We have been keeping the children of our staff entertained with the introduction of a weekly virtual after school club for under-12s.
Every Monday afternoon, with the able assistance of Sharky and George, the children of all employees are offered an hour of learning and entertainment.
The initiative is part of our long-standing wellness programme, which has been ramped-up over the last year in the wake of home working and an increased focus on maintaining a sense of community during the pandemic.
At 4:30pm every Monday, parents are invited to log their children on to the themed virtual session. To date, the youngsters have been treated to a variety of engaging themes. Adventure Race Week saw them challenged to a variety of activities including building a cushion tower, while Dance Week’s highlights were musical statues and dance-offs. Magic Week saw a magician host his own show followed by a workshop to pass on some of the tricks of the trade and Minute to Win It Week saw a highly competitive series of timed challenges using household items. Other themes included an Escape Room, Science club and PE.
Forthcoming weeks include an Interactive Storytelling session.
Michael Wharfe, Partner in our Construction team whose 9-year-old son Oliver has attended the virtual after school club, says: “After some initial trepidation and not wanting his camera on, Oliver ended up having a fantastic time, with dressing up in mum and dad’s wacky clothes for a catwalk dance being a particular highlight. It certainly kept him entertained and out of our hair for a helpful hour at the end of the day, and burned off some energy just in time for dinner. He’s very much looking forward to some of the upcoming sessions.”
Other firm-wide wellness initiatives aimed at encouraging colleagues to interact and promote wellbeing include virtual yoga, Pilates and mindfulness classes, a bake-off competition, a Christmas playlist session, and a firm-wide quiz.
Hannah Nichols, HR Advisor, says: “We’re constantly on the look-out for new ideas to help support our colleagues. The advent of the pandemic and ensuing lockdown presented us with challenges like no other. We’ve had to get creative to ensure we are offering the right levels of support, but also so that we can retain the sense of community that we have as a firm.”
“I’d like to thank our events partner Chloe Hutchinson at Kontact Events who has helped with the smooth running of our virtual after school club, as well as everyone at Sharky and George. The club itself has been really warmly received by the children and parents alike!”
