The longest-running industry safety awards scheme in the UK, RoSPA – the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents – has recognised Sellafield Ltd’s safety performance and that of our contractors working at Sellafield.

The RoSPA Awards scheme, which receives entries from organisations around the world, recognises achievement in health and safety management systems, including practices such as leadership and workforce involvement.

Teams at the Pile Fuel Storage Pond and Project Delivery directorate received special gold medals, for achieving 6 consecutive gold awards; teams at the Pile Fuel Cladding Silo also received a gold medal award for reaching 5 consecutive golds.

There were also gold awards for the First Generation Magnox Storage Pond, Magnox Swarf Storage Silo, Remediation and Warrington Offices; Sellafield Ltd and EHS&Q received silver awards.

Martin Leafe, Head of Retrievals Value Stream, Sellafield Ltd said:

These awards reflect the hard work of our employees and contractors in keeping safe, often in challenging conditions.

Some of the work we do has never been done before anywhere in the world, so it is particularly important that we have a constant focus on safe working and protecting our environment.

During the period covered by the RoSPA Awards, Sellafield Ltd have been carrying out work such as:

• getting some of the oldest facilities on site ready to be emptied, and preparing new buildings to support those retrievals
• changing the skyline at Sellafield – reducing a redundant ventilation stack to a height where it no longer poses a risk to other buildings and starting to demolish the top of the Windscale chimney.
• safely completing the Thorp reprocessing mission

Mark Neate, Environment, Safety and Security Director, Sellafield Ltd added:

Safety is at the core of everything we do; it is and always has been an overriding priority.

These awards demonstrate the success we have in delivering work safer sooner and we want to see this level of performance extend across all our work at Sellafield.

We want everyone to go home safe at the end of their working day, with no harm to themselves or their colleagues, or the environment. That’s why we are driving hard to continuously improve. Our personal actions help keep us all safe.

The Charity Commission has removed Future Vision Consortium from the charity register after determining that the organisation was no longer operating.

Future Vision Consortium was set up to provide relief in poverty, sickness, distress to those in need, and to advance education, in the United Kingdom and Somalia.

The Commission previously engaged with the charity via a double-defaulter statutory class inquiry, after the charity failed to submit accounts twice in the past five years. In response to queries from the Commission, the charity submitted financial information for a company called Future Vision Care.

This company appeared closely linked to the charity, and had similar objectives. The Commission opened an inquiry to investigate further.

Despite the charity listing five trustees, the Commission was only able to speak to one, who confirmed it was not operating.

The inquiry found:

• the charity did not have any financial or administrative documents
• there was no bank account and no income or expenditure for the charity, and no donations or funds appeared ever to have been collected.
• the status of the company could not be determined, as the company’s director did not engage with the inquiry and no longer resides in the United Kingdom.

The Commission removed the charity from the register on 17 June 2019.

Amy Spiller, Head of Investigations Team at the Charity Commission, said:

Charitable status is a privilege, reflecting the high regard charity is held by the public, but it comes with responsibilities as well as benefits. Informing the Commission when things change at your charity, or when charitable status is no longer appropriate, is an essential part of this responsibility for trustees.

The trustees of Future Vision Consortium, should have recognised this responsibility by closing their charity as soon as they ceased to operate.

Ends

The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has been investigating the proposed $360 million takeover of Farelogix Inc (Farelogix) by Sabre Corporation (Sabre). Both companies provide IT systems that enable airlines to sell tickets, as well as related add-ons such as on-board WiFi, meals and seats with extra legroom, through travel agents, to businesses and consumers.

Sabre is 1 of 3 large and well-established suppliers of such systems worldwide, including in the UK. The CMA’s initial, Phase 1, investigation has found that Farelogix is much smaller at present but is an important competitive threat to Sabre and recognised as an important innovator with a disruptive business model. Farelogix has already had a significant impact in the industry through its use of new and innovative technology to distribute more sophisticated airline products and, without the merger, would have been expected to further develop and grow the use of its technology in future.

Should the deal go ahead as planned, the CMA is concerned that Sabre would not face enough competition from other suppliers, leading to higher prices or lower quality services, as well as reduced innovation in the industry generally, which could have adverse effects for airlines, travel agents and consumers across the UK.

The deal is also being investigated by the US Department of Justice, and the 2 authorities are continuing to cooperate closely.

If the merging businesses are unable to overcome the CMA’s concerns, the deal will be referred for an in-depth Phase 2 investigation. This would be carried out by a group of independent CMA panel members. 

For more information, visit the Sabre / Farelogix merger inquiry page.

Now in their 16th year, the National Apprenticeship Awards showcase the diverse and growing range of sectors engaged with apprenticeships. The awards celebrate employers who fire up their business with apprenticeships, outstanding apprentices who blaze their own trail, and individuals who champion apprenticeships with passion.

The awards are open to apprentices, individuals who promote apprenticeships and employers of all sizes from all sectors, with entrants asked to demonstrate the impact apprenticeships has made to individual’s lives and their workplaces.

The finalists announced today have already made it through a rigorous regional judging process, and are apprenticeship exemplars. Their stories highlight best practice across recruitment excellence, high quality training practices, diversity and career progression.

We have announced regional finalists in the following employer categories:

• The BCS, The Chartered Institute for IT Award for SME Employer of the Year (for organisations with 1 to 249 employees)
• The British Army Award for Large Employer of the Year (for organisations with 250 to 4,999 employees)
• The QA Award for Macro Employer of the Year (for organisations with 5,000+ employees)
• The PeoplePlus Award for Recruitment Excellence: the winner will be selected from the Employer of the Year award entries

We are recognising apprentices for their exceptional contribution to their workplace and have announced regional finalists in the following apprentice categories:

• The NOCN Group Award for Intermediate Apprentice of the Year
• The Royal Navy Awards for Advanced Apprentice of the Year
• The Nuclear Decommissioning Site Licence Companies Award for Higher or Degree Apprentice of the Year
• The Lloyds Banking Group Award for the Rising Star: awarded to apprentices who have made impressive progress in their career to date and who show the potential, through their apprenticeship, to make it to the very top of their chosen profession

In October, members of the public will be asked to vote on the overall winner for the Lloyds Banking Group Award for the Rising Star category.

Finalists in the Royal Air Force Award for Apprenticeship Champion of the Year, recognising individuals who go ‘above and beyond’ to champion apprenticeships, have also been announced today.

Education Minister Kemi Badenoch said:

Congratulations to all of the regional finalists. The National Apprenticeships Awards are a fantastic way to celebrate apprentices, their employers and the huge range of high-quality apprenticeship opportunities across the country.

As a former apprentice myself, it is just brilliant to see so many employers and individuals being recognised for all their achievements.

I wish them all the best of luck for the award ceremonies in September.

Keith Smith, Director, Apprenticeships, at the Education and Skills Funding Agency said:

The National Apprenticeship Awards celebrate all that is exceptional about apprenticeships. The opportunities they give individuals to fire up their career and the real benefits employers see on a daily basis, with apprentices bringing new ideas, enthusiasm and dedication in to the workplace.

I am delighted that so many outstanding applications were received this year. The number and quality of applications improves year on year. Testament to the popularity of not only the awards, but apprenticeships, with more and more employers and individuals recognising the benefits they bring.

I would like to thank the national and regional sponsors who make the awards possible, everyone who entered the awards this year, and the judges to took time to support the difficult task of selecting the regional winners and highly commended entries.

Good luck to all the regional finalists, and I hope you have a wonderful day at your ceremony. Regardless of the outcome, you are all winners.

For more information on the National Apprenticeship Awards 2019, visit the App Awards website.

The Health and Social Care Secretary has announced an evidence-based review into the NHS Health Check service.

The checks are currently offered to everyone aged between 40 and 74 to spot the early signs of major conditions that cause early death, including stroke, kidney disease, heart disease and type 2 diabetes.

However, the checks pay little attention to people’s individual risks or needs.

The review will explore how to improve the system, with a focus on offering personalised interventions based on factors such as:

• age
• where people live
• DNA

The changes are part of a wider move away from blanket approaches to public health, to an approach that takes personal choices into account.

The new health checks will draw on lessons learned from cancer, for example, which is the most advanced area of personalised medicine in terms of detection and treatment.

The review will also explore:

• a special check-up for people approaching retirement age to help prevent or delay future care needs

• increasing the range of advice the checks can offer – for example, prevention of musculoskeletal problems or early action on hearing loss

• ways to increase the uptake of health checks

• the digitisation of health checks where appropriate

An intelligent check might target drinking advice at 40 to 49-year-olds, as alcohol use is more common in this age group.

70 to 74-year-olds could be targeted with advice on how to reduce their blood pressure.

Those at low risk of cardiovascular disease may benefit from less frequent, online check-ups.

However, it is recognised that people with mental health problems, who in general find it hard to access standard care and are at higher risk of cardiovascular disease, would be unlikely to use digital services.

Over the last 5 years, the NHS Health Check programme has identified over 700,000 people at high risk of cardiovascular disease and it has saved an estimated 500 lives each year. But there is potential for people to benefit even more from a more tailored service.

Over 14 million people, 90% of the eligible population, have been offered an NHS Health Check in the last 5 years and almost 7 million have taken up the offer.

The NHS Long Term Plan committed to preventing 150,000 heart attacks, strokes and cases of dementia.

Health and Social Care Secretary Matt Hancock said:

 “Personalised, preventative healthcare is mission critical to the future-fit healthcare service we want to build. We must harness the latest technology and techniques to move away from the one-size-fits-all approach of the past.

“The review we are announcing today will be an important step towards achieving that, helping us to find data-led, evidenced-based ways to support people to spot, manage and prevent risks to their health through targeted intervention.”

Public Health Minister Jo Churchill said:

“Through the power of cutting-edge technology, we will end the one-size-fits-all approach to healthcare and tailor NHS services to individual patients to help people live longer, healthier and happier lives.

“Our aim is to build a truly preventative, personalised and predictive health and care service through our NHS Long Term Plan to improve the health of the nation for years to come.”