This in from the council, in their own words. Ed
Exemplary council officers were celebrated on Friday (15 January 2016) evening, in recognition and thanks for their outstanding contributions to the Island way of life.
John Metcalfe, Chief Executive and Head of Paid Service, opened the event by extending his personal thanks and paying tribute to all council staff, not just those nominated for awards, who show continued and outstanding commitment to the work that they do throughout the year.
He was also keen to make clear that regardless of the challenges faced by the council at this time regarding its budget, that it is important to recognise the vital work carried out by officers to deliver excellent services to the local community:
“In these turbulent and challenging times it is more important than ever to take the time to stop, reflect and celebrate all of the excellent work that goes on within the council and to recognise the very talented, professional people that I have the privilege to work with every day.
“Events like this are really important to me, because we can only hope to make a difference to the community through the work of our staff and the approach they take to their jobs. In this really tough period, I am sure that we can collectively work together to prevail and create a firm foundation from which we can develop, although the council will be a very different organisation from the one it is today.”
21 colleagues received a certificate and paperweight to commemorate 25 years of service to the Isle of Wight Council from the Chairman of the Council, Councillor Charles Chapman, with one colleague, Martyn Stanley receiving special tribute; having committed 40 years of service to the authority.
Those with 25 years of service to the Isle of Wight Council include; Andrew Walker, Daron Perkins, Karen Buckle, Alix Woodford, Stephen Ward, Deborah Downer, Molly Marden, Fiona Cole, Sandra Thorne, David Bolmeer, Terry Hopkins, Tony Lockyer, Robin Spinks, Janice Clark, Richard Wood, Virginia Kelly, Nicola Tutton, Kathryn Gibbs, Ashley Curzon, Olly Batkin and Kevin Winchcombe.
A special award was also presented to Hazel Wyld, a foster carer who has dedicated 29 years of service to over 40 Island children, since moving to the Island in 1987, and having previous been a foster carer elsewhere. In total she has been a foster carer for 56 years.
Councillor Jonathan Bacon, Leader of the Isle of Wight Council and Executive Member for Children’s Services, said:
“I would like to take this opportunity to thank Hazel and her family for their commitment to local children and the Isle of Wight Local authority. Hazel and her family have spent a life time fostering, a total of 56 years, initially on the mainland before she and her family moved to the Isle of Wight in the 1980s. She has been registered as a Foster Carer for the Isle of Wight council since August 1988. In the 27 years of fostering she has looked after 34 children offering both short and long term care. Hazel has also supported 7 children into new families via adoption. Thank you.”
Other awards
The other awards were:
Improving the life chances of young people:
Commended: Family Learning Teachers
Highly commended: Children in Need team 2
Winner: Premises Development team for the Island Learning Centre relocation
Supporting vulnerable adults:
Commended: Out of Hours Emergency Duty team and the Mobile Nights team
Highly commended: Adult Social care Safeguarding team
Winner: Wightcare
Building a better future:
Highly commended: Community Support officers
Winer: Jayne Tyler and Becky Horn for the efficient delivery of the superfast rural broadband project
Working in support of others:
Commended: Revenue and Benefits service, Customer Services team and Housing Benefit team
Highly commended: Organisational Change team and Ian Lloyd
Winner: Post Room team and Thom Jones
Personal achievement:
Commended: Graham Whatling (HR)
Highly commended: Ross Burroughs and Nick Wright (Health, Safety and Welfare)
Winner: Nolan Winter (1Leisure)
Inspirational employee:
Commended: Edgar De Oliveira Guerreiro (Business Rates)
Highly commended: Holly Baxter (Carter Avenue care home)
Winner: Antony Cooke (Highways PFI)
Team of the year:
Commended: Adult Community Learning team
Highly commended: ICT service
Winner: Waste procurement team
All recognised nominees received a certificate, with winners also receiving a hamper of local Isle of Wight produce from Farmer Jack’s.
