West Midlands charity Sport 4 Life UK has introduced health insurance benefits and support services for all employees in a deal with provider Equipsme.
The charity, which supports young people aged 11- to 29-years through sport, said that as health and wellbeing is a mission priority the organisation wanted to invest in it for their staff too.
Director of People and Strategy Rob Wells said: “We wanted to look after the people that look after people. Our employees work hard to make a difference to some very disadvantaged and vulnerable young people, and it’s not always an easy job. It’s physically and mentally demanding – and we need our people to be at their very best to keep doing their very best for our young people.”
The charity, based in Digbeth in Birmingham, was founded in 2006 and now employs 27 full time staff and up to 40 contract staff who run sessions on a contractual basis. Staff members already have a package of benefits including pension, enhanced holiday and leave policies, volunteering days and flexible working.
“We care deeply about our people, and want to put them first,” said Wells. “With that in mind we did a review of our benefits package earlier this year and consulted staff about what they wanted. The number one thing people asked us to look into was health insurance.
“We did the research and went out to all the usual big-names in private medical insurance (PMI) – but there wasn’t anything that gave us the quality of care we were looking for, at a price we could sustain. Like all charities, our budgets at Sport 4 Life are challenging. But when we found Equipsme through Simply Business we knew we’d found that ideal mid-way point.”
He said that as the benefits provider sits directly between full blown PMI and light-touch cash-plan schemes, it has enabled the employer to offer everyone a really meaningful, practical benefit.
“Equipsme also made it so easy. The process with other providers was complex and onerous, whereas they made it really easy to digest and understand what we were getting. It was the same with the set-up – everything was made simple and the support has been brilliant. We liked that people could choose to upgrade and add family themselves, and that we could have two levels of cover, rewarding those who’ve been with us for more than two years with more cover.”
Sport 4 Life staff can now access a 24/7 GP service and nurse advice line, physio sessions, dental and optical cover, plus access to private diagnosis services from AXA Health for those with two years or more at the charity.
“It’s incredibly important for charities to invest in retention, and in competitive packages that can attract the very top talent,” said Wells. “The third sector is more vital to the social ecosystem than ever, because we’re plugging some really tough gaps for some really vulnerable people. We can’t afford to lose the best skills and knowledge to the private sector, and salaries and benefits have to reflect that, and the importance of what we do. People give charities buckets worth of motivation and hard work. We need to be giving buckets back to them. As an ambitious, growing organisation, it’s great to find a health insurance plan with that helps us do that – and strike the balance between quality and affordability.”
Equipsme managing director Matthew Reed said: “Charities are in a tough place right now, and keeping up with growing demand for benefits from a workforce at the sharp end of the cost-of-living crisis isn’t easy. We’re delighted to be able to provide health back-up for Sport 4 Life UK, and help people whose job is all about helping others.”
