Recognition update from Elaina Quesada - Deputy Executive Director of Adult Services

Hello everyone

I am really pleased that I have the opportunity to be sharing with you some of the outstanding work that is happening across the council in this edition of the recognition blog. I really enjoy hearing about this and whilst this blog can never include every amazing thing we do on a daily basis, I hope what we have included helps bring a smile or a sense of pride to your day in being part of this great council. 

Royal honour

I was thrilled to hear that Jane Phythian, our Senior School Advisor in the East, has been awarded the British Empire Medal in the honours list. Jane received the award for her outstanding services to schools and education in Lancashire. Her remarkable career includes roles as deputy head and headteacher, as well as her exceptional efforts during the pandemic.

The birthday honours were presented by the King and are based on recommendations from the prime minister, senior government ministers, and the public. They recognise individuals who have made significant contributions to public life and dedicated themselves to serving Britain.

Well done Jane! 

Project Search celebration event

Last month, the achievements of 11 young people with autism and learning disabilities were celebrated at a Project Search graduation event. The talented cohort have all graduated from the supported internship programme, Project Search, based at Lancashire County Council and Lancashire Constabulary. The valuable programme is a one-year transition to work programme for young people in their final year of school or college that provides total workplace immersion to help prepare them for employment.

Guests heard from the interns about what they had been doing on their work placements in teams across the council, including Facilities, Lancashire Archives and People Service, as well as around our external placement host Places for People. The young people described how they had gained skills to help them both in the workplace and to live a more independent life.

Well done to everyone involved in organising the event, managing placements, and of course to the graduates themselves. 

Amazing visit 

One from my own directorate. It was great to read a letter from Jason Brandon, Mental Health Social Work Lead, Office of the Chief Social Worker. Jason wrote to thank us for inviting him to visit and see firsthand how amazing our mental health social work service is in practice.

The letter was full of praise and stated, "It was incredibly refreshing to learn about the level of integration across the council and NHS mental health services and the important role which mental health social work holds across the Lancashire system." I was extremely proud and happy to read that our work at Lady Elsie Finney House, one of our homes for older people, where the award-winning work we are doing is rightly being recognised as "trailblazing".

I know first-hand how passionate and outstanding staff are in the directorate and it is great to see this recognised by others in a really positive way. A big thank you and well done to everyone who contributed.

Great event

I would like to give a massive shout out to the staff involved in the recent Digital Horizons event held at the start of June. The event had a mixture of Digital Champions and Change Influencers and was organised to provide them all with the knowledge and skills they'll need to support each other and their own service areas when Copilot web, our corporate Gen AI service was launched.  The event was organised by Learning and Development Officers Lisa Coar, Ali Brabbs, Imogen Campbell, Dave Loft, and Eliana Hardman as well as colleagues in Digital Services, including Simon Baines and Fran Walford. This in-person event provided people with the knowledge and skills needed to support each other and their own service areas following the Copilot launch. 

David Shelstone and Alex Turkington

A huge thank you to David and Alex from Digital Services for pulling out all the stops to help the Communications Service with an urgent request. They were able to help find the best solution and meet extremely tight timescales, despite other commitments and challenges. 

BetterGov feedback

I was happy to see that Karl Yates from the Care Navigation Team has received recognition for his exceptional work with BetterGov partners in developing the Liquidlogic Adults System (LAS) processes for Living Better Lives in Lancashire. Karl was commended for, "His proactive approach and thorough understanding of his service area, along with the test process, ensured that testing was methodical and comprehensive."

You can find out more about the work BetterGov do on their website and more about Living Better Lives in Lancashire on the intranet.

Great to see how everyone within the directorate is engaging with this new way of working by testing and piloting the new system so it can be more intuitive and allow staff in Adult Services more time away from administration to spend with residents.

Round up of shoutouts 

I always enjoy reading the shoutout area of the intranet. It gives a great sense of the variety of services that we offer and the impact we have on both each other but also the residents of Lancashire. Here are just a few that have been submitted:

Janine Lund - for helping secure bikes for young people that a staff member was supporting. Janine who works in our amazing Reuse360 Hub. The team were able to source bikes within 24 hours. An amazing service which has undoubtedly made the recipients of the bikes extremely happy.  The Reuse360 Hub, an LCC Waste Service resource, is available to staff that support individuals and families in need in Lancashire. More information can be found on the Reuse360 website.

Dawn Child – for organising the Brilliant Book Award winner virtual event for over 780 school children.  I am sure the children will not forget speaking with the winning author, Alex Latimer and had a brilliant time and a lasting memory of the event.

Claire Jones from our Welfare Rights Service – Her months of hard work helped a couple receive much needed extra funds. They were so happy that they took the time to commend Claire and the service, stating "I can only write that no other Government Department could better the service I have received." Well done Claire!  

Congratulations to Mark Turner from our Hyndburn and Rossendale Community Mental Health Team who celebrated his 30 years' service with us in May. Great to see people choosing us as a long-term employer.

Speaking of long service, I recently attended afternoon tea for staff members who have worked with us for over 45 years. It was great to see us recognising everyone achieving this monumental milestone. More than this, I loved hearing people's stories, how working for the county council had changed during that time and how it had been the place where our staff had met future spouses where they went on to create a whole life together. We all had a lovely afternoon together! I would also like to thank everyone involved in ensuring that this event was made extra special for the staff attending.

I hope that the stories in this week's email have helped inspire you and show you some of the great work that is going on across the council. Before I sign off, I just want to say a huge thank you to each and every one of you for your hard work and dedication. It's your efforts that make all the difference.

Have a great week everyone!