Blizard Institute responses to the Staff Survey 2024 – an update from Professor Mary Collins.
We hope you have had the chance to read the latest all-staff communication regarding the staff survey. We are writing to you today to share the results for the Blizard Institute and to explain our next steps.
The survey was completed by 81% of staff in the Blizard, compared to 69% last year. This is a significant increase and continues the upward trend in the Institute's response rate over the past few years. This gives us a strong platform on which to continue to develop our action plans.
There are some real positives to draw from the Blizard Institute results. Please see the report and read the highlights below:
We are pleased to see that 79% of staff agree that their manager genuinely cares about their wellbeing. Similarly, it is encouraging that 72% agree "most people make a good effort to collaborate", and 80% agree that they know how their work contributes to the goals of Queen Mary.
Other improvements were seen since the 2023 survey: a 12% increase in people who say they are given opportunities to develop skills relevant to their career interests, and a 10% increase in staff who believe action will be taken as a result of this survey. We remain committed to putting in place the right changes to address your concerns.
Procedures around bullying and harassment continue to be a key focus for improvement. We acknowledge that there is still work to be done, most urgently about the reports of bullying and harassment. We want to thank everyone who has worked with our EDI representatives to improve our processes in dealing with bullying and harassment so far. We will continue to work with you all to ensure that everyone at the Blizard feels safe, respected, and listened to when they come to work, and that appropriate action is taken in every situation.
The Staff Survey Working Group is meeting next week to begin to look at drafting our new action plan. If anyone is interested in joining the group they should contact Rachael Parker (rachael.parker@qmul.ac.uk) – we always welcome new people to join. Through this group, we will continue to work with you all to improve the participation rate in future surveys so that everyone has their voice heard.
I am available in the Blizard most days to listen to your concerns. Please drop in, or ask Maria Caballero-Blaya (m.caballero-blaya@qmul.ac.uk) to find a time.