Category: Sugarman Education News

Affinity Workforce Solutions has launched a brand new campaign – Affinity Zero, to help protect communities across the globe by reducing its carbon footprint.

Monarch Education, part of Affinity Workforce Solutions (AWS), is committed to playing its part in helping the planet by reducing the organisation’s carbon footprint and becoming a sustainable business.

AWS and its sister brands have teamed up with organisations Greener Energy Futures and TEMWA Carbon Balance, to offset and reduce its carbon emissions to protect communities across the world that are severely impacted by climate change. Savings made through reducing our carbon will be re-directed to support education projects in Malawi.

As part of Affinity Zero, AWS has appointed 7 green champions across its 10 branches to drive change across the businesses to become greener and more sustainable.

Working with Greener Energy Futures, AWS’ green champions have built a 7-point action plan to address key areas of the business where it can reduce its carbon footprint.

CEO of AWS, Esme Bianchi-Barry said: “Sustainable is one of our six company values, so it is important that we live and breathe by our values and they are at the heart of everything we do.

“As an education recruitment agency, we feel it is necessary we do everything we can to support communities across the globe that are affected by climate change. We want to help them build communities where they can learn and thrive.”

Where its carbon cannot be neutralised, AWS has teamed up with TEMWA Carbon Balance to plant trees in Malawi to offset any carbon used.

In January 2023, TEMWA Carbon Balance planted 4,120 trees in Malawi from the funds provided by AWS. Due to climate change, Malawi and in particular Nkhata Bay has experienced more frequent extreme weather including heavy rainfall, droughts and floods. Since 2000, the Nkhata Bay district has lost 22% of its forest, so AWS wants to help support these communities by helping with reforestation.

Although this is a positive step forward to offset its carbon, CEO, Esme Bianchi-Barry believes there’s still more AWS can do to become a greener organisation.

She explained: “It is great to see the positive impact we have made by funding the planting of trees in Malawi however, there is still a lot of work to do. We are reviewing our travel and procurement policies, looking to partner with greener brands and implementing a green energy pledge. These small steps will hopefully make a massive difference in reducing our carbon footprint.”

Find out more about Affinity Zero by clicking the link below

https://affinityworkforce.com/affinity-zero/

Starting the new academic year always brings a feeling of excitement, apprehension and countless opportunities. As we look ahead to the new academic year, it is the perfect time to set new objectives. Reflecting on the past year, I am immensely proud of what Affinity Workforce have achieved within the education sector, providing an outstanding service to our candidates and schools.

The challenges we have faced since the Covid pandemic are now a thing of the past and we are certain that we can adapt to any changes and continue to be a success in the market.

Our journey in numbers 

Within the last academic year, we have placed over 8000 candidates into work and worked with over 3000 schools, saving them almost £425,000 in supply staffing. This is testament to the transparent and efficient service that we provide. Once again, we are proud to be one of eight companies with a place on the CCS Framework for the next 4 year term, providing our Managed Service Provision to 10 Multi-Academy Trusts across the UK.

This allows us to continue to provide a cost effective, streamlined and professional service to our clients. I cannot thank our staff enough for all of their effort and support in achieving this, as we look to add more amazing partnerships to our Managed Service.

Providing vital tutoring services

Since the successful launch of our tutoring services last year, we have provided over 10,000 hours of tuition to our schools as part of the National Tutoring Programme (NTP). As an approved partner for the second year running, we intend to be the leading recruitment agency supplying high quality tutors to schools and supporting pupils who need it most.

The best in the business

Over the last year, we have recruited some exceptional consultants, with experience in both recruitment and teaching. Hiring the top talent within the sector demonstrates our mission to seek the best candidates for our clients.

Affinity Workforce would not be the success we are today without our staff and we celebrated in style this summer with our annual education conference in Paris! It is so important for us to acknowledge the hard work and commitment of our colleagues and I can’t wait to see where in the world we end up this year!

I have no doubt that this will be another record breaking year, with so many exciting opportunities within the business.

I am hopeful that with the determination and resilience of our Affinity family, there will be some huge things to celebrate!

Wishing you all a successful and positive year!

Esme Bianchi-Barry CEO,

Affinity Workforce Solutions

The Government has recently announced changes to the NTP as of September 2022, which simplifies the funding model.

Schools currently have three funding pillars to use their tutoring subsidy either through an approved Tuition Partner, academic mentors or the ringfenced school-led tutoring grant.

No funding pillars

As of September 2022, there will be no funding pillars. The NTP will provide tuition grants directly to schools, so they will no longer need to go through a central supplier to draw funds. Schools will have the freedom of picking their own private tutors and will be able to select external staff from a list of approved NTP tuition partners.

During the 2021/22 school year, the DfE covered 75% of the tutoring costs for each school. Under the new ruling, this will now change to 60%, meaning schools are required to pay the remaining 40% using other funding sources.

Making a Difference

This year, Sugarman Education has supplied experienced, qualified tutors who have delivered in the region of 1000 hours of extra tuition to students outside of the classroom. We will continue to provide high-quality tutors both in the classroom and virtually throughout the 2022-2023 academic year, as well as offering summer tuition to those who need extra support during the school holidays.

Alex Champion, Operations Director at Affinity Workforce, said: “We are delighted to be a supplier on the NTP for the next academic year to support pupils to continue to grow, develop and learn.

“Schools are still seeing the effects of the pandemic on the younger generation and we are committed to ensuring that students have access to specialist tutors so they can achieve their potential.

“We welcome these changes to the NTP, making it easier for schools to access experienced tutors and educators to support students and everyone at Affinity Workforce and our brands are proud to be able to make this happen.”

Next steps

So, if you are interested in utilising the funding with an approved NTP Tuition partner, or would like further information about the NTP for 2022-2023 academic year, please email: tutors@affinityworkforce.com or call 0345 450 7540

Every July we hold our prestigious Affinity Workforce Education Conference. This is our most anticipated event of the year, which celebrates the successes of the last 12 months, highlights our top performers within the business and gives the teams a chance to let their hair down after a busy school year.

After the challenges we faced during the coronavirus pandemic, we wanted this year to be bigger and better than ever! Which is why we took Affinity Workforce on tour to Paris! Over 100 employees across our Affinity brands (CER, Monarch and Sugarman) headed to the French capital to enjoy, music, awards and lots of wine!

So let’s take a look at some of our awards…

Star Performer: Every year, our star performers are awarded based on recommendations by their branch managers, highlighting their exceptional work during the past 12 months and what they have done to stand out as key team members.

Consultant of the Year: The winners of Affinity’s ‘Consultant of the Year’ award have shown an outstanding work ethic during the last year, have hit financial and KPI targets and generated large revenue across the brands. As well as showing great enthusiasm and dedication in their role, they have built strong relationships with their candidates and provided an efficient service.

Top Biller:  Our top billers are awarded in each sector for billing the highest gross profit for the business.

Both our top billers and consultants of the year will be whisked away on an all-expenses paid trip this year to acknowledge their hard work and commitment to the business.

Our other winners on the night included:

• Back Office Supporter of the Year
• Business Supporter of the Year
• Billing Manager of the Year
• Non-Billing Manager of the Year
• Team of the Year Monarch
• Team of the Year CER

Not only did we celebrate the achievements of the last 12 months, but we also celebrated the 20 year anniversary of Monarch Millionaire, Sam Stockley. Sam has been a huge part of Monarch and has consistently delivered outstanding results for the branch. Congratulations to Sam!

The AWS Values Award was introduced last year to acknowledge those who represent the core values of the business, which are not just numbers driven. This year the award went to Milly and Laura from our Monarch Birmingham branch, for assisting another staff member as he was attacked outside the office. Their brave efforts did not go unnoticed and they received a standing ovation from the entire conference. Well done girls!

Congratulations to all of our worthy winners. We hope you enjoyed the bright lights of Paris and we are looking forward to seeing what the next 12 months will bring! Here’s to Affinity 2023!

Learning at work week is a unique annual event to recognise the importance of continual learning and development in the workplace. Here at Affinity, we are passionate about providing opportunities for staff to increase their knowledge and understanding of the business, as well as encouraging them to focus on personal growth and what strategies they can put in place to achieve their goals.

As part of our ongoing service to our staff, Affinity offer numerous training and coaching sessions, including online and team building exercises. 

Development 

This year, staff at Affinity Workforce were given the opportunity to take part in business coaching with well-known psychologist, Kas Ramus. Kas runs a business called ‘InsideMind’, working with people to help them shift their mindset both personally and professionally, using simple tools and techniques to help them perform better and have a positive impact on people around them.

Divisional Operations Manager, Sophy Green and Corinna Holden, Operations Director, have taken on a course with Kas and have found the sessions very useful, allowing them to step out of their comfort zone. 

Sophy said: “The process has been hugely beneficial for me, and has provided clarity in my career and personal life. I had previously been listening to podcasts and reading into personal growth online to help me achieve my goals. When I started speaking to Kas, I was struggling to join the dots and really invest or believe in the information I was being given.”

Values

Sophy has taken part in various exercises during her sessions, to help her maximise her potential and create actions that align with her personal goals, allowing her to reassess and realise what is important to her. 

She added: “Your values are the foundation to your goals, so this was a really important task. Coaching has helped me be more courageous in my decision making, stepping outside of my comfort zone. In turn, I have achieved my goals and feel confident in progressing forward with what I am working towards.”

Communication

Kas has provided Sophy and Corinna with valuable content to help them respond more mindfully to thoughts and emotions at work, providing a different outlook on how to approach difficult situations and listen effectively.

Corinna added: “The first few sessions were difficult, I don’t think anyone naturally really enjoys putting themselves out there and discussing perceived faults and vulnerabilities, especially in a professional setting, but this became much more natural and I started to really feel the benefit of some of the specific things we discussed and the ideas and outcomes we planned.”

The personal nature of the courses enabled Sophy and Corinna to really dig deep into their life and gain a new perspective about how they approach challenges at work.

“In terms of how the sessions have impacted me professionally I think that I have developed my listening skills, I have more faith in my decision making and also feel that I have a clearer vision and understanding of what I want for the business and how we will achieve it as a group. 

Significantly, I think that it has helped me to understand people I work with more and for those people to understand me.”

If you would like more information for learning at work week click here

When Xinha joined Sugarman this year as a Recruitment Consultant, she knew her previous experience in education would help her to succeed in the role and build lasting relationships with her candidates.

For many years, Xinha was registered with Sugarman Education as a TA, working in a long term role at a SEN school. This has given her a real insight into what qualities are required for the right candidate and how to meet the needs of each school.

She said “I loved the TA role and did it for many years. I am actually still in touch with one of the children’s parents and I help out with tutoring from time to time.”

A different perspective

Xinha’s former consultant Bianca, is now her mentor within the Sugarman team and has supported her within the role to ensure she is comfortable and offering support as she sees supply work from a different perspective.

“I’ve always had a great working relationship with Bianca and I want to make sure that I emulate that with my own candidates so that they feel comfortable the way that I did. I now know how hard it is when a candidate can’t make it to work that day!”

Past experience

By building trust with her teaching staff, Xinha has been able to recognise what people are best suited to the role and takes an honest approach when explaining their suitability.

“It is important candidates are using the right language towards children in SEN schools and are open to the experience. I have been in their shoes and you must gauge the needs of each child. I stand by that and won’t place just anyone in a school.”

Since joining the team, Xinha has been able to develop personally in the role and has succeeded in managing a busy desk, with no two days the same.

“I make sure I am calm in this role. It can be very hectic when you have their whole life in your hands and you need to make sure the staff are prepared for work. It is a good adrenalin rush.”

I have received lots of guidance here and we really help each other. It is a very open space and I am able to learn from my own mistakes and find out what works well for me.”

If you would like to speak to Xinha about the opportunities she has available, please call 0203 9577 251.

Half term is upon us and it is time for teachers to reset for the next term. Teaching is a demanding role and can take up a lot of your energy. It is important that you take the time to switch off and prepare for the rest of the school year.

Stick to your plan – You may not be able to completely forget about school and there may be some work you need to catch up on before you return. Be sure to dedicate a certain amount of time for work only and stick to it, do not let your workload take over your break.

Rest – Make sure you get enough sleep to feel refreshed and recharged. Try not to sleep in too late though – you will find those early mornings much harder when you are back at work!

Plan a trip – Having something to look forward to during the school break will keep you going through those tougher days! Why not book a city break or even plan a day out with friends doing something you enjoy?

Enjoy a hobby – You may not always have the time for your favourite things when you are working. Whether it’s walking, reading or going to the theatre, take the time to do something that you enjoy. Getting outdoors and taking your mind off school will help you to destress and relax.

Disable communication – Unless you have some urgent work to attend to, turn off your emails and work phones so that you can truly shut off during your well-earned break. Having regular access to your colleagues will make it harder to wind down.

We hope you enjoy a well-earned break and are ready to take on the new school term! If you are looking for work this school year, have a look at our latest vacancies online.