Workplaces should accommodate people suffering from long term health conditions

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Freya Thompson, knowledge and research executive, North England Chamber of Commerce latest column for the Journal.

New analysis has revealed a massive increase in the number of people in the UK with long-term illnesses over the past two years, primarily due to Post-Covid conditions such as breathing difficulties, mental health problems, and long Covid.

My heart goes out to the 1.2 million people out there with a newfound chronic condition. This must be devastating.

The increase comes not just at the time of a cost-of-living crisis, in which disabled people are twice as likely to live in a cold house and three times as likely to not be able to afford food, but also when regional health inequalities are worsening.

Now that a third of working-age people suffer from a long-term health condition, it is clear we should be thinking about how we can make workplaces more accommodating.

Many of these conditions are invisible, so you don’t always know who in your organisation might benefit from adjustments.

I myself have suffered from chronic pain, fatigue, and dysautonomia since childhood as a result of Ehlers Danlos Syndrome and Postural Tachycardia Syndrome. The latter is also a common diagnosis for those suffering from long Covid, and before I started understanding my condition and adapting my lifestyle around it, it was possible for me to pass out in the street. I continue to struggle with standing, but you wouldn’t know if I didn’t tell you!

Full-time work was an intimidating prospect for me, and I felt locked out of many entry-level job opportunities. I am lucky here at the Chamber, however, where something that has really helped me is the ability to work from home. Being able to work without too much physical exertion most days means I have time to recover from the days I have to be out and about. For some, flexible hours will be useful, as symptoms and their severity can be unpredictable. Workplace culture also makes a massive impact, and it is helpful to promote a healthy work-life balance instead of overworking. These are considerations that I’m sure will benefit employees regardless of health status. I also encourage people to learn from their openly chronically ill colleagues so they can support them with their personal needs.

Even if there comes a day when this pandemic becomes a distant memory for most, it is likely it will deeply affect many people’s health for the rest of their lives. Being inclusive means you won’t miss out on talent, and will help employees to achieve their full potential.

Good Growth for Cities? North East Needs Support

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The new Demos-PwC Good Growth for Cities report looks at how well positioned UK cities are for recovery from the pandemic. This snapshot of the report focuses on the North East’s performance, changing public preferences, and steps businesses can take to drive Good Growth for all.

 

Good Growth for Cities Index

For the last decade, the annual Demos-PwC Good Growth for Cities Index has measured the performance of cities and regions right across the country.

The index does not only look at economic indicators, but other measures of wellbeing too. These are work-life balance, skills (16-24 and 25+), income distribution, health, environment, income, jobs, transport, owner occupation, house to price earnings, new businesses. Two new indicators have also been added to the index, which are vibrancy of local high streets and safety.

The variables fall broadly in line with the Government’s 12 missions outlined in the Levelling Up white paper, but the report notes that it is interesting that the environment was omitted. The writers recommend that local leaders should consider the environment, sustainability and climate change in their levelling up plans.

 

Of the 14 indicators above, the biggest improvement between 2017-19 and 2018-20 is work-life balance. There have also been improvements in the skills of workers above the age of 25, as well as income distribution and life expectancy. The writers feel these improvements are perhaps a reflection of the rise in flexible working patterns.

Most cities continue to see improvements in their Good Growth scores, and it appears that the pandemic has levelled the playing field to some degree between the highest and lowest ranked cities, with the gap narrowing slightly this year.

 

The North East Region

No North East cities achieved an index score above the UK average. The region also has the lowest performing city in this year’s index: Middlesbrough & Stockton. Despite this, the report stated that Middlesbrough & Stockton is also estimated to have the strongest recovery in the region. Its economy is estimated to grow by 7.0% in 2021 and by 4.9% in 2022.

The report stated that the North East and Yorkshire have performed well regarding:

  • House price to earnings (7 of the 10 cities score significantly above the national average
  • Work-life balance (Every city, bar Hull, scores significantly above the national average
  • Income distribution (Where 9 out of 10 cities score at or above average)

The regions performed poorly in other variables, however, including income, jobs, health, new businesses per head, owner-occupation, and safety.

The report states that many of the issues faced by the North have been exacerbated by the pandemic, as many cities, even those in which the economy is in reasonably good shape, have been unable to capitalise on the changing nature of public preferences and may need support in this area. These changing public preferences are outlined in the next section.

Nevertheless, the report outlines ways in which cities and other areas can benefit from the changing nature of the way we live, and one of the examples was located in Northumbria.

The Northumbria Healthcare NHS foundation is considered to have pushed the boundaries of its expected role regarding its response to COVID-19 by setting up a PPE factory. The factory is about to become the country’s leading PPE supplier for NHS Trusts, and also revived the local textile industry.

 

Public Preferences

As in previous years, PwC asked members of the public to provide their views on the measures they think matter most. The report shows that there has been a marked shift in public preferences, with greater weight being placed on issues such as work-life balance, income distribution, and the environment:

  • Safe and secure neighbourhoods that are free of crime (14%) [New]
  • Fair distribution of income and wealth (14%)
  • Adequate income levels (13%)
  • Good health (10%)
  • Time with family / work-life-balance (10%)
  • Protection of the environment (for example, carbon emission reduction, preserving forests) (10%)
  • Good quality transport systems (road and rail in particular) (8%)
  • Secure jobs (8%)
  • Access to shops on a high street (5%) [New]
  • Affordable housing (4%)
  • Having the skills and education needed to be in employment and earn a living (2%)
  • High levels of entrepreneurship and new business start-ups (2%)

Jobs and Skills, which were perceived as two of the most important variables in the index last year, saw significant decreases this year. It is not yet clear whether this is a temporary shift in values due to the way we have been living over the past couple of years, along with relatively strong confidence in the employment market, or if this is a more permanent shift in preferences.

 

Actions for Businesses

Levelling Up and the Reality of Regional Inequality

  • Take a proactive role in developing local economic strategies, in partnership with local and regional leaders, to identify strategic priorities to boost productivity and support innovation.
  • Play a greater role in delivering a fair recovery across the UK, with a particular focus on reskilling and upskilling, to ensure people are equipped with the right tools for future jobs, particularly in green growth industries.
  • Seek collaborative ventures, including partnership and coordination roles, with central and local government, charities and community groups to create business opportunities and improve the effectiveness of levelling up interventions.

Capitalising on Growth Outside Larger Metropolitan Cities

  • Provincial economies typically experience a deprivation of skilled workers as a result of low wages or better opportunities being offered in more urban areas. Businesses can improve this by investing in the development of talent, through retraining and apprenticeship programmes.
  • Businesses should continue to explore ways to increase flexibility for their employees in a hybrid working environment. Greater flexibility and the opportunity to decide when and where to work may encourage more employees to help support rural and provincial economies at the same time as helping larger metropolitan areas recover.
  • In partnership with local leaders, businesses can push forward the circular economy and green growth agenda by exploring opportunities to localise supply chains as much as possible, reducing excessive carbon emissions from production and transportation and capitalising on local assets.

Driving Social Mobility and Addressing Intergenerational Inequality

  • Recognise the cost that the pandemic has had on the upskilling experience for young people, whether that be virtual fatigue and the perception of online training, or that new hybrid ways of working have made it increasingly difficult to learn from colleagues on the job.
  • Begin to reimagine the upskilling journey, but first they may wish to increase their involvement with education and training providers, as well as apprenticeship schemes, to understand where improvements can be made to reinvigorate the learning experience.
  • Look strategically at the skills system, focusing on skills that will enable the capabilities of the future.

Green Growth to Provide a Basis for All Future Action

  • Craft a coherent and actionable strategy to deliver sustainable growth by breaking down ESG considerations into a set of manageable actions and selecting the areas in which they want to compete.
  • Make use of innovation hubs and grants to collaborate across public and private institutions, to embrace innovative ways of working and disruptive technologies.
  • Unlock efficiencies through incentivising better use of resources, including decreasing waste and energy usage.
  • Drive social mobility, as well as racial and gender equality, in green sectors by offering accessible educational pathways, including skills programmes and apprenticeships, and increased support for career progression.

 

Read the full report here and interact with the website here.

 

Photo by Toa Heftiba on Unsplash

Chamber statement following Downing Street press conference

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Throughout the pandemic, businesses across the North East have shown both resilience and a steadfast commitment to playing their part in tackling the virus.

This announcement brings another set of enforced measures announced at short notice and therefore another period of disruption and adjustment. We know that our businesses will do everything they can to keep their employees and customers safe, but this inevitably comes at a cost. It is therefore critical that further support is provided immediately to the sectors that have been hardest hit during the pandemic.

Clarity, transparency and genuine leadership is needed from the Government to ensure the public and businesses know exactly what is expected of them going into another very difficult Christmas period.

Chamber survey shows extent of businesses’ inflation and staffing worries

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North East England Chamber of Commerce’s economic survey for the third quarter of 2021 shows that while businesses have continued to recover strongly from the pandemic, they are facing significant pressures from price rises and staff shortages.

The survey, carried out in association with Durham University Business School, shows UK sales indicators had risen by 27.4 points while the current workforce score was also up at 35 compared to 22.1 in the last quarter. However, over 59% of businesses said they are now more worried about inflation than three months ago, while the figure for staff shortages was over 57%.

Lesley Moody, Chamber President (AES Digital Solutions) said: “It brings me great pleasure to be able to say that our businesses have, on the whole, continued to improve their performance over the last three months.

“However, the headline figures mask some serious issues affecting our businesses. Disruption to supply chains is affecting all parts of our economy, from manufacturers struggling to obtain materials to retailers running out of products. The causes of this are myriad, but Brexit, staff shortages, ongoing Covid isolation rules and global logistics issues are all contributing factors.

“All of these things are not only hampering business recovery and growth, but are also leading to a big spike in worries over inflation. Businesses are trying to recruit in a tightening labour market and are reporting large increases in salary levels. This is all unsustainable and may require swift action from policy makers to prevent business costs spiralling out of control.”

In terms of recruitment over half of respondents attempted to recruit full-time staff (58%), representing an increase on levels recorded last quarter (56.7%) and well above Q3 last year (31%). More businesses attempted to recruit permanent staff this quarter (53.3%), much higher than the number recorded last year (23.5%).  

Lesley Moody said: “If we can get this situation under control, then there is plenty in these results to give me confidence in our businesses’ ability to recover. The appetite for growth is there, and while the pandemic caused so much harm it also spurred on a great deal of innovation. We must hope that inflation is fleeting, and that we can get on with the job of building a stronger regional economy.” 

Download the full report here.

Buying into the future of retail

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The COVID-19 pandemic has hastened several things over the last year-and-a-half, from the way – and where – we work, to how we enjoy leisure and culture experiences. It has also accelerated the demise of retailers, with many disappearing from our high streets following the twin effects of enforced closures and weakening consumer confidence. One operator to have faced the headwinds caused by coronavirus is Newcastle-based Fenwick. However, with its flagship department store now open again, and its chief executive John Edgar – who joined just days after the first national lockdown had begun last year – rolling out improvements to its physical and online offering, the firm is taking steps to recover lost ground.

Steven Hugill finds out more:

John Edgar has viewed the retail sector from numerous angles – which is pretty reassuring given its current outlook. Scroll down the Fenwick chief executive’s CV and the list of companies is as illuminating as the Newcastle department store’s annual festive window displays.


From blue-ribbon names such as Harrods and Selfridges Group, to 172-year-old high street operator House of Fraser and the now departed Woolworths, he knows only too well the sector’s capricious nature.

And in a world where success in the ‘bricks and mortar’ landscape is no longer as simple as black and white, John’s technicolour experience has perhaps never been more important.

With the high street’s very identity under increasing pressure – caused in no small part by the continued rise of online shopping, a factor exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic – its future will only be secured by watershed change.

To remain relevant in today’s convenience culture, high streets must offer fresh experiences that go beyond simple rows of chain stores and create places of convergence, where leisure and entertainment melds seamlessly with new residential space and shops that present the unique over the homogenous.

“Retail has never been easy and now, more than ever, we need to change and adapt faster,” says John, who grew up in the village of Hurworth, just outside Darlington.

“The high street will continue to exist, but there will be more polarisation between the good and the bad.

“I’ve been saying for the last 15 years that there have been too many shops,” continues John, whose career began at the former Burton Group, which later became Sir Philip Green’s now collapsed Arcadia Group.

“For me, less is more, and we are in a strong position with our nine stores here at Fenwick, but the property market must change, and the Government must still do something about business rates too.

“I think what we will see are more discerning high streets, rather than the bland multiples of the 1990s where, for example, you sometimes didn’t know the difference between a utilities shop, a bank and a retail outlet.

“Personality is going to be more and more important going forward, and we will be perfectly placed for that.

“We need to keep doing the right things – some of our ideas will work, and some won’t.

“Ultimately it will all be about reinvention and reinvigoration.”

The change to which John refers is already being played out within Fenwick’s sprawling store on Newcastle’s Northumberland Street. Work carried out during the shop’s enforced COVID-19 closures has added new dimensions to the 139-year-old family owned business’ offer.

Led by the introduction of a rooftop restaurant, known as Roof Thirty Nine, the operator has also opened up windows, re-laid floors and revamped its menswear department to include a ‘sneaker wall’ that features myriad footwear brands and colours.

Elsewhere, it has strengthened its food hall, with greater amounts of produce sourced from local suppliers, and it is continuing to introduce new brands across all departments, which, in some cases, are exclusive to the city centre site.

What it all represents, says John, is the evolution of an esteemed name that is putting itself in the strongest possible position as the financial, social, physical and emotional implications of the COVID-19 pandemic begin to slowly abate.

“What we could have done is shut the doors at Christmas time, unlocked them again after the last lockdown and said, ‘it’s the same stuff, come in and buy it’,” says John.

“But that would have been a disaster. Instead, what we have chosen to do is invest for the longevity of the business.

“To make that happen, though, we have to provide a point of difference for customers and that means being innovative and ensuring quality around products and services, as well as the hospitality we provide.

“We are majoring on the hospitality element – it’s all about going the extra mile and welcoming someone into the store just like you would to your home,” continues John, who attended what is now Darlington’s Carmel College as a youngster.

“Not many are doing that, certainly not to the same scale we are.” While making strides in transforming the physical and social aspects of the business, John – who spent five and- a-half years as Harrods’ chief financial officer – is making equally rapid progress with Fenwick’s online presence.

When he officially took over at the start of the pandemic on April 1 last year, the retailer’s digital offering lagged somewhat behind its contemporaries, to the point that its previous hierarchy was strongly considering its permanent closure. John, however, was quick to see the opportunity.

“Everything was closed when I joined – including online,” he says. “Someone actually said to me, ‘forget online, it’s not worth it’ – it took me a week-and-a-half to change the situation and that part of the business is now growing at an incredible rate.

“Before I joined, it was taking very little money and was primarily a beauty site,” says John, who worked as chief financial officer at Woolworths, where he fought valiantly with colleagues to save the ultimately-fated business.

“It did bits very well, but it wasn’t what it could be – we only had a tiny percentage of our product catalogue on there, for example.

“We have done an awful lot to improve the website, but there remains an awful lot more to do. Pandemic or not, it is something we need to be doing to be credible in the marketplace and extend our reach.”

With enforced COVID-19 closures having only further heightened the importance of retailers’ digital proposition, John says the online improvements mean Fenwick now has much greater sinuosity to meet shoppers’ fluctuating buying habits and counter any further turns in the economic landscape – all while acting as a crucial, supportive ally to its traditional ‘bricks and mortar’ offering.

He says: “It remains to be seen how many people have said, ‘I’m only ever going to shop online from now on’ following the pandemic, but there is a palpable feeling of positivity among customers shopping physically, which I think is being helped by the vaccine rollout.

“To an extent, it depends what people want. If I want to buy a lot of detergent, for example, I don’t need to go into a shop and experience that.

“But if I want to buy some children’s shoes for school, because their feet have grown over lockdown, I’d do that in store.

“We can cater for whatever people choose,” adds John, who helped create the Selfridges Group during his time with the operator.

He continues: “The website is a major part of our plans to transform the business and we will drive our online offer further, but it won’t be to the exclusion of our stores – the two of them sit side-by-side very well.

“Online will never make up for the gap in most retailers – there is a role for both; it is a symbiotic relationship.”

The progress of the business’ physical offer and its online services that John alludes to is made even more remarkable when viewed through the prism of COVID-19.

Having prevented him from embarking on physical store visits and team introductions on his arrival, John’s picture of Fenwick was instead painted through countless online video calls and meetings.

“Nothing focuses the mind like a common enemy,” says John of Fenwick, which complements in-store and online trading with concierge and call-and collect services.

“As an organisation, we all saw that, and it was quite easy to get everyone to pull together.

“We had to keep going as best we could, and the trader mentality really came out.”

And he says such resilience, coupled with an ever-growing understanding of coronavirus and its repercussions on the retail sector and society as a whole, means Fenwick has been able to successfully begin plotting the first steps to recovery. It will, however, be a measured journey.

“Recovery is going to be quite slow for everyone,” adds John. “I think it is going to be a number of years before we get back to a level where we are really comfortable; the reality is that we just don’t know what is going to happen over the next 12
months.

“We are, however, in a better place than we were.”

Business community learns hospital trust’s lessons from Covid

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North East business leaders heard first-hand accounts of how the NHS in Newcastle tackled the challenges of Covid and the lessons learnt from the rapidly-evolving crisis. 

Dame Jackie Daniel, chief executive, Newcastle Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, who began her career as a nurse almost 40 years ago, set the context for the response to the North East England Chamber of Commerce members. 

She said: “We have 16,000 staff in our Trust and a strong reputation for excellence in our clinical and care treatment which was of huge importance in treating our Covid patients.  The support we received from the business community, and people in our region, was also tremendous and so much appreciated at such difficult times.   

“We have major health inequalities in our country with the North East particularly affected by poor life expectancy.  Coming out of Covid I hope we can take the opportunity to build back better health for everyone.” 

On the Chamber webinar the experience of front-line medical care staff was also laid bare.  Dr Sarah Platt, director of trauma and lead consultant for critical care spoke in candid terms about the inexorable march of Covid from one patient to many hundreds in just four months. 

She said: “The pandemic was a gentle but relentless growth where we knew any tiny element of complacency might kill people, some of them health workers.  Our whole team from the estates staff to engineers as well as health professionals worked tirelessly to prepare for the huge numbers of patients we knew would be coming.   

“As a result I’m very proud that our Trust was second in the country for Covid survival rates and that we were also able to accept patients from all over England to support colleagues outside of our region. 

“We have all learnt valuable lessons from coping with this pandemic.  The first one is that you need to learn to live with uncertainty.  Take some perspective on the situation you are dealing with and be creative.  I also learnt the value of taking time out, having courage and confidence to move forward.” 

Communications was also key to successfully managing the pandemic’s demand.  The Trust team was in constant dialogue with hospitals around the globe as well as in the UK, sharing vital information and advice. 

The work of the hospitals is supported by Newcastle Hospitals Charity, the official Charity of the Trust and the largest healthcare Charity in the region. On the webinar charity director, Teri Bayliss, highlighted the thousands of ways local communities and companies had supported their work.   

The positive contributions included everything from children’s artwork, ‘giving thanks to the NHS’ in the Fenwick window, to donations and gifts of helpful products and food.   

She said: “There is something very special about the North East and its level of compassion.  Everyone’s kindness has made, and continues to make, a great impact on staff morale.” 

Newcastle Hospitals Charity is supporting hospital staff and patients affected by the pandemic. If anyone would like to help the charity, please get in touch via https://charity.newcastle-hospitals.nhs.uk” 

Has the pandemic changed customer loyalty?

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The pandemic has changed how customers interact with businesses. Whether you’re in a B2B or B2C marketplace, chances are you’ve seen a lot less of your customers and clients face to face, and you’ve had to find new ways to interact with them.

But how has that changed their loyalty towards you? Will people remember those who went the extra mile during a difficult time? Or has the whole experience made customers less sticky?

In this webinar, data insights specialists from SRM Europe share their latest research and what it means for North East businesses. Summary The 2021 customer experience and loyalty research from SRM looks at perceptions of service, engagement, and brand affinity across the Banking and Retail sectors. It covers feedback from over 5,000 customers for 50+ brands across the UK and US.

The insights include: – The customer’s view of how firms have performed during the pandemic, – How digital experience and future channel preferences have evolved, – The importance of having a social purpose, – What is changing the drivers of customer loyalty. In the session we will share the highlights from the research and explore the implications for different business sectors as we emerge from lockdown restrictions. Speakers

Founding members of SRM’s Insight & Data Analytics (IDA) team, Jehan Sherjan & Pete Bainbridge both have over 20 years’ experience in a range of insight and consulting roles across a range of industry sectors – including Financial Services, Retail, Music, and Membership Organisations. The Insight & Data Analytics team help businesses generate and analyse actionable customer experience and data insights, with independent interpretation and support to deliver a positive impact to performance. The customer experience and loyalty research was established in 2012, and has covered over 125 brands and 100,000 responses since its launch.

Chamber members hear about Hays Travel plans for growth

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North East England Chamber of Commerce members heard the inspirational story of how Hays Travel has tackled the challenges of Covid and the ambitious plans to grow the business.

Dame Irene Hays, chair, Hays Travel which has its head office in Sunderland, began the candid talk by outlining the business decision to buy Thomas Cook which was primarily due its desirable shop locations.

However, a few months later the severe travel restrictions due to the pandemic caused huge financial challenges.

Dame Irene said: “We have managed to get through the pandemic due to our strong balance sheet coming into the crisis. Just under half of our management team started with us as apprentices and thanks to them and the whole team, there was a massive determination to do whatever it took for us to survive.”

With 6.5k staff nationwide the monthly salary bill was challenging with income at a full stop due to travel restrictions. 

Dame Irene explained, with her late husband John, who also ran the business, staff were asked for different ways the company could make cost savings or ways of increasing revenue. They were inundated with great suggestions and results produced £1.8m of cost reductions.  One staff member made suggestion about combining cash collection and foreign exchange services which resulted in a reduction of approximately £200k.

She said: “We are now looking at what we need to do in the future to get back on track.  What is really important now is that we get clarification about countries on the Amber list so people can travel to them more easily. 

“Our social media and digital presence are going to be particularly important going forward to promote our holidays. To help with this and other parts of the business we have recruited 100 apprentices this year.

“The last 16 months have been a real rollercoaster for the travel sector but we have looked after our staff and they, in turn have definitely looked after our business.”

Despite the difficulties there are ambitious plans on-track including taking on 90 staff from a Glasgow travel agent which specialised in long-haul holidays and the acquisition of travel agency with branches in Wales.

Hays have also chartered their own aircraft to fly directly to the Caribbean to join a Cruise around the Islands from regional airports: Bristol, Bournemouth, Belfast, Edinburgh, Glasgow and Newcastle.

Dame Irene also highlighted the work of the Hays Foundation which supports young people from disadvantaged communities to achieve their goals whether that is in education, sport, the arts or academia.

Wingrove Motor Company sponsors the Chamber medium-sized business events series.

On a trip back to normality

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Of all the sectors hit by the coronavirus pandemic, the travel industry has without doubt been one of the
worst affected. With numerous countries turned into no-fly zones, and continued uncertainty over others,
such as Portugal, the traditional holiday and business travel landscape has taken on an altogether different
look. But, says Dame Irene Hays, owner of Sunderland- based Hays Travel, there remains scope for much
optimism. Steven Hugill finds out more:

Dream holidays – we all have them.

Whether they involve lazy afternoons under cloudless skies, experiencing new customs in far-away cities or the excitement of visiting ancient sites and monuments, we’ve all got our favourite getaways.


Those visions, of course, have been blurred significantly over the past 18 months amid national lockdowns and the enduring restrictions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.


For many, the health crisis has meant the cancellation of valued family holidays, for others the loss of once-in-a-lifetime vacations. What, then, if we could satisfy some of our escapist tendencies and plan for clearer days beyond the coronavirus miasma by turning trips on websites and the pages of glossy brochures in getaways from the comfort of our own homes?


Well, we can. Just look at Hays Travel. Working with its extensive network of cruise operators, which includes the Royal Caribbean marque, the business is providing virtual voyages of discovery.


Through video calls, the Sunderland-headquartered firm welcomes customers to coffee mornings that include time on
computer-generated ocean liners and provide snapshots into the opulence of water-borne holidaying.
And Dame Irene Hays, owner of the travel company, says the function is proving extremely popular, coming as it does
alongside the business’ strong presence in the cruising staycation market, where liners are circumnavigating the UK
while places further afield remain out of bounds.


“We are huge in the cruise sector – we sell thousands of packages every year – and a lot of customers are looking a
that type of holiday as an opportunity to have a break, some or the first time,” she says.

“And we are very lucky that 11 of the largest cruise companies are sending liners for staycations too.

“On top of that, our coffee mornings allow the public to enjoy a virtual tour of a ship, to see things like the cabins and
the entertainment complexes, put questions to the operators and go off on trips around Caribbean islands.
“It has been very well received and we’ve had people taking part while doing their ironing or watching from the kitchen
while they’ve been baking cakes in their homes.


“It is something that is here to stay; we’ve seen now that people are comfortable booking holidays like this.”
Dame Irene’s last point is significant, for it not only speaks of a business finding a new way to promote its holidays, but also the kind of operational pivots that organisations have had to make due to COVID-19.


Alongside its technological steps, the firm – founded by Irene’s late husband John in 1980 in the back of his mother’s childrenswear shop in Seaham, County Durham – recently recruited 100 apprentices who are now working across the
business, from accountancy roles to high street store positions.

It has also acquired a Welsh travel agency and the Explorer Travel home working business, the latter of which has added to the Hays Travel Independence Group that operates as a consortium of independent retailers.


It all points to, says Dame Irene, a business laying the foundations for further success once restrictions on cross- border journeys are suitably eased.
“When COVID-19 came to light in Tenerife’s Costa Adeje Palace Hotel towards the end of February last year, holiday bookings literally fell off a cliff from March onwards,” she says.
“And from that moment to the present day, the travel industry has been one of the hardest hit globally.
“Our aim during the last year-and-a half has been to look after customers.
“Of course, COVID-19 has also allowed every business to reassess its situation, and we have been no different.
“It has given us time to take stock and think about the future and what we want it to look like.
“We’ve looked very carefully at the retail estate and revisited our policies and procedures to ensure they are upto-
date.
“We have also looked at our digital offer and have used social media to a greater extent and used Zoom and Microsoft Teams very innovatively, as shown through the virtual cruises.”


However, while Hays Travel is setting the scene to meet future demand, Dame Irene says that contrary to the uncertainty caused by COVID-19, clamour for its myriad sunshine breaks remains strong in the present day too.

And while conditions are likely to remain tough for a good time yet, and domestic travel alternatives – such as
its cruising staycations – are proving popular, she says desire for global holidaying will continue to prevail.


“The environment is going to be challenging for the next two to three years,” says Dame Irene.

“Until the world is vaccinated, there will continue to be difficulties, but we must remain realistically optimistic that travel will return.
“We know there remains appetite for travel; our forward order books for 2022 and 2023 are very strong, and demand is high for the back end of 2021 too.


“We are seeing holidays being bought that are of higher values, and customers, in places, booking three or
four trips,” continues Dame Irene of the company, which oversees the UK’s largest travel agency estate following its takeover of Thomas Cook’s stores in October 2019.


“We are selling more domestic holidays than usual, and it may be that for some it becomes the norm going forward, but for the majority, they really like to experience different cultures and different ways of life – and the sunshine too, of course.
“Furthermore, those who like skiing or mountain walking, yes, they can do that in the UK, but it’s a very different vista and people do miss the opportunity to get away; they miss that date in the diary to look forward to.
“Some people might elect to holiday in the UK going forward, but I still think the vast majority will want to travel
abroad again.”

Integral to meeting the yearning to which Dame Irene refers will be Hays Travel’s 5700-strong workforce, which stretches right across the UK thanks to the Wearside firm’s Thomas Cook deal.

Having added thousands of people to its roster, and, for a time, thrust Hays Travel into the national media spotlight,
Dame Irene says the acquisition added greatly to the business’ financial position during the early part of 2020.

And despite COVID-19 ultimately stunting the progress of its new locations, as well as that of its original stores amid lockdown closures, Dame Irene says she cannot praise highly enough the spirit and support of its staff.
She says: “It was sad to see Thomas Cook fail, but we were delighted to safeguard 2500 jobs.


“The people wanted to do well for us from the moment we took over the stores, and they still do.
“We have remained strong as a business during the pandemic because of our staff and their resilience and
amazing application.
“They have been so flexible in working from home and continuing to deal with customers remotely.
“They have also been very understanding across the whole period, which has seen many of them come
back to work, only to be furloughed again, before coming back once more.
“They have been tremendous.”

And Dame Irene says their hard work in helping the business remain robust while setting itself for further success
post-pandemic is a fitting tribute to John, who passed away last November. “John built a beautiful business,” she says of the firm that, prior to its Thomas Cook deal, was led by a senior management team nearly half of which were former apprentices with the travel agent.


“He meant a lot to so many; we are a family operator and there were a lot of people here who had known John a
long time.
“We received messages from across the country; I personally received more than 100,000 messages of support, which meant a great deal.
“And when the city of Sunderland lit up its monuments in our company colours in John’s honour, that was such
a wonderful tribute.
Dame Irene continues: “The ambition for everyone here is to build on his legacy – we have to continue what we have been doing for John.
“It is tough with everything the pandemic has brought and the uncertainty it continues to deliver.

“Everyone just wants to get back to normal. And it is up to us to be ready for that happening because things will
bounce back, I’m sure of it.”

Freedom is going to have to wait a little bit longer…

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So it looks like freedom is going to have to wait a little bit longer.

Not that the Prime Minister’s announcement came as a massive shock, especially as we’re all now accustomed to getting our lockdown news from anywhere other than official channels.

It may surprise regular readers of these columns to find out I am not an epidemiologist, and so I will leave discussion of variants, transmissibility and R numbers to those who know what they’re talking about.

From my side of things however, it is clear that the delay to the lifting of restrictions is another blow to those businesses who have been placed under the most severe strain over the past 16 months.

The resilience and determination shown by those working in sectors such as leisure, culture and tourism has been incredible throughout the pandemic and I’m sure this will help them to ride out yet another period of restrictions.

Obviously, public health comes first and if this delay buys enough time for the vaccination programme to get on top of Covid once and for all then there’s every chance we’ll look back on it as a price worth paying. Nobody wants to see the reopening go into reverse.

Thankfully, we’ve been blessed with some decent weather over the last few weeks, which I’m sure has helped pubs and restaurants to make the most of any and all outside space they possess. There’s few better places to be during a great North East summer.

A decent run for England in the Euros won’t hurt beer sales either.

But despite all of this, I speak to plenty in the industry (and other sectors that are equally affected) and the current restrictions still make it incredibly difficult to make ends meet.

Hospitality and tourism aren’t luxuries, they are an essential part of our economy. I remember being taught that at its simplest level an economy is just lots of people bumping into each other and things happening (insert your own joke about nightclubs here).

Without those interactions, our economy and society are poorer. This is why there is a massive onus on Government to put the right assistance in place to ensure there is a vibrant hospitality sector to return to when we fully emerge from lockdown, and also on all of us to brave the sun/rain/wind/snow over the next few weeks and support vital local businesses.