Congratulations to Sutton's Staff

Last night, I was delighted to be able to go along to the Sutton Staff Awards which celebrated the work of the many people that work hard to provide residents with services.

I presented Kate Evans with the Employee of the Year award for Children, Young People and Learning Services. Kate manages several teams tackling School Improvement. All of the nominees deserved an award.

Rick Mayne was nominated for an award. Earlier this year, I went along to Oakleigh, the centre providing care for vulnerable older people suffering from dementia. Rick is doing phenomenal work finding unusual but simple methods for connecting with people that other centres merely manage.

The START team who work to help people remain independent in their homes was another revelation when I visited in the summer. They fully deserved their award as overall Team of the Year in the Council.

The evening was sponsored so allowing the staff to celebrate their acheivements without recourse to the taxpayer. The organisers who put in effort above and beyond, deserve a thank you too. Politicians get it in the neck when things go wrong and jump on the glory when things go well. Sutton's 3,500 council employees keep on, head down to make things work regardless.

Complete List of Winners:

Adult Social Services & Housing:
Employee of the Year: Hazel Payne
Team of the Year: Shared Lives

Children, Young People & Learning Services:
Employee of the Year: Kate Evans
Team of the Year: Family Information Service

Environment & Leisure:
Employee of the Year: Sally Blomfield
Team of the Year: The Gritting Team

Resources & Chief Executive's Group:
Employee of the Year: Neil Talbot
Team of the Year: The HR & Payroll Project for the Learning Disabilities TUPE Transfer

Environment Champion: Ben Morris
Customer Services Champion: Ania Wright
Community Engagement Champion: Richard Radford
Value for Money Champion: Emily Fahey
Life Long Learning Champion: Bill Cody