HALFORDS NAMED AS ONE OF BEST PLACES TO WORK BY SUNDAY TIMES
Halfords, the UK’s biggest bike retailer, was last night ranked 18th in The Sunday Times Best Big Companies to Work For survey. The jump of seven places from last year reflects Halfords’ success in the annual employee survey.
The findings, which contribute to the ranking, reveal that 83 percent of colleagues feel they can make a valuable contribution to the firm’s success and 81 percent have fun together. In addition 75 percent feel their job is secure, while 71 percent are excited about the direction in which Halfords is going.
The ranking is entirely based on feedback from company employees, through a detailed questionnaire about workplace culture, practices and employee sentiment towards their employers.
Catherine Hambleton-Gray, Head of People at Halfords says: “We’re thrilled to have again been named as one of the Best Big Companies To Work For by The Sunday Times. This is testament to the many initiatives we have in place for our colleagues including the 3 Gears Programme, our three year apprenticeship programme at Autocentres and wider community programmes including teaching primary school pupils about bike safety and maintenance.
“It’s great to know our colleagues are proud to work for Halfords and it’s thanks to them that Halfords is the success it is today.”
The award comes as Halfords announces an initiative that will see 500 apprentices placed in its stores over the next 12 months. Its Traineeship pre-employment programme will equip candidates with four qualifications. Those completing the three weeks intense training will gain Halfords’ Gear 1 level training, a Retail Level 1 certificate, an Employability & Personal Development Certificate, and Level 1 or 2 in Maths & English.
The apprenticeship scheme is open to people who are currently unemployed, long-term unemployed and NEETS (not in education, employment or training) and on completion of the above training, candidates are interviewed and, if successful, offered apprenticeships.
Every Halfords colleague is supported by the 3 Gears Programme while Autocentre colleagues are invested in via the training academy apprenticeship programme.
Halfords has 11,000 employees and last year was named number 25 in the Sunday Times Best Places to Work Survey 2014.
To find out more about a career or apprenticeship at Halfords, visit www.halfordscareers.com
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For further information please contact Halfords@z-pr.com or 020 7896 3404
Halfords is the UK’s leading retailer of automotive, cycling and leisure products and, through Halfords Autocentres, also one of the UK’s leading independent car servicing and repair operators. Halfords customers shop at 465 stores in the UK and Republic of Ireland and at halfords.com for pick-up at their local store or direct home delivery. Halfords Autocentres operates from around 300 sites nationally and offers motorists dealership-quality MOTs, repairs and car servicing at affordable prices.
The Halfords Group strategy is based on three pillars:
· Supporting Drivers Of Every Car
· Inspiring Cyclists Of Every Age
· Equipping Families For Their Leisure Time
The Getting Into Gear strategy for the Retail business is based on executing in five key areas in order to deliver a significantly-enhanced customer experience:
· Service Revolution
· The H Factor
· Stores Fit to Shop
· 21st Century Infrastructure
· Click with the Digital Future
Halfords employs approximately 11,000 colleagues and sells around 9,000 product lines in store, increasing to around 160,000 Retail products online. The Retail offering encompasses significant ranges in car parts, cycling products, in-car technology, child seats, roof boxes and camping equipment. Halfords’ own cycling brands include Apollo, Carrera, Boardman and 13 cycles, augmented by a range of other brands of cycles and accessories, including Kona, Mongoose, Raleigh and Pinarello. In Auto, the Halfords Essentials and Halfords Advanced ranges are sold alongside brands such as Generic Electric, Bosch, Garmin and TomTom. In Travel Solutions, Halfords sells a premium range of equipment including camping brands such as CampinGaz and Outwell. Halfords offers customers expert advice and a while you wait fitting service for consumables including bulbs, blades and batteries as well as child seats, in-car entertainment systems and a ‘werepair’ service for cycles.
www.halfords.com
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