A team effort

A few days ago I wrote a message to our Heads of Service thanking them for their work.  Quite rightly a number of them pointed out that they depend on all the staff in the organisation to step up and deal with the difficulties we all face.  And so I‘m sending the same message to you all.

Five weeks ago the crisis began to hit us.  It seems like five months ago. The upheaval it has caused to our working lives as well as our personal lives has been huge. It has changed what we do and it has changed, probably forever, the way we work.

Many of you have continued to provide your traditional pattern of services whilst others have halted the normal to deal with a different set of demands from citizens.

Every one of you has stepped up to the plate and made your own contribution to help and I am deeply grateful for it, as are the people of Swansea (although they are sometimes slow to show it). 

It will probably be some time before things begin to look anything like they used to but we have reached some important milestones.  Many people feel that the world has ground to a halt but it has not for you.

You have built a hospital in a month.  You have protected our staff through the brilliant and innovative procurement of PPE.  You have established a network to connect and support the vulnerable and provided food and reassurance to the young and to the old.  You have kept our residential homes open in hugely challenging circumstances and you have continued to provide home care to our most vulnerable clients. You have been supported magnificently by our colleagues in ICT who have not only kept ICT services running; they have allowed us to keep all other services running through their preparations for remote working.  You have continued to protect our young people and keep them safe at a time when safeguarding risks are more acute than ever.  You have provided childcare for the parents of key workers, particularly in the NHS and social care. You have continued to teach our school children remotely.  You have kept our staff and citizens informed and communicated at a time they are most concerned about the present and the future.  You have kept the city moving and you have prevented businesses from closing through financial support.  You have kept our roads and our environment safe and you have prevented the spread of disease by continuing to collect our waste.  You have continued to regenerate the city when most others have stopped, as we witness the new arena continuing to spring from the ground.  You have allowed the democratic process to continue unhindered and supported it remotely.  You have continued to make sure that those in poverty receive their benefits and gone further to support those in financial distress.  You have allowed us to stretch the financial and governance rules to respond in a different environment.  You have looked after our tenants and kept their homes safe places.  You have supported the health of our staff through counselling at a time they most need it.  And so much more.

There will be much more to do in the coming weeks and months but reflecting on my weekly Teams meeting with all of the other CEOs and the WLGA I realise once more that we have been better organised, more committed, more proactive and more citizen-focussed than any of the others.

Am I proud of you all given the list of achievements above.  What do you think?

That sums it up perfectly for me.

However, I can’t end the blog without mentioning two issues. Firstly, we handed over the Bay Field Hospital to the NHS yesterday. In little over a month the team on-site has transformed the 1950s factory building into a 21^st century hospital. That turnaround has been nothing short of miraculous. It will initially have 420 beds for those requiring a short stay, and a discharge lounge with 80 seats for people ready to go home, which can expand to respond to growing need. Work continues and it will also have the capacity to provide a further 540 beds if required. Words cannot do justice to what has been achieved, but I will be forever grateful to everyone who had any involvement, however big or small, in this project.

And finally, we’re all waiting for the Prime Minister to address the nation on Sunday, potentially setting out some changes to the way we live and work. Regardless of this, we’ve already been working with unions to agree some areas that can safely return to work. This week we’ve seen staff in areas such as cleansing and parks return, and other areas in the Place directorate will follow once a risk assessment and guidance has been agreed with unions. Alongside this, it’s important that those of us who’ve been working from home during the pandemic continue to do so. For now, only those working in critical roles where they must attend their base location for meetings are allowed to do so – further details are here.

Once again, thank you for everything you’re doing and, above all, I hope you and your loved ones stay safe.