’ he admits. “We’ve deployed the structure and are committed to listening –responding and tweaking when it’s right to do
Back to the present day and we’re currently implementing our new structure in Delivery, which has the umbrella term Delivering for the Future.
“It’s why our new Academy is so important. It’s a great facility in the Midlands Super Hub and is symbolic of a commitment from a leadership team that’s starting to take very seriously the investment we’re making in our managers. We want to set them up better to succeed in the roles we’re asking them to do. We’ll do two key things in the Academy – technical skills development but it’s also about
stay, but if a business wants its customers to spend time reading its message, mail holds this powerful place. Our research shows around 95% of mail is engaged with – and that includes all audiences, even the younger ones who particularly love receiving it.
You may not have heard of Marketreach, but it’s the marketing authority on commercial mail. Head of client communications and planning Amanda Griffiths explains how Marketreach is ensuring mail still has an important place in this digital age.
Mail has a powerful emotional connection to people. This was critically important during Covid, and remains so. In a world often lived on phone and TV screens, I think posties walking to your door makes mail feel personal – something that other channels just can’t do.
We recently did research into ‘customer mail’, such as bills, invoices and loyalty statements that brands send to their users. While it may be not the most exciting, we discovered this type of mail reaches people in a way no other medium does. In fact, we’re starting to see brands switching back to mail because they’re not getting the same response when they use digital channels.Digitalishereto
Our objective is to keep the channel robust, keep mail a critical marketing channel for companies to use, and keep them using it.
The power of post
MARKETREACH
Brands are switching back to mail gettingthey’rebecausenotthesameresponseondigitalchannels.
Workplace.com 15
The Marketreach audience, brands and organisations who might be involved in sending mail, is broad – from big names like Tesco, Lloyds Bank and the NHS, to mediumsized businesses looking to grow.
I understand why Royal Mail is focused on parcels, but I do think letters will remain a significant part of what Royal Mail does, forever.
If you look back at the pre-digital world, mail was the only way for companies to reach people personally in their homes.
FIND OUT MORE Explore the work of Marketreach at marketreach.co.uk and follow us on Workplace.
Other media channels have organisations like this – radio has the Radio Advertising Bureau, Thinkbox for TV. They are central organisations promoting the importance of each media type. In a digital world, mail needed one too. Marketreach champions the power of mail, supporting not just Royal Mail but also the huge industry that supports it – printers, advertising agencies, access operators. And it is an important industry – mail remains the third largest media channel in the UK.
OUR BUSINESS
Our website brings our work to life, giving
people direct access to a huge amount of information that helps them make decisions about using mail. It offers everything from creative inspiration to research and how-to guidance for brands who want to use mail for the first time. I like to think of it as a window into the world of the power and value of direct mail.
Mail, including direct mail and door drop, was a powerful marketing tool, but never really had competition. Then digital media started to grow, so brands had an opportunity to communicate in alternative ways. For the first time, we needed to go to the marketplace and explain why mail delivers powerful messages and is still a useful media channel – that’s how Marketreach was born.
It’s been an exciting couple of years for the Revenue Integrity team as it embraces innovation to transform the way Royal Mail gets paid for the work we do. Traditionally, we’ve relied on our customers to self-declare items they’ve posted and used a risk-based and manual checking process to make sure we’re paid correctly – and fairly.
97% parcels barcoded in 2021/22 We’ve been working with our customers to get every item they post barcoded. This allows each item to be scanned and measured through our automated and manual scanning processes.
OUR BUSINESS
£31m recovered through our reconciliation systems in 2021/22 We’re reconciling those items that a customer declares against what’s been scanned and measured by the operation. When there’s an error, we can bill customers directly through the systems we have in place. This is simply about getting correctly paid for the work we do and giving customers the information and help to get their posting right first time, every time. REVENUE INTEGRITY
Working together to protect our revenue
We’re scanning more of our items than ever before, which reduces manual checking, minimises delays and makes the process fairer and more transparent. It also allows us to capture information about the items passing through our mails pipeline.
DUTY TO PROTECT Swindon Mail Centre OPG Glen Correia on the IPROL workstation.
This allows us to identify more revenue recoveries based on strong, data-driven evidence. It’s helping us deliver great value for Royal Mail, as well as providing the transparency and fairness our customers expect.
Our Revenue Integrity team’s on a mission to make sure we get fairly paid for the work we do. And every one of us has a role to play.
Our new approach
78% of standard parcels are scanned at outward mail centres today
But things are changing. We now have innovative new technologies to check and reconcile items that are scanned and processed through our system, matching what we see against whatever the customer has told us they’ve posted.
“Royal Mail is investing heavily in modernising our services and operations and, perhaps less visibly, is investing in its ability to revenue protect the items we deliver,” says wholesale and revenue integrity managing director Richard Travers.“It’sonlyfairthat we’re paid correctly. We’re working at pace and have made great progress, but there’s still lots to do.”
Digging into the data
“We always used to see automation as a bit of a threat, but it’s become a massive opportunity,” he says. “It’s enabled us to be more innovative about where we find revenue.”
The workstation is portable and comes with a screen and printer for the operator to generate a new barcode. This allows these items to be returned to the network and customers correctly“Gettingcharged.moreof our mail coming through the network with barcodes also increases the volume of mail we can process through our automated equipment,” says revenue protection manager Joe Roberts. “It also helps us close the loop on missing and unreadable barcodes. If we can address this, it will help us to get paid correctly for the mail we’re processing.”
Revenue protection manager John Littler has been part of the Revenue Integrity team for the past 18 years and has seen first-hand the progress it’s made to capture lost revenue across the business.
“It’s a reasonably new approach but is definitely the future,” explains iRP billing manager Nadia Woods. “We need systems like this which are sophisticated enough to manage automating invoicing when undercharging has occurred.”
IPROL (In-Process Rejection and Overlabelling) workstations are being rolled out into our mail centres and regional distribution centres to tackle the issue of missing or unreadable parcel barcodes. This will create the capacity to be able to label up to 8,500 parcels per week, per centre.
SCAN TO WATCH Scan the QR code for a Workplace film about IPROL.
Embracing the change
How can you make a difference?
DEDICATED TO INTEGRITY (from top) John Littler, Nadia Woods, Richard Travers and Joe Roberts.
Workplace.com 17
Closing the loop
Spearheading our new data-driven approach is our 21-strong iRP (In-Process Revenue Protection) team. They review data for hundreds of customer cases every day where mail has been scanned and an error flagged with an item’s weight or format, or because a customer has made a mistake with volumes.
WE’RE WORKING AT PACE AND HAVE MADE GREAT PROGRESS. BUT THERE’S STILL LOTS TO DO.
You can help by ensuring every item is scanned, either through our parcel sorting machinery or through a manual process. This gives us the data we need to make sure that we’re correctly paid for every item we process.
The Rowland Hill Fund supports our people in many different ways. Faced with an emergency move, postie Michelle Kelly found the right help.
As Michelle works on building a healthier life for her family, she’s also encouraging others who may face similar situations to reach out. She wanted to share her own story and personal experience with the Rowland Hill Fund to show others that there are means to empower yourself and find resources which can fit the needs of each individual.
“Help is out there. It’s just about speaking up and looking out for the right resources.
Helping Michelle feel at home again
Autumn 202218 ROWLAND HILL FUND OUR CHARITY
THEY’VE BEEN THERE FOR ME WHEN TRULYTHEY’VENEEDEDI’VETHEM.BEENBRILLIANT.
After moving on from one stressful living situation, mum-of-three Michelle found herself in another – and it came with a financial burden. Two of her children, Aiden, 13, and Oliver who’s only two years old, live at home with her. She knew they needed safe and comfortable flooring.
“For a long time, I didn’t want to admit that I needed some support. But there’s nothing wrong in needing a bit of help sometimes – as I discovered.”
After sharing insights into her situation with the charity, the Rowland Hill Fund and Michelle were able to work together on getting her new place feeling like home – and starting the process of settling in with her young sons.
“All the managers have been so understanding of the situation I’ve been facing,” she says. “They’ve been there for me when I’ve needed them. They’ve been truly brilliant.”
That’s when Michelle approached the Rowland Hill Fund, our in-house charity for postal people. It helps colleagues who need support with
Thanks to the financial assistance of the Fund and the mental wellbeing support of those around her, Michelle and her children have been able to create a comfortable new home where they can feel safe.
everything from health and ability aids to rent, mortgage, utility bill arrears and more.
Michelle, who’s spent seven years with Royal Mail, has enjoyed a helping hand from all corners of our postal community, with managers at her delivery office coming together to provide the mental support she needed.
When Michelle Kelly found herself dealing with domestic violence from a previous partner who lived close by, she knew she had to move herself and her three children to a new location. And while she was able to arrange an emergency move into a new home, it came with its own “We’dchallenges.leftbehind our home comforts for a new property with no proper flooring or carpeting,” recalls Michelle. “When I turned to domestic violence support agencies, they told me that I would need to fund this myself.”
Support colleaguesfor If you find yourself in a situation where you need support, there is a range of resources available. Rowland Hill Fund One-off financial grants for those in exceptional circumstances. Call 0345 600 4586 or visit rowlandhillfund.org To apply for help, fill out the form here: Myapply-for-helpwww.rowlandhillfund.org/Bundle+ Retail discounts that can help reduce household bills and the cost of the weekly shop. My Bundle+ also provides access to Step Change, the UK’s leading debt counselling charity, offering expert tailored advice and practical solutions to problem debt. Visit Firstmyroyalmail.commybundleplus.ClassSupport Direct access to physical, mental, social and financial health support. Call 0345 266 5060, visit rmgfirstclasssupport.co.uk or download the Lifeworks app. You can find more information on financial, physical and mental wellbeing on Workplace. FIND OUT MORE Learn more about the Fund, who it helps and how to apply by watching this Workplace Live event.
Whether you’re waiting desperately for wedding favours to arrive or need 50 butterflies in North Essex by 9am, if Vicky Hare from Parcelforce Worldwide’s Executive Customer Service Team is on the job, she’ll make it happen.
In her 12 years with the business, Vicky’s saved many a day by getting sentimental items to weddings and funerals on time. She’s got equipment to festivals, located missing musical instruments and even shifted a delivery of live butterflies to meet a very tight deadline.
Steve Allsopp, from the Customer Service Team at Parcelforce’s Coventry Hub, has belatedly picked up the 2019 Employee of the Year award after that year’s event was cancelled due to the pandemic.
OUR PEOPLE
“Steve’s a fantastic ambassador for the hub,” says customer and admin manager Charlotte Peters. “He works tirelessly to make improvements, solves problems and considers the impact of the customer in everything he does. He genuinely cares for the people he works with and the customers we serve.”
“I’m so proud of what we do and what we achieved during the pandemic. Those sleepless nights are definitely worth it.”
Victorious Vicky’s a Parcelforce gem PARCELFORCE
“Every parcel is important to somebody,” she says. Working mostly from a desk in her living room in Wakefield, West Yorkshire, Vicky’s days are spent chasing parcels, handling bespoke enquiries and demonstrating outstanding levels of customer service.
SHOP SMART AND SAVE ON ENERGY Spread the cost over 24 months on the latest smart home tech and save both energy and money with your salary exchange Technology Benefit 4 1 3 2 1 Google Nest Learning Thermostat Always come home to a warm house and never heat an empty home tadoo Smart Radiator Thermostat Smart valves, providing room-by-room scheduling and control2 Philips Hue Smart Lightbulbs Energy efficient LED bulbs, controlled by voice3 Amazon Smart Plug Turn appliances on and off with your phone4 muchPlusmoreavailableonline! Order online any time through My Bundle+ at: mybundleplus.myroyalmail.com Or scan the QR code with your smartphone for easy access! Available on People App
“I won’t take no for an answer,” she laughs. “The job keeps me awake at night and my heart will be racing when I open my emails in the morning, but I love I what I do.
“I just treat people how I would like to be treated,” adds Vicky. “The Yorkshire accent helps too.”
Vicky was named Parcelforce Worldwide Employee of the Year 2021 for her hard work, especially during the pandemic.
“His passenger had been thrown onto the bonnet of the car and through its windscreen,” recalls Philip, who’s spent 31 years with Royal Mail. “I climbed onto the car to support
Stepping up in times of trauma
Crowning glory
Philip was in his Loughton garden when he heard a loud bang followed by screams. He discovered that a motorcyclist with a female passenger had collided with a parked car. Two posties from Debden Delivery Office were already on the scene, assisting the rider lying in the road.
Philip has paid tribute to the quick-acting Debden posties who assisted the victims and called the emergency services. And he congratulated Crown Awards runner-up Stephen, who also supported the emergency services while keeping the mail moving when an air ambulance landed in Bedford Delivery Office’s yard following a serious accident involving a pedestrian and a car.
The Crown Award winner each month wins an iPad and a place in December’s grand final for the chance to win a postbox full of cash – £40,000 Runners-up win a £50 shopping voucher. Workplace users nominate and vote for colleagues each month.
A pair of courageous COMs worked alongside air ambulance crews to care for victims involved in two separate life-threatening traffic collisions.EppingandOngar’s Philip Mansfield (above) landed June’s Crown Award for his selfless response to a serious motorbike accident near his Essex home. Only six votes separated him from runner-up Stephen Purser, of Bedford Delivery Office, for his quick reactions when a pedestrian was seriously injured after being hit by a car.
Brave duo land Crown Awards for quick-thinking responses to serious road accidents.
GET INVOLVED Scan the QR code to discover more Crown Awards stories, nominate a colleague or team and vote.
her limbs and attempted to reassure her until the air ambulance arrived.”
Workplace.com 21 OUR PEOPLE CROWN AWARDS
Mental Health and AugustwhoCrownstoriescolleaguesshiftspandemic,FionadedicationwasAmbassadorWellbeingFionaNansonrunner-upforcontinuedtoherrole.steppedupduringtheworkingextratocovershieldingatshortnotice.ReadEmmaandFiona’sontheWorkplaceAwardspageandseeclaimedtheJulyandprizes. EXCLUSIVELY
It was only after Philip had helped a medic move the woman off the car that he noticed he was covered in blood from glass cuts to his hands, requiring hepatitis and tetanus injections.
Nuneaton postie Emma Delaney was May’s winner for her attempt to save the life of a man suffering a cardiac arrest. Emma performed CPR before paramedics arrived while also trying to reassure his teenage son. Emma and her Nuneaton Delivery Office colleagues are now fundraising for the British HeartCarlisleFoundation.MailCentre ON WORKPLACE
THEBEHINDMASK
As Halloween creeps up on us, Courier unearths some pretty gruesome skeletons in a certain customer service officer’s closet.
Autumn 202222
Thirty-five years ago, Simon starred in the movie Hellraiser – the landmark horror hit that seared the terrifying image of Pinhead onto our collective memory.
“A car would pick me up at 3.30am. I’d be in makeup by 4.30am then on set from 8am to “Once8pm.themask was on, I needed a chaperone to move around the set. I could breathe through my mouth, but I couldn’t eat. All that kept me going was sucking juice through a straw.
“I was diagnosed with a faulty heart valve and needed open-heart surgery,”
“It looks dated now of course, but at the time the practical effects were so clever.”
I RANG CLIVE TO SEE HOW HE WAS, AND HE SAID, ‘FANCY PLAYING A MONSTER?’
“It took three people to pull it on,” Simon remembers, “and they had to stick it down with surgical glue.”
Clive recruited Simon for his theatre group. They toured Europe and performed at the Edinburgh Fringe, while Clive worked on Books of Blood, the novella which would form the plot of Hellraiser.
“I rang Clive just to see how he was, and he said, ‘fancy playing a monster?’
Simon reprised the role of Butterball in Hellraiser II, and featured in Clive’s followup venture, Nightbreed. As well as film and TV work, Simon ran his own theatre company for eight years, before getting a scare of his own.
A weekend job at Peterborough Mail Centre helped Simon get back on his feet, then provided him with the freedom to work on TV and film projects during the week.Asoneof the original Hellraiser cast, Simon still gets to dabble in the celebrity lifestyle, appearing at major film conventions all over the world where he signs autographs and gets treated like a VIP.
HOUSE OF HORRORS
“It was a bizarre experience. At the wrap party I was being introduced to people I’d worked with for months but had never seen!”
You’ll struggle to spot him in the film, though. As Pinhead’s silent but sinister footman, Butterball, Simon wore a latex mask that was two inches thick, with no holes for his eyes, ears or nose.
“None of us thought Hellraiser would be anything. Then they cast Andrew Robinson, of Dirty Harry fame. And during filming, the film company got very excited about what they were seeing.
recalls Simon. “It was two years from diagnosis to recovery – all really tough physically, emotionally and financially.”
OUR PEOPLE
Simon recalls how a chance phone call got him a part in the film.
“I feel very lucky to have been part of something so unique. And very grateful to Royal Mail for throwing me a lifeline while still allowing me to do what I love.” WHY I’M HERE
Butterball was grossly obese with a huge open wound on his stomach. Inside was a slim 25-year-old Simon, unable to see or hear for 12 hours a day.
Simon at his Lincolnshire home, surrounded by movie memorabilia from his big-screen career.
To customers and colleagues, he’s polite, friendly and unassuming. But Peterborough Delivery Office’s Simon Bamford has been hiding a dark secret.
Simon got the acting bug at primary school. He threw himself into amateur dramatics and eventually landed a place at the Mountview Academy of Theatre Arts where he met writer Clive Barker.
One of the original Butterball masks from Hellraiser II recently sold at auction for $8,500 and, with a Hellraiser game and movie reboot in the pipeline, the cult following shows no signs of slowing.
“This whole operation revolves around strict deadlines – it’s all about time and we run it like clockwork,” adds Eddie. “It’s tight, but manageable. It’s like a military operation, we all work together and it’s an enjoyable feeling when it’s loaded and the train rolls out of the station.”
It’s 3pm on Wednesday and the countdown is on for OPG Eddie Brown.
tracksMaking
As Royal Mail embarks on a mission to ramp up our rail operation and cut our carbon footprint, a Courier team hops aboard one of our specialist train services to follow the 400-mile journey that hundreds of our parcels and letters make every day.
Autumn 202224
SHIELDMUIR
The site first opened in 1996 and has been running daily railway mail delivery services ever since. The West Coast Mainline travels in both directions between London and Scotland with a stop-off at Warrington Rail Terminal en route. The East Coast Mainline operation makes return trips to the Newcastle plant.
DESTINATION:
“We’re used to a challenge, though. If you come here in December, it’s absolutely freezing.”
“It takes a lot to stop our robust service,” says Eddie. “We had the train fully loaded yesterday before we found out our service wouldn’t be running. Overhead lines were down from the heat and it held up the operation for a day.
Through sun, wind, rain or snow, The Princess Royal Distribution Centre (PRDC) – located just a few miles from Wembley in London – is always a hive of activity.
He has less than 90 minutes to safely load a 12-carriage freight train with more than 700 yorks ahead of its epic journey from London toIt’sWishaw.theday after July’s two-day heatwave, when temperatures peaked at 40°C, resulting in the typically reliable Royal Mail service failing to run for the first time in 12 years.
The race is on to load around 700 yorks at The Princess Royal Distribution Centre.
Workplace.com 25
FULL STEAM AHEAD
our proposals around later start times, too.
All aboard
Scottish Distribution Centre’s Christopher McCulloch unloads the cargo at Shieldmuir.
It’s just after 7pm and we pull into Warrington Rail Terminal. Here’s the halfway point of our journey. As the platform becomes visible, you can see the team raring to go, like athletes waiting for the baton in the 4x100m relay. They only have a quickfire half-hour window to
PRDC’s Eddie Brown prepares for departure.
“We know we don’t have long,” says John. “We have a very short turnaround and it can be a real challenge. But we have a great, well-drilled team with a specific loading plan that we follow methodically. We all know exactly where we need to be and what we need to do to give ourselves the best chance to get the train back on its journey onWarringtontime.”hasbecome a key location in our operation with the opening of our new North West Super Hub in June. It’s in a prime location, central to many distribution centres in the north of England. And if more trains will be passing through as part of our sustainability plans, it will only become even more “Increasingimportant.ourrailway operation feels like the right way to go,” says OPG Mal Sloan. “It’s a fully electric service and, in today’s world, we have to think about our carbon impact because planes are terrible for emissions.”
Volumes of parcels, in particular, have soared to new heights in recent years. And in the first three months of the Covid-19 pandemic, The PRDC handled more than it usually would in a year.
SHIELDMUIR
“We’d love to support Royal Mail more,” says John, who’s spent more than three decades on the railway. “Many customers only see Royal Mail vehicles on the road and probably don’t realise the journey their parcels go on. You don’t really appreciate it until you sit on this train to see it physically move from one end of the country to the other.”
END OF THE LINE
READY TO ROLL
Becoming a parcels business that also delivers letters is why plans for the future are being drafted up to increase our railway services. It’s about keeping up with the demands of bigger and higher volumes of parcels to help us to grow. Moving from planes to trains is a key part of our mission to cut emissions and become a greener business. It’s what our customers want and forms part of
DESTINATION:
Eddie is one of more than 500 PRDC colleagues, with 250 on duty during each shift to power the operation. It’s his role to make sure the mail’s loaded swiftly and safely.
Once the mail’s loaded, it’s time to make tracks. Today’s driver, John McCauley, is one of our many dedicated colleagues from DB Cargo (UK) Ltd. As we pull out of the depot at 4.20pm, we wend our way to Warrington, clocking up speeds of up to 100mph on the three-hour journey.
Next stop Warrington
“I know how important it is. I wouldn’t like my mail to be missed or delayed – and neither would our customers.”
Autumn 202226
remove up to 250 yorks and load 250 more. On a typical service, the front eight carriages are dedicated to mail that’s making the full journey north, while the back four carry the cargo departing
from Warrington.Tonight’soperation controller is evening shift manager John Gregory.
In a flash, we’re on our way again, heading to Scotland under the stewardship of driver Joe O’Donnell. We wind through the breathtaking Lancashire landscape, into The Lakes and across the border into Gretna Green. The sweeping hills of Lowgill and views of sunset sky are standard in these parts.
It’s 11.15pm by the time the train glides on to our Scottish Parcel Hub’s platform at Shieldmuir station, in Wishaw, just outside Motherwell and between Scotland’s largest cities of Edinburgh and Glasgow.
Here, all the remaining mail is taken off board and loaded into lorries for
“I probably take it for granted,” adds Joe, who’s been driving trains for 34 years, going back to British Rail in the days before privatisation. “It’s a great service and most people don’t know much about it. Customers just post their parcels and don’t see all of this.”
In the financial year 2021/22, our railway service carried
services are operated five days a week between 5am and 2am the following morning carrying First and Second Class items
Track10stats 663,657 and more than 80YORKS‘CLASS325’ Royal Mail owns a fleet of electric trains 15
the final leg of the journey to mail centres in Aberdeen, Inverness, Glasgow and Edinburgh.“Ithinkit’sabit of a hidden gem up here,” says deputy manager Christopher McCulloch. “Sometimes, you tell people you work for Royal Mail on the railways and they’re a bit shocked. But it’s a big part of our operation and something we should be really proud of.”
KING OF THE CAB Driver John McCauley guides the train out of PRDC.
SERVICES 2,262 We operated 467,264 MILES and travelled a total of parcelsmillion Workplace.com 27
Final destination
1983 Human
back
12. Bunnymen assist
CONGRATULATIONS to St Helens Delivery Office OPG Jake Mortimer, the summer 2022 edition winner of National Trust membership.
Commonwealth Games, Pride and The Transformers stamps
Epic battles between good and evil, the 50th anniversary of the UK’s first Pride event and this summer’s major sporting spectacle feature on new Royal Mail stamps and souvenirs.
Email couriercomp@linney.com using ‘Hotel’ in the subject line. Or post your entry to Courier Competition, Linney Create, Adamsway, Mansfield, Nottinghamshire NG18 4FW. Include your name and address – along with your job role and location. Entries must reach us by Friday 21 October and may be published in a future edition. choice intrigued by League hit (11) Simon Bamford’s erstwhile alter ego from his days as a Hellraiser (10) 26 miles, 385 yards (8) Bullock or Bernhard (6) in bouncing sounds (4) (3) (4) Willis built (11) (10) 1882 (7,4) (6) (4)
to last in M. Night Shyamalan thriller from 2000
Heroic Autobots and devious Decepticons appear in thrilling illustrations on stamps celebrating comic book and blockbuster movie favourites The Transformers. Colourful and powerful artwork honouring half a century of the UK Pride movement graces eight new stamps. And the 22nd Commonwealth Games, held in Birmingham, is marked with a set of distinctive stamps and collectible keepsakes showcasing sports and para-sports.
We’re giving away 10 sets of stamps from all three issues. Email couriercomp@linney. com with your name, address and contact number – and use ‘Stamps’ in the subject line. Or post your entry to Courier Competition, Linney Create, Adamsway, Mansfield, Nottinghamshire NG18 4FW. Entries must reach us by Friday 21 October
Post your entry to Courier Crossword, Linney Create, Adamsway, Mansfield, Nottinghamshire NG18 4FW or take a photo and email it to couriercomp@ linney.com by Friday 21 October 2022.
Discover more stamps, souvenirs and gifts by visiting royalmail.com/shop or scanning the QR code.
8. Fortified medieval building
is
14. Have a natter
10. Oh,
13. Iced bakery treat – a currant favourite
15. Bailed out of the aircraft (7) DOWN 1. Capital of Afghanistan (5) 2. Follow the mail train north of the border and Wishaw shall be granted (8) 3. Bruce
CROSSWORD WIN!
7.
Enjoy a relaxing two-night getaway at a fantastic hotel in the UK destination of yourSelectchoice.from 26 different 3* or 4* modern and traditional hotels – with venues available in most major UK counties. Choose a double or twin room and tuck into a complimentary breakfast each morning. Whether it’s a celebration, a romantic break for two or a chance to recharge your batteries ahead of our busy Peak period –there’s a venue and location to delight you and your companion.
9.
Name Postcode Home address
5. Charity providing for postal people since
11. Flows for over 4,000 miles through Africa
WIN! One of 10 £10 One4all Gift Cards Win! SUMMER 2022 ANSWERS: ACROSS 6. Mirrorball 7. Evidence 8. Dog 9. Rotherham 12. St Andrews 16. Postcode 17. Fez DOWN 1. Silverstone 2. Credit 3. Fringe 4. Cake 5. Slalom 8. Days 10. Rue 11. Camel 13. Nap 14. Rest 15. Wick ACROSS 6. (Keep feeling)
4. Develop fondness for computer files added to emails
Autumn 202228 SOMETHING FOR YOU BREAK TIME 1 2 3 4 5 876 9 10 11 12 13 14 15
A two-night hotel break of your
For the chance to win this break, worth around £350, just tell us in fewer than 30 words which story you’ve most enjoyed in this issue of Courier – and why.
Michael Ray OPG, Jubilee Mail Centre
Sean Driver,SimpsonSouthampton Mail Centre
Steve’s Ukraine mercy mission
It was great to see our net zero mission featured on the cover of the summer Courier. As a huge UK business, we have to take this seriously and reduce our carbon footprint.
Heartbreak and hope
Danny CustomerEdwardsoperations manager,
Ken MarketingKennedyand
I was much affected by Steve’s personal account of his mission of mercy for Ukrainian civilians caught up in the war.
Formby Delivery Office
Marion Tipple OPG, Leven Delivery Office
SHARE YOUR STORY
Sorting Britain
Cupar DO’s Carol Walthew was the July winner of our Workplace fundraisingthemed photo competition for this incredible shot taken at the summit of Pic de Néouvielle in the French Pyrenees. She’ll be donating her £350 prize to Chest, Heart & Stroke Scotland, while Royal Mail will also donate £350 to the Rowland Hill Fund. Head to Team Royal Mail on Workplace and share images of your working day using #PicturePerfect for the chance to win.
MAILBAG
How Saskia fixed her future
Sean OPG,QuigleyStanford
WIN!
I enjoyed reading about how Saskia followed her dream to become an apprentice engineer. She will hopefully inspire other young women with her story.
Workplace.com 29 BREAK TIME
There’s a £20 Amazon gift card for the writer of every letter we publish. Email courier@linney.com or write to us at Courier Letters, Linney Create, Adamsway, Mansfield, Nottinghamshire NG18 4FW. Also share your own news and views on the Courier Workplace page.
Le-Hope Delivery Office
Deborah’s story touched me in so many ways. It was a remarkable tale of two women facing adversity, brought together by a single Royal Mail delivery. Incredibly moving.
Readers share tales of Royal Mail life and reflect on stories from the summer edition of Courier.
Pompey passion brought to book
Net zero heroes
communications, Doxford
I was lucky enough to explore the Postal Museum’s Sorting Britain exhibition recently. It’s well worth a visit and, of course, there’s free admission for Royal Mail people.
The story of my 50-year-old love affair with Portsmouth FC has just been published. It’s my first – and probably last – book and it took me two years to write. It was my day spent as a Courier guest editor that inspired me to get this project off the ground. Pompey Chimes, Pompey Times is a collection of memories and memorabilia. It’s available at Waterstones, Amazon, Blackwell’s and elsewhere.
PICTURE PERFECT
LIGHTING THE WAY
Royal Mail people from across the UK joined the Queen’s Baton Relay ahead of the Games. As the relay’s official sponsor, Royal Mail invited colleagues from Belfast, Llangefni, Inverness, Cardigan and Bodmin to become baton bearers in recognition of their role as charity champions and local community heroes.
The baton’s 294-day journey began on 7 October 2021. It visited every corner of the Commonwealth – from Trinidad to Cook Islands, Malta to New Zealand.
Search Queen’s Baton Relay on Workplace for films featuring the inspirational Royal Mail colleagues selected to take part.
Our Second City welcomed around a million visitors – with a billion more watching around the world. We were the Official Postal and Parcel Delivery Services Provider for the Commonwealth Games – which included the delivery of all event merchandise – and the Queen’s Baton Relay sponsor, which involved teaming up with international
“Our sponsorship visibly linked Royal Mail with a high-profile international event,” says chief commercial officer Nick Landon. “It’s great brand association and a powerful business generator.
“We couldn’t have done this journey without Royal Mail,” says head of the Queen’s Baton Relay Lisa Hampton. “It’s been an incredible partnership.”
Bodmin DO’s Dave Hoskins hands the baton to Team England president Denise Lewis at The Eden Project in Cornwall.
While we played a key role at the heart of the Games, we needed to keep the mail moving for our regular customers – a logistical challenge that involved heightened security measures and road closures due to running and cycling events.
“Our connections with Commonwealth countries extend beyond the Games, though. We attend many events with trade ministers, High Commissioners and ambassadors, encouraging them to share the Royal Mail story with companies across the Commonwealth.”
THE GAMES
COMMONWEALTH
SUMMER OF SPORT
Last month’s Commonwealth Games reinforced Royal Mail’s role at the heart of our nation’s milestone moments.
The biggest sporting event ever held in Birmingham was an opportunity for Royal Mail Group colleagues to demonstrate that teamwork, speed, agility and world-class performances weren’t limited to the track and field.
postal networks to coordinate a nine-month journey across scores of nations.
Team spirit and a winning attitude
Autumn 202230
Passing the baton
“To recognise all of the work put in by our teams – from colleagues planning the operational routes to posties continuing to deliver for their customers – we invited a selection of Royal Mail people to the opening ceremony rehearsals,” adds Nick. “It was a wonderful way to thank them for everything they put into it.”
Workplace.com 31
We unveiled vibrant postboxes on the streets of the UK’s four capital cities and in Birmingham to mark the event and celebrate our sponsorship. The pink and purple postboxes were decorated with graphics and encouraging messages for Home Nations athletes.
The Commonwealth Games featured 19 sports, eight para sports, 280-plus events, 72 nations and territories... and eight stamps.
Courier Editorial Panel member Dan Smithson shares the inside story of how Parcelforce helped deliver the ‘Friendly Games’.
collectiblesCommonwealth
We played a vital role in delivering a successful event, with painstaking preparation, a focus on security and dedicated colleagues making sure parcels reached competitors, spectators and regular local customers. Secure sites were in place throughout the West Midlands. Our project team worked in tandem with Birmingham and Coventry Parcelforce depots and event organisers to plan a seamless delivery process. Birmingham operations managers Mo Naheeb worked closely with his Coventry counterpart, Peter Hughes to help their teams deliver the best quality of service during this incredibly busy period.
“We faced some challenging moments,” says Coventry collection and delivery driver David Ritchie. “But being asked to deliver to an international multi-sport event was an amazing honour. Seeing the venues pop up and the athletes arrive in Coventry created a fantastic buzz around the city.”
FIRST PAST THE POST Minister for Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games, Nigel Huddleston MP, and Team Scotland squash star Lisa Aitken with one of our colourful postboxes.
GAMES MAKER Parcelforce driver Anrik Singh was part of the team keeping the mail moving during CommonwealththeGames.
Often referred to as ‘the Friendly Games’, this epic sporting spectacle epitomised teamwork, aspiration and fair play – goals that inspired the people of Parcelforce.
Loud and proud
We marked the return of the Commonwealth Games to the UK with a new stamp range and limited-edition souvenirs containing commemorative coins struck by The Royal Mint. The eight stamps feature vivid illustrations portraying some of the sports and parasports taking place. Turn to page 28 for the chance to win a set of Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games stamps
“I love Birmingham and the diversity of the city,” says Mo. “The Games really brought this into focus. It meant substantial work for us in terms of planning – but it was all worthwhile. We focused on communication throughout, engaging with our community and local businesses.”
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Our communications and customer teams provided real-time data with live online service updates and answered queries. We also kept our internal frontline teams updated with regular communications.
Epilepsy episodes can strike at any time – and it’s the unpredictable nature of this chronic condition that can make it so dangerous. Murray, a Parcelforce HR manager at Gatwick, wears an implant called SubQ that records his daily brainwave activity. This is helping analysts to spot patterns in his seizures and compile data from Murray and only 11 other participants across the globe. This long-term project aims to help people predict their seizures to reduce the risk of accidents.“I’vealmost walked off a train platform on to rail tracks while having a seizure – it’s frightening.”
“I had my first seizure during a driving lesson,” he recalls. “I lost control of the car for more than two minutes. Since then, I’ve tried many different medications, had several long hospital stays and, at times, had up to 90 seizures a day.”
Parcelforce Gatwick HR manager Murray Goulder is using his lived experience of epilepsy to pioneer a global trial with the potential to transform lives – and he’s making celebrity friends along the way
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His involvement in this groundbreaking project was featured in a BBC documentary hosted by
TRUE FRIENDS Murray with Spandau Ballet star Martin Kemp.
When Murray Goulder discovered he had epilepsy as a teenager, he was terrified.
Blazing a trail for others with epilepsy
I struggle with sorting and preparing my frame due to my slow language processing skills. To help myself, I normally arrange my Door to Door items in advance. In addition, my organisational skills aren’t superb. I can be messy while getting all my work ready for the delivery. This is a common symptom among dyslexics.
There are other dyslexic Royal Mail colleagues. Those around my age, 48, and above might find it more stressful as they may not have received the support in their adult life that I did.
First Class Support Call 0345 266 5060, visit rmgfirstclasssupport.co.uk or download the Lifeworks app. Speak to your manager about any concerns you have at work regarding your health condition.
Paul Stewart, Hedge End postie I always struggled with reading and writing. By the time I got to secondary school I knew I was dyslexic, but with a lot of hard work, I still managed to leave with a C in English language.
“I’ve always been interested in people and I’m drawn to roles that allow me to help others develop and make the most of their skills,” Murray explains. This curiosity led him to gaining an overview of sickness absence across our business, using this knowledge to help managers have meaningful conversations around health with their teams. Working closely with occupational health, Murray’s role is to help encourage attendance with compassion and understanding.
Furthermore, I have verbal communication weaknesses and, occasionally, have difficulty getting over to customers and colleagues what I want to say. Although the more I read, the easier it becomes.
“Having epilepsy has made me a more positive person. Now I want to help others and know that the business is here to support them. We have some great resources, so I would encourage my Royal Mail Group colleagues to make the most of them.”.
Dyslexia Awareness Week runs from 3-9 October. Courier Editorial Panel members share stories of living with the condition and the impact it has on their Royal Mail roles.
Epilepsy Action Call 0808 800 5050 or visit epilepsy.org.uk British Dyslexia Association Visit bdadyslexia.org.uk and search for BDAdyslexia on social media.
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It’s hard to take in too much information. My manager presents my tasks on a notepad rather than verbally expressing them. I’d need extra time to memorise a rural walk.
“I feel that my experience of living with a chronic condition helps me to start understanding others who’ve also been diagnosed with one.
Help with hidden conditions
EastEnders and Spandau Ballet star Martin Kemp, a fellow epileptic who works to raise awareness of the condition.Murrayhasn’t let his serious neurological disorder hold him back. He joined our business as a postie 26 years ago. He’s now an HR manager providing support to operational managers nationwide across the business, Royal Mail International and Royal Mail Medical.
Working at Royal Mail, I find reading the frame with numbered houses fairly straightforward. But when I get a rural round with all the named houses, it takes my brain slightly longer to process the addresses, which means it takes longer to prep the frame, and longer to read and sort the parcels.
Nick Park, Epping postie
I ALMOST WALKED OFF A PLATFORM ON TO RAIL TRACKS DURING A SEIZURE.
Taking away the challenges dyslexia holds, I endeavour to complete my daily tasks. This boils down to dyslexics trying to fulfil their goals. My goal is to clear every piece of work thrust upon me. It helps to know that I’m providing the best possible service to my customers.
I still get the words on the letters and parcels the wrong way around in my head sometimes – I always will. And yet here I am, dyslexic and on the editorial panel of Courier – an achievement the teenage me never even imagined.
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WHEN AND WEAR?
From the suits, skirts, ties and peak caps of the past to today’s iconic red polo shirts – The Postal Museum is gathering stories for a new project about postal uniforms. It’s inviting current and retired Royal Mail colleagues to share their opinions and experiences of life in our uniform through the decades. Visit postalmuseum.org or scan the QR code before 31 October to share your tale.
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