Election Results for Penrith Town Council

Your new Penrith Town Council Councillors have now been confirmed, with 14 Councillors being elected from the six wards of Penrith.

Penrith North, Penrith South, and Penrith West were all contested with the following candidates elected:

Penrith North (4 seats)

• DONALD, Paul - Labour Party

• JACKSON, Scott - Independent

• JAYSON, Daniel - Liberal Democrats

• KENYON, Ronald - Independent

Penrith South (2 seats)

• BURGIN, Roger - Liberal Democrats

• SMITH, Danny - Labour Party

Penrith West (3 seats)

• JAYSON, Barbara - Liberal Democrats

• SNELL, Hilary - Labour Party

• THOMSON, Jeff - Independent

Penrith East, Penrith Pategill and Penrith Carleton were all uncontested with the following candidates elected:

Penrith Pategill (1 Seat)

• BOWEN, Valerie - Liberal Democrats

Penrith East (3 Seats)

• RUDHALL, Mark - Liberal Democrats

• SHEPHERD, Charlie - Liberal Democrats

Penrith Carleton (2 Seats)

• HOLDEN, Deborah – Liberal Democrats

• LAWSON, Douglas - GREEN PARTY office@penrithtowncouncil.co.uk 01768 899 773

This leaves one vacancy in Penrith East which will be filled in due course. We look forward to working with our new councillors to continue delivering for the people of Penrith.

Write: Penrith Town Council. Unit 1, Church House, 19-24 Friargate, Penrith, Cumbria, CA11 7XR

Please get involved in helping to make Penrith a Carbon Neutral Town.

It’s crucially important for all of us!!

Menopause - how can we better support those with symptoms?

By Charlotte Quinn

In an article I wrote last year, according to the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD), women over the age of 50 are the fastest growing sector of the workforce, and the majority of them will go through the menopause during their working lives. This situation remains unchanged.

Menopause is usually experienced between the ages of 40 and 60, with 51 being the average age in Western Europe. There is more and more interest in the impact of perimenopause and the menopause at work, so this is a really important topic to understand and respond to.

Symptoms

Around 75% of women experience menopausal symptoms, and around 25% of them experience moderate to severe symptoms, so it’s important to recognise this is likely to have a significant impact on people’s lives. Symptoms last on average for around 7 years, with around a third of women experiencing symptoms for much longer. This can have a tremendous impact on the women involved and those supporting them.

There are many symptoms of the menopause – at least 30! However, the symptoms most likely to affect those being able to work are hot flushes, night sweats, and poor concentration impacting decision-making and the ability to cope generally.

Other symptoms may include headaches, aches and pains, palpitations, panic attacks, mood changes, ‘brain fog’, memory loss, irritability, anxiety, depression – the list, sadly just goes on.

From my continued research, there are a couple of things that are really clear – that we still need to do more to raise awareness about it, that we need to promote the right workplace culture that encourages women to talk openly and honestly about their challenges, and we need to provide better support to those trying to cope.

So, what can employers do to support their employees?

It’s not surprising that those experiencing menopausal symptoms don’t always feel able or willing to talk about how they are feeling – after all, it’s really personal. Often, employees just try to carry on the best they can, finding their own way of coping. Sometimes though they just can’t cope, and things get too much. It’s important to think about how this might affect all of your employees, and not just the women experiencing symptoms.

There are a number of things employers are advised to consider, like:

 Raising awareness within the organisation generally through different types of communication about the symptoms of menopause – you may with to create a policy or a guidance document that sets out how the organisation will support employees experiencing menopausal symptoms, and encouraging other employees to be supportive and understanding

 Creating some specific guidance for line managers - ensuring they are aware of the range of symptoms, the types of support the organisation may be able to offer, and their role in supporting those facing difficulties

 Equipping line managers with the skills and confidence to be able to have the right conversations with employees, and so that they feel able to offer appropriate support as and when needed –specific coaching or training may be required

 Ensuring employees are aware they will receive the same levels of support and understanding as they would with any other health-related issue, may encourage them to speak more openly and honestly about the challenges they are facing

 Carrying out risk assessments as needed and exploring reasonable adjustments to roles and facilities, for example, adjustable room temperatures and ventilation for those experiencing hot flushes and consideration of the type of uniform worn

 Ensuring conversations are held regularly and actions taken where appropriate, so employees feel they are receiving ongoing support

Whatever the size of your organisation, you may well have employees who haven’t felt able to speak out about the challenges they are facing in relation to the Menopause. You need to create the right working environment and culture for them to do this, so please think about your organisation and the suggestions offered. Don’t bury your head in the sand – you’ve a duty of care and a moral responsibility to make sure you support all of your employees.

Do you need any other employment-related information or assistance?

Whatever your employment-related query, I am here to help – able to offer advice and support and provide information as needed. The following are typically some of the areas I support businesses with:

• Employee relations – disciplinaries, grievances, whistleblowing, bullying and harassment

• Attendance issues – sickness related and other

• Performance issues – appraisals, managing poor performance and capability

• Staff Handbooks – policies, procedures and standards

• Employment documents – particulars of employment (employment contracts) and any other employment-related documents

• Changes to Employment Law

• Recruitment and selection – recruitment activities, job descriptions and recruitment documentation

• Pay and benefits – pay structures and job evaluation

• Reorganisation and redundancy

Advice and support can be provided on an ad hoc basis or through a retainer service, where for a small fixed, monthly fee, you can access support as and when you need it.

I’d be delighted to hear from you, whether you need some immediate or ad hoc advice, or whether you would like to discuss ongoing support.

Please contact me at charlotte@quinnhr.co.uk or on 01768 862394.