The Bristol office of accountancy firm Haines Watts has been named one of South West top 50 companies to work for by Best Companies, after investing in staff well-being, culture development and mindfulness support during the pandemic.
The news comes as Haines Watts, which is a national firm, was named as one of the top 10 accountancy firms to work for in the UK, securing a prized one-star accreditation for employee engagement from Best Companies.
According to Best Companies, the 1-Star accreditation shows ‘very good’ levels of workplace engagement.
Haines Watts has introduced a number of measures to help support colleagues’ welfare, such as a series of mindfulness, yoga and stress awareness training sessions, attended by 560 of its staff across the country.
Over the past 12 months, two new qualified trainees have bolstered Haines Watts Bristol’s staffing, complementing a recruitment drive of nine trainees taken on in the past three years.
Haines Watts Bristol managing Director Matthew Bracher said: “We are delighted to have been named as one of the top 50 companies to work for in the South West.
“We have always prided ourselves on employee engagement and that has become more important than ever since the start of the pandemic.
“We have made major investments into our people, culture and support systems and want to ensure Haines Watts provides a safe and positive environment in which our staff can flourish.”
In the past 12 months, Haines Watts has seen a significant average wage increase, while staff turnover dropped by 30% compared to the previous year. The firm has protected the number of its workforce throughout the pandemic and continued with its apprenticeship programme.
In addition, a large cohort completed managers’ skills courses, leadership development programmes and a number of senior people are currently participating in the executive leadership development programme.
Jonathan Austin, CEO of Best Companies commented: “I would like to congratulate Haines Watts Bristol on its achievement. Best Companies has been producing the accreditation standard since 2006 to acknowledge excellence in the workplace. Organisations like Haines Watts have continued to focus on their employees and have been rewarded with an engaged workforce who tell us that this is a best company to work for.”
Best Companies has over 20 years’ experience in helping organisations measure and improve employee engagement using a robust methodology, with their accreditation standard certifying excellence in the workplace since 2006.
