Further signs of a return to some form of normality are now emerging, with the Government allowing outdoor meetings of up to six people who are not from the same household from Monday, providing they observe social distancing. Some additional retail outlets will be allowed to reopen in the coming weeks and Growth Company colleagues are supporting the work being done nationally and locally to plan for more people to safely return to workspaces.
Your colleagues have already played an important role in the response to the coronavirus and I was pleased to be able to share some of our success with the June edition of North West Business Insider. We can all be proud of the tremendous work that has been done to date.
Some furloughed colleagues have used their spare time to volunteer for good causes, including members of Marketing Manchester, who supported the NHS Nightingale hospital at Manchester Central and Lauren Brown, Lead School and Community Engagement Coordinator for NCS who has been sewing gowns for COVID-19 patients. Next week is Volunteers’ Week (1-7 June) and it’s worth remembering that volunteering is something that we actively encourage through Volunteer2day. As well as providing new experiences, it can be a good way to give something back and boost your mental health. If you have been volunteering, let us know as we would love to celebrate and share these next week. Further volunteering opportunities can be found via these websites:
- Do-it
- National Association for Voluntary and Community Action
- Local Volunteer Centre
- Reach Volunteering for volunteers with specific skills - like accountancy, marketing, law, management, mentoring or IT
- Volunteer GM
- Volunteering Wales
As well as supporting businesses and individuals in ensuring that they are prepared to meet the challenges presented by the coronavirus in the future, it is important that we understand the impact of coronavirus on your own mental and physical health, and the way it has shaped your working life.
Many of you have already responded to our staff survey, which will be invaluable in making sure we are able to provide appropriate mental and practical support. The survey will remain open until Friday 5 June and I would really appreciate you taking the time to respond if you have not already done so.
Your feedback will also inform our themes for the new weekly Wellbeing Wednesdays, which launched this week. We hope you’ll find these useful and that they help with your health and wellbeing.
Enjoy your weekend.