Sport Aberdeen Exceptional Contribution Awards 2021

Exceptional Contribution

Awards

Active Schools Team Grant Wilson, Nicole Gordon, Kim McRobbie, Kelly Forrest, John Dixon, Sarah Fraser, Wendy Carrick, Keiran Foy, Joanna Bell The Active Schools team have, over the course of the year, worked hard supporting schools throughout the city. They have worked on the front line right the way through the pandemic, being based in the Education Hubs during the first lockdown, helping with vulnerable children (or valuable children as we prefer to call them) and the children of key workers. They have been based in schools since October and have done this full time since January, again supporting pupils. The team have shown incredible flexibility and willingness to help. Not only whilst in schools, where they are not only delivering sport and activity sessions but helping pupils with their school work. Which depending on the age group and subject has definitely been out of comfort zones!

The flexibility has also been shown in helping in lots of different areas across the company, from supporting golf re-activation by marshalling and being on the phone lines for bookings, painting, weeding and cleaning at Snowsports Centres and working at sports centres when they first re-opened to support customers coming back to gyms. In fact, the number of different tasks away from what would be their usual role that they have done over the year is too long to mention. Everyone has done any job asked of them to help the company in these difficult times.

Active Schools Assistants and Project Activators Stacey Stuart, Eilidh Stewart, Julie Erskine, Victor Omondi, Scott Mitchell, Kyle Hewitt Both Active Schools Assistants and Project Activators have continued to work on the front line during the pandemic to provide support to children and young people in the greatest need. The Active Schools Assistants have been based in schools or education hubs throughout the pandemic and have worked with particular pupils or small groups and helped them by providing sport and activity sessions.

Our Project Activators have continued to work with identified care experienced young people or families in the Priority Families Project on a 1-2-1 basis during this last year. With the restrictions in place this has meant they have had to change how they do things, but all of the team have worked very hard to ensure that they continue to have a positive impact on the lives of those they are working with in these extremely challenging times. All of their work is not only hugely valued by Sport Aberdeen but also the schools and organisations that they work with.

Aimee Beattie Active Schools Coordinator Aimee is a fantasic example of how to support your community, volunteering to work in the Hubs to support the children of key workers, and later working in the flu immunisation hubs supporting Aberdeen City Health & Social Care Partnership.

Allan Rae Group Operations Manager Allan is critical to the success of the division. Over the last year he has played a lead role in the Facility Operations and Programming project team helping to ensuring the safe and successful reactivation of the services whilst keeping operational teams focused and motivated. He continues to excel, delivering a range of often diverse and complex projects and outcomes to a very high standard. He has provided ‘world class’ support and is a highly valued member of the Community Leisure Operations team.

Craig Roberts HR Business Partner Over the last 12 months Craig has truly stepped up as a leader and has been a huge support to the company. The world of HR has changed frequently throughout the pandemic with changes to legislation and to the various iterations of the extremely complex Job Retention Scheme and Craig has done a fantastic job of keeping on track, all while dealing with hundreds of enquiries each week from staff on a wide range of topics and providing HR business support to various departments.

Dianne Breen Programmes and Membership Services Manager From the moment lockdown was announced and the company set up its Covid-19 taskforce, Di has risen to any challenge put to her. As the key lead for liaison with Bon Accord Care, Di was well out of her comfort zone, working across the company to identify potential staff to be redeployed into care homes and making sure that they all felt supported and safe when redeployed. This was a significant task and one which led to a great deal of positive PR for Sport Aberdeen. Di also played an instrumental role in the super group, working across disciplines and venues, bringing her team with her, before any hint of the restructure that was to follow took place. Di’s commitment and capacity to overcome all challenges thrown at her deserves recognition.

Estates Team

KS EH

Group Estates Manager, Maintenance Engineers Hugh, Kenny and Eric have provided first rate support, quietly and efficiently ensuring the centres were ready for reactivation and in good order. The list of maintenance tasks they were asked to do kept growing exponentially by the day! They are all kept in high esteem by all the operational managers (not always an easy feat!) and have provided invaluable support over the course of the last year, often working later in the evening and at the weekend to get the job done.

Golf Gate Call Centre Team The way in which every single member of staff who wasn’t furloughed (including the MD’s wife, Collette, as a volunteer) pulled together to deal with the Golf Call Centre operation for a 3-week period in May was phenomenal. It was an amazing demonstration of everything that is so good about Sport Aberdeen - when the chips are down, everyone pulls together and works to get the task done, with the “we will not be beaten, we will get through this together attitude” and we came out stronger as a team at the other end.

Golf Starters Team The golf starters team was first back to work following lockdown, with golf the first activity which we could restart. There is no doubt that they faced a challenging return with the popularity of golf at a level we have never seen before coupled with the challenges faced with the new booking system.

The team rose to the occasion providing support to our customers through ever changing rules and guidelines.

Jane Crawford Leisure Attendant It’s always a pleasure to nominate Jane for recognition, it comes as such a shock to her given her unassuming nature. I’ve witnessed first-hand the excellent service that Jane delivers to our customers and she always shows great dedication and enthusiasm. It came as no surprise therefore that when the NHS needed support at the start of the pandemic, Jane put her hand up to volunteer.

Subsequently, Jane has also taken on a second secondment with Aberdeen City Council to help deliver critical services to the city.

Kris Bell Operations Manager Kris has done a great job in supporting the improvements work that has been undertaken in the last year at Adventure Aberdeen Snowsports. He has led on physical upgrades and updates to the facility but also worked hard behind the scenes to improve how the centre works. Having worked at the centre for a number of years Kris’s attitude to accepting change and wanting to improve how it operates has been a huge positive.

The work that Kris has done has shown really positive results and during this lockdown, despite being partly furloughed he has again been working on improvements to how the centre will operate when it re-opens.

Lorraine Oakley Payroll Co-ordinator Lorraine has worked extremely hard in supporting the monthly preparation of the information to be submitted to the Job Retention Scheme. This is a huge task with many moving parts, and Lorraine has done a fantastic job of managing this on top of her ‘day job’.

Marketing & Commercial Development Team Sara Montgomery, Sarah Webster, Darren Taylor, Douglas Shearer, Callum Chapman, Ally Barron The Marketing & Commercial Development team has worked extremely hard throughout the pandemic to pivot our offering to online fitness and wellbeing resources, including the management of the equipment loan scheme. The team has successfully motivated and engaged with the people of Aberdeen to provide opportunities to stay active no matter their age or ability and effectively communicated the #safecleanready message ahead of the first reopening to reassure customers and ensure that they comply with the Covid-19 measures which are in place.

Michael Watson Health and Wellness Advisor Michael has provided many hours of online fitness classes and workout inspiration while venues were closed. He has also supported the marketing team in producing social media content to motivate and inspire our community throughout lockdown.

Mike Gifford Adventure Aberdeen Manager Mike has worked really hard and successfully led the development and diversification of the Adventure Aberdeen offer during this period. The hugely successful Rubislaw Quarry activity programme has proved massively popular with hundreds of people experiencing what Adventure Aberdeen can offer.

Mike also ensured that Adventure Aberdeen was looking for additional funding and we were the first provider in the city to successfully gain funding for free bike servicing.

Nickie Scorgie Head of HR & Organisational Development From assessing our eligibility for the furlough scheme through to implementing the process of placing staff on furlough and preparing our monthly submission into the JRS system (a truly enormous task each month, with a total submission value of £1.9m), Nickie took on this entirely new concept with absolute professionalism and a commitment to protect both the charity and our staff during our most challenging year to date. This was a face-paced and ever changing environment and Nickie led her team to provide an exemplary level of service to the business, all while dealing with extensive structure reviews, unprecedented level of enquires from staff and the re-induction of staff returning to the business.

Nigel Spencer Golf and Outdoor Services Manager The services Nigel is responsible for were first up for reactivation and it’s never stopped since! He’s managed to keep the services going and the plates spinning at a time of extreme growth for golf with as much of a smile as any Yorkshireman can. Much of what Nigel does goes unseen. Nigel has achieved this whilst overseeing a large programme of winter works on the courses, dealing with the issues at Kings Links, implementing BRS and ensuring the smooth running of the golf and outdoor services; much of which has been done on his own whilst his Assistant Manager has been on furlough. Nigel’s had it tough this year with only John Smiths and Captain Morgan to provide much needed support later in the evening.

Olga Ponomarjova Payroll Co-ordinator Olga’s done a fantastic job of managing the ever changing demands of payroll with various staff being on furlough, flexible furlough or returning to their normal working pattern. As like the other members of the HR team she still provided a first class service to the workforce answering numerous queries whilst keeping a level head.

Adventure Aberdeen Instructors Sally Duthie, Ruari Sheehan, Veshengo Purrum, Graham Sedgwick, Bella Walker AA Instructors have worked on the front line supporting schools and education hubs throughout the last year. They have worked with children of key workers and vulnerable children providing fantastic outdoor opportunities that have been a huge help to the mental wellbeing of these young people.

The value that the instructors are held by the schools they work in is apparent as where possible schools have continued to use instructors during lockdown or get them back working as soon as is possible with the guidelines. All of our instructors have been a credit to themselves and Sport Aberdeen with the way they have supported children in this last difficult year.

Shirley-Anne Dewar ICT Manager Managing to set up approximately 130 staff to work remotely from home with barely any notice was no mean feat, requiring agile thinking, close liaison with Dacoll who themselves were moving to the same WFH / furloughing of key staff teams, ensuring everyone had the right equipment and access arrangements was a significant task, never undertaken before. The fact that there has been no significant security / data breaches since WFH has been in place is in no small way to Shirley-Anne’s diligence in making sure appropriate arrangements are in place, more difficult with a WFH workforce.

Steve Quigley Health, Safety and Environmental Manager Steve has been rocksolid over the last year helping the organisation to manage safely throughout the pandemic period, reacting to the ever changing environment and updating operating procedures and practices with each change to the guidance. The success of this has been demonstrated in how few cases of Covid-19 there have been to staff and customers within the venues. Steve has achieved this against the backdrop of the inevitable disappointment of knowing that Celtic would not win the league title this year.

Tess Murphy Corporate Support Manager When many of us moved to work from home last March, Tess was a consistent presence at Broadfold House, ensuring that HQ was properly maintained and assisting teams wherever she could. She has played a pivotal role in managing HQ while other tenants of Broadfold House ended their leases and left the building. This has brought considerable challenges which she has handled with her usual calm and professional manner.

Tess has, as ever, provided a fantastic amount of support to the Senior Leadership Team throughout the last 12 months, including managing countless meetings of the board using new online meeting platforms, which often proved challenging with varying levels of technology available to participants.

Tom Lambert Development Officer (Sport) During the first lockdown Tom volunteered in an old people’s home for a number of months. Tom excelled in this and made many positive relationships with both the residents and staff. This led to him being nominated for an award by the staff at the home.

Tom has also done a great piece of work, with Lois Barnard, around about the different tiers and sports governing body guidance throughout the last year. With the many updates and changes in guidance, Tom has kept on top of this and provided support for most staff in the company on what sports can be re-activated and what guidance needs to be followed. He is one of the “go to people” in the company for any questions on current sports guidelines.

Val Mackie Insight and Performance Manager

Val has managed extremely complex LMIS back office / DD functions etc from just before lockdown right the way through, and continues to do so. She has been required to perform tasks that had never been asked of her or the system before, finding efficient ways of doing so, working with 3rd party contractors who themselves had furloughed teams of staff. The various lockdown rules had required the whole LMIS system to be built from scratch at various times, within tight timescales. At the same time she has also overseen the introduction of new software solutions. Val has supported the team throughout and remained cheerful and positive. Never one to blow her own trumpet, her work over the last year deserves wider recognition.

Andrinne Craig Healthy Communities Manager

Andrinne has worked tirelessly throughout the pandemic and was one of the first to volunteer to work some shifts to support Bon Accord Care at the start of the pandemic. With the rest of her team furloughed Andrinne kept in contact with Active Lifestyles customers who were facing their own challenges of the unknown and of being required to shield. As soon as was possible Andrinne led the development of a online offer for Active Lifestyles participants which continued throughout the pandemic. As her team were unfurloughed she was supportive of the needs of the ACC and half of her team were seconded to the immunisation hubs, leaving Andrinne to carry more of the workload herself. Finally, without her input the company would not have had the funding nor recognition for our part in Grampian’s Winter PR pathway.

Healthy Communities Team Bill Loxton, Brian Harrison, Fearghas Thomson, Iwona Jakubeic, Jane Hall, Jon Lurie, Karen Fyvie, Susan Henderson Like all of Sport Aberdeen’s workforce, the Healthy Communities Team have had to adapt and show both creativity and resilience over the last 12-months. Whilst the team will say they’ve just been doing their job, our customers tell us they’ve been doing something special!

They have continued to take a person centred approach to supporting customers, many of whom are living with a long-term health condition, throughout challenging and changing Covid-19 restrictions. This has been done with thought, care and understanding.

The team adapted quickly to create resources that would enable people to keep active at home and maintain fitness, strength and balance which are vital for independence and daily living. Their homes became virtual studios to record classes and they made kindness calls to customers they knew would be feeling isolated and disconnected.

Customers said how safe and welcome they felt returning to activities in Autumn 2020 and the support the team have given to help people access online bookings, on-demand and live zoom classes has had a real impact on digital skills and connectivity. Westburn Outdoor Centre also benefitted from the team’s efforts as they cleared, cleaned and painted, giving some TLC to a place they wanted customers to feel safe in following months of isolation or shielding.

The team have worked with partners including Aberdeen City Health & Social Care Partnership, Bon Accord Care and NHS Grampian on projects such as the Winter Pulmonary Rehabilitation Programme to help address the effects of lockdown and risks of Covid-19 for those living with a long-term health condition. Walk Leader Training delivered by Sport Aberdeen will allow partners such as Criminal Justice and Adult Learning to engage with their service users in person through organised walking activities as restrictions allow.

IT Team Gary Porter, Hope Eke, Katrina Davies, Ryan Robertson At the start of the first lockdown the team had to very quickly source, prepare and allocate laptops and appropriate licenses for staff to work from home. Many of these staff had never done so before and required a lot of support/training initially to get started and be comfortable and confident in accessing the network, their files and software packages remotely.

During the first lockdown the team completed the build and configuration of the new online bookings platform which has been essential in enabling our customers to book in advance and reducing workload for venue staff (less phone bookings). Support has been provided to some customers who were not particularly computer literate and needed assistance with issues such as how to refresh their browsers, reset/save passwords etc. Many of these customers were grateful for the support particularly when they were unable to have family visit to assist them.

As venues and services re-opened the team had to create a large number of new sessions in the LMIS for activities that previously had not been required to be booked in advance e.g swimming, gym, skating.

These new processes and builds had to be developed and delivered within a very short time frame with the team reacting quickly to tier restriction changes and operation staff requests.

Throughout all of the lockdowns and different tiers the whole team have worked closely together, supporting each other and staff across the organisation.