The National Assembly for Wales has once again been named as an employer leading the way in building flexible, family friendly UK workplaces.
It has been included among the top 30 employers for Working Families.
Employers large and small from many sectors compete annually to gain a place among the Top Employers for Working Families.
The list is compiled by work life balance charity Working Families and includes large and small companies and organisations across the UK.
I am delighted the National Assembly has been recognised among the UK's top employers for working families," said Manon Antoniazzi, Clerk and Chief Executive of the National Assembly for Wales.
"Promoting a family-friendly environment is central to the way the National Assembly goes about its work representing the people of Wales.
"We firmly believe that a workplace which promotes a healthy work life balance will develop motivated and dedicated staff. Our experience certainly bears out that belief."
The family-friendly programmes and policies that the Assembly has for its staff include:
Flexible working patterns – term-time, part-time, compressed hours etc
Flexi-time
Enhanced Maternity/Paternity/Adoption leave/Shared Parental Leave/pay arrangements
Salary Sacrifice for Childcare Vouchers
Carer's Policy
Special Leave arrangements
A parents and carers workplace network (Teulu)
"We firmly believe that a workplace which promotes a healthy work life balance will develop motivated and dedicated staff."
- Manon Antoniazzi, Clerk and Chief Executive of the National Assembly for Wales.
Holly Pembridge, Co-Chair of the Assembly's Parent and Carer Network Teulu said:
"As part of the benchmarking exercise, we answer in-depth questions and provide evidence on the application and impact of our flexible working practices and the award is an excellent reflection of our commitment shown by our people at all levels to achieve the aspiration of being an exemplar employer."
Employers answer in-depth questions and are scored on four key areas to build a comprehensive picture of their flexible and family friendly working environment.
These are:
Integration which looks at culture, attitude and how far flexibility has become embedded;
Policy which looks at the creation, development and deployment of flexibility;
Consistent practice which considers how well flexibility is supported; and
Measurement and results which looks at the effects of flexibility on the organisation, and their ability to understand those effects.
Sarah Jackson OBE, Chief Executive of Working Families, said:
"Congratulations to The National Assembly for Wales whose flexible, agile approach has earnt them a much-coveted place on 2017's list of Top 30 Employers for Working Families.
"The annual benchmark provides a clear picture, not just of current practice, but also the evolving way in which organisations think about work life balance and flexible working.
"Flexibility is not just good for families, it makes perfect business sense."