Port Stephens Council has been recognised as a leader in local government, taking out an award for their staff wellbeing program, PSCare at the 2023 StateCover Awards.

The StateCover industry awards acknowledge excellence in keeping people safe while working and are contested by 134 local government entities.

General Manager, Tim Crosdale said that people are at the heart of everything they do, and there’s a strong commitment across the organisation to providing a workplace that is highly valued by their employees.

“If the last few years of pandemic disruption have taught us anything, it’s that if employers aren’t providing a workplace that supports mental and physical wellness, then staff will start looking elsewhere,” Tim said.

“Looking after our people and keeping them well, means we can continue to support our community.”

In awarding Port Stephens Council, the judges commented on PSCare’s development, implementation and results.

“The program showed a reconsidered and planned strategic approach, demonstrated a collaborative effort amongst staff and was well supported by the organisation,” Tim said.

“PSCare has proven its success to date, ensuring its potential to be a sustainable initiative at Council.

“Port Stephens Council is to be applauded for all their work in the wellbeing space for demonstrating an ongoing commitment to the wellbeing of their people.”

The program has been internally developed by Port Stephens Council, and centres around three pillars of health and wellbeing – mind, body and culture.

The focus on wellbeing is paying dividends with employee engagement steadily improving over the last decade.

“Our employee engagement data shows an increase from 39 per cent in 2011 to 83 per cent in 2022,” Tim said.

“Our staff retention is strong with the average length of service sitting at just under eight years.

“Programs like PSCare are a key part of our strategic approach to recruit, retain, develop and inspire our people,” he added.