A HOSPICE in Basingstoke is launching an award to recognise the incredible work of its staff who are spread across the region.

St Michael’s Hospice, which is based in Aldermaston Road and has shops across the region, is planning to honour its staff after “an extremely challenging two years dealing with the pandemic.

The PRIDE of St Michael’s Awards will be given to persons selected from around 110 of its staff.

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Iain Cameron, chief executive of the hospice, said: “It became obvious during the periods of lockdown, with movement restricted inside the hospice and some staff working from home, that we needed to find new ways to engage with our staff so that they continued to feel a strong bond with the work of the hospice. 

“Several staff members with previous experience of similar schemes came up with the idea of hospice awards to celebrate our core values which are centred around PRIDE (people, respect, integrity, diversity and excellence). 

“By drawing attention to the incredible way our staff make a difference to people’s lives, we will be able to celebrate the outstanding work that happens across the whole organisation.”

All nominations will be listed on the website and a monthly winner will be chosen by the senior leadership team of the hospice. 

At the end of the year, the PRIDE winner of the year award will be selected from the 12 monthly winners.

Chris Griffiths, director of transformation, said: “Working in palliative care and with people at the end of their lives can take a real emotional toll on staff but so can working in retail, fundraising and all the other support functions. 

“There is a lot of pressure to bring in the money and keep the charity going because the consequences of not doing so are so great. We hope these Awards will help our staff to know who valued they are by the community and by their colleagues.”

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Nominations are encouraged from members of the public and other staff members. There are three different ways to get a nomination in; you can complete the cards at the Hospice reception and in all the shops; you can use the form on the website at www.stmichaelshospice.org.uk/pride-awards/ or email the HR department at hr@stmichaelshospice.org.uk

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