Sir Robert McAlpine supports Flex Appeal

We are proud to support the Flex Appeal campaign and the launch of the Flexmakers project, which aims to explore flexible working solutions for employers and increase opportunities for people to work flexibly.

What is Flex Appeal?

In 2015, Anna Whitehouse started Mother Pukka, a blog inspired by the challenges she faced trying to cope with the constraints of traditional and rigid working arrangements, whilst raising a child. Since then, Anna and her husband, Matt Farquharson, have been campaigning for Flex Appeal and more flexible working across the UK.

Why is this important to us?

We have made a commitment to leading by example on inclusion and inspiring industry wide change. For us, inclusion means that everyone feels happy, supported and is comfortable to be themselves at work, to deliver to their full potential.

To us, allowing everyone the flexibility to adjust their work to suit demanding life circumstances, whatever they are, is the path to greater inclusion.  

Whether a parent, a carer, a student, or someone with different abilities, flexible working can help everyone to thrive in their professional and personal lives. It makes sense and the overwhelming evidence shows that it is good both for people and organisations.

Better work life balance contributes to better mental health. People are happier in their jobs and become a more productive and committed workforce.

The benefits to the business, the delivery of our projects and our clients are immense. In the long term, everyone has something to gain from achieving more flexible ways of working.

The solution is not a one size fits all, however. Some jobs and environments lend themselves better to various degrees of flexibility. For a start, we want to encourage conversations and explore solutions that could work.

We recognise that we have yet some way to go to making our working environment truly flexible but we are willing to try hard to make it happen.

This is why we are backing the Flex Appeal campaign and have given our support to the Flexmakers project.

This project will identify companies that have been successfully implementing flexible working solutions, the Bright Spots, learn from them and then share the findings. The research is conducted by Claremont, a behaviour change communications agency specialising in social issues. 

If you think you might be a Bright Spot employer, fill in the online form. 

Paul Hamer, Chief Executive Officer said: “I am incredibly proud that Sir Robert McAlpine can support Flex Appeal. We have been impressed by the campaign’s journey so far and are proud to play some part in its increased impact. Flexible working is not about mums, or parents, or even part timers -  it’s about people.

I want Sir Robert McAlpine to be an organisation where people thrive. We can see the potential benefits of flexible working to our own business, to our people, their mental health and the elusive work life balance. Suicide rates in construction workers are unacceptable and if flexible working can help, then I am determined that we try. We are going to work hard to trial flexible working in offices and across sites in order to find the best way to deliver our iconic projects, serve our clients and support our people’s wellbeing. I look forward to following Flex Appeal closely and learning from the UK’s Flexmakers, and I hope others in our industry and in UK business do too.”