Posted on 9 September
Leeds College of Building (LCB) has been selected as a finalist in the Health & Wellbeing category of The Personnel Awards 2025.
The national awards recognise the vital work of HR and Learning & Development teams and celebrate the very best achievements of the profession. LCB is a finalist in the Health & Wellbeing category thanks to its proactive rollout of an inclusive, new wellbeing strategy.
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 recognising that wellbeing is personal, and 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.”
Kathryn Wells, Head of Human Resources at LCB, said:
“We are immensely proud to be shortlisted for the Health and Wellbeing Award. Employee wellbeing is a vital part of our People Strategy at LCB, and being named a finalist in 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.”
LCB will compete against prestigious national and international organisations, including Central Co-Op, Hitachi Rail, IRIS Software Group, PureGym, South Western Railway, and Suez Recycling and Recovery UK.
The judges stated they were enormously impressed by the insight and innovation demonstrated by each of the shortlisted teams, each dedicated to improving wellbeing in a category sponsored by Bank of Ireland.
Personnel Today Editor, Rob Moss, added, “This year we were inundated with entries that displayed a high level of quality, so making it through to the shortlist is something to be very proud of!”
The ceremony will take place on 18 November in the Great Room of the Grosvenor House Hotel on London ’s exclusive Park Lane. The evening will consist of a drinks reception and three-course meal before the awards are announced to an audience of HR professionals.
Find out more about working at LCB, employee benefits, and the current job vacancies available: www.lcb.ac.uk/work-with-us
