
Gas emergency and pipeline service in Newport wins award
The company was praised for its "pioneering financial benefits and wellbeing support" provided to its workforce of more than 2,000 colleagues.
Judges commended the firm for responding to employee feedback and launching a financial and wellbeing initiative centred around colleague needs.
The initiative allows employees to have autonomy over financial benefits, based on their individual priorities.
Bethan Jones, head of people and engagement, said: "Being hailed the winner in the Investment in People category in these awards is fantastic, and it's great that IGEM has recognised the work that we are undertaking to ensure our colleagues are at the heart of our operations.
"As a team we are dedicated to the very best HR and people practices, and to be recognised alongside other industry leaders is an honour."
Wales & West Utilities was also a finalist in three other award categories: Large Company of the Year (Over 250 Employees), Customer Service, and Engineer of the Year.
The company brings energy to 7.5 million people across the south west of England and Wales.
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Times
2 hours ago
- Times
Home secretary urges stores to use new crime-reporting platform
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Paul Fagg, who served as a police officer before leading Auror's law enforcement partnerships in the UK, said the platform acted as a 'conduit between retailer and policing' by sharing information, CCTV and other evidence between retailers, alerting them to prolific offenders and helping to enforce banning orders on the worst of them. In addition to acting as a preventative tool, Fagg said, the shared intelligence helped to close the gap between the vast number of shoplifting offences recorded by retailers and the minority that are investigated by police. Yvette Cooper visited Derby County FC's Pride Park stadium to launch the Safer Streets summer initiative PHIL BARNETT/PA The latest survey by the British Retail Consortium reported that 20 million shoplifting offences were committed in the past year. While there has been a 20 per cent year-on-year increase in the number of offences recorded by the police to 516,971, these make up only 2.5 per cent of all thefts. 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Cooper was speaking on a visit to Pride Park, the home of Derby County FC, to launch her 'Safer Streets Summer Initiative', a blitz that will run in 500 city and town centres over the next three months with increased police patrols and additional enforcement to tackle crime and antisocial behaviour. Each town centre that will benefit from the increased patrols has submitted a bespoke action plan to the Home Office on how they plan to tackle the specific antisocial behaviour problems in their area. Many are working in partnership with their local football club to divert youngsters away from antisocial behaviour. Bristol City has partnered with Morrisons to provide free 'turn up and play' sessions for youngsters who may be 'intimidating' elderly customers at supermarkets in the city through antisocial behaviour such as hanging out in groups outside the stores. Ben McDonald, head of the corporate protection team at Morrisons, said antisocial behaviour was a 'gateway offence' to more serious crime including shoplifting. He said: 'If you can take youths away from that type of offending into something else and bridge that gap where they've got employment, got a job and got responsibilities, you take them out of crime.'


BBC News
10 hours ago
- BBC News
Tax the wealthy, first minister says after welfare rebellion
Wales' first minister has called for the wealthiest to be taxed more as the Treasury considers how to deal with the fallout of the Commons welfare pulled back from significant cuts to disability benefit on Tuesday as government ministers feared a humiliating has led to speculation that taxes will have to rise after potential savings of £5bn were either delayed or entirely told BBC Wales that the chancellor Rachel Reeves is "trying to fill a £20bn black hole that was left by the Conservatives". "There is a price to pay for that. The question is who is going to pay that price?"You've got to get the balance right. Personally I think the people with the broader shoulders should be asked to carry more of the burden."She appeared to be talking about the UK government, rather than the Welsh government's own tax said had no idea what the reason was for the Chancellor Rachel Reeves' tears in the Commons on Wednesday."What I do know is that politicians are under immense pressure all the time," she first minister was asked if she thought the chancellor's position was tenable and whether she should remain in did not give an answer directly, but said: "I think it is clear that the markets... are giving a signal which is, look, actually they have confidence in her."In an interview on Thursday, Reeves said she had been dealing with a "personal issue" and had a "tough day". Ministers in the Welsh government were among the voices in the Labour party that had lobbied against the welfare changes. The planned cuts to disability benefit have now been delayed to the outcome of a first minister said she was "glad the UK Labour party has listened to the concerns of people who were really worried about how the changes might have impacted them".Meanwhile on Thursday, Plaid Cymru MP Ann Davies and MS Sioned Williams called again for a Wales-specific impact assessment on the delayed changes to personal independence payments (PIP) and the still planned cuts to the health element of universal said people across Wales were "confused and frustrated"."People need transparency and certainty about how these changes will affect their lives." 'Heat of the moment' The first minister also responded to a watchdog report which found she failed to declare in the proceedings of the Welsh Parliament that she had received money from a trade said she had "declared an interest in writing" which had been on the record "for a long time". "In the heat of the moment, sometimes you forget to declare an interest orally in the chamber," she said, adding she would "take on board the comments of the commissioner".Morgan was taking part Ireland-Wales forum with the Irish foreign minister Simon Harris in Swansea on Welsh government has signed a fresh collaboration agreement with Ireland, setting out how the two countries will collaborate on the economy, climate change, culture and a range of other follows from a previous agreement signed in Cardiff in said: "We've got a renewal of a relationship with Ireland. We've had a five year partnership, and we're opening the next chapter."


The Sun
10 hours ago
- The Sun
DWP confirms Winter Fuel Payment dates and exact amount pensioners can get
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