Posted on 20 November
Leeds College of Building (LCB) has been recognised as one of the best UK employers after winning the ‘Health & Wellbeing’ category at The Personnel Awards 2025.
The 27th national awards recognised the vital work of HR and Learning & Development teams and celebrated the very best achievements of the profession.
Almost 900 guests and leaders in the HR and recruitment profession gathered at the Grosvenor House Hotel on London’s Park Lane for the awards, hosted by actor and comedian Stephen Mangan.
The Health & Wellbeing category, sponsored by Bank of Ireland, recognises organisations that play a vital role in helping employees improve their physical and mental health. Judges were impressed by LCB’s proactive rollout of an inclusive, new wellbeing strategy.
Kathryn Wells, Head of Human Resources at Leeds College of Building, said:
“I am immensely proud of my team. To win this Health and Wellbeing award in such a tough category, against competition from respected national and international organisations, including Central Co-Op, Hitachi Rail, PureGym, and South Western Railway, is amazing.
“Employee wellbeing is a vital part of our People Strategy at LCB, and winning this category is a true testament to the HR team’s dedication to championing wellbeing across the college. It also reflects the incredible commitment of our managers, who consistently go above and beyond to embed wellbeing into the heart of our culture at LCB.”
Since 2022, activities run by a cross-college wellbeing committee have included wellbeing and fitness weeks, creative and financial wellbeing sessions, as well as dedicated wellbeing days that give staff time off to pursue college-organised or personal activities.
A strength of the scheme is its recognition that wellbeing is personal, and that participation should remain voluntary and not be prescriptive. The college has valued this flexibility, allowing for both structured opportunities and individual autonomy to support genuine wellbeing.
The college also revised absence management, moving responsibility for contact and return-to-work interviews to line managers to support more personal conversations. Access to occupational health referrals has increased significantly, and a professional coaching programme has offered CBT-based support in areas such as time management and resilience.
The scheme, which has included reducing teaching hours to ease workloads and a new ‘aspiring managers’ programme, has boosted staff wellbeing and retention. Peer recognition is promoted through the monthly LCB Shout Out programme, and internal collaboration has led to low-cost, engaging activities delivered by staff – reinforcing a sense of community.
Today, the number of absences has significantly reduced, with long-term absence halved. Staff survey results also improved, and Ofsted’s most recent inspection praised LCB’s “supportive and developmental culture.”
Personnel Today’s editorial director, Rob Moss, thanked all finalists, judges and sponsors for their support at the annual “celebration of the best in HR”.
He said: “Whether it’s the economy, the looming Employment Rights Bill, or artificial intelligence, HR is front and centre of how employers react.
“Everything that happens touches on everything we do. It affects your employees, the people for whom you’re crafting great workplaces, creating work that has purpose and meaning – work that wins over your customers.”
Find out more about working at LCB, employee benefits, and the current job vacancies available here
For the full list of award winners, visit The Personnel Today website
