The Pride of Thanet Staff Awards

Thanet District councils unsung Hero Award has concluded, and the winners have been announced. Details are available on Thanet Councils Web site as well as in this week's Adscene front page and inside the Gazette.

I just like to say well done to those winners and runners up, who clearly deserve their awards for their contributions to the local community.

Now I often criticise the council for its profligate and frankly reckless spending but who could object to the modest amount spent on this. Which in this case was somewhere in the region of £4 per employee maybe totalling approximately £3000.00 and if you look at the councils spending in other areas really quite modest.

So what’s the point of this post, well, I think its important that those who put themselves out, for the public should be rewarded and from the reports I’ve seen they have, with a certificate. Perhaps the winners should have received something more substantial like a weekend away with their partners (maybe they have in which case forget the preceding and the following).

Obviously, the council spent a lot of money publicising this award, in local papers but I think they could have saved money, by promoting this award in there own journal Thanet Matters (winter edition cost inc. delivery £6800 approx) and getting free promotion from local news outlets.

Three thousand pounds spent wisely could have been used to greater effect, imagine the boost to staff moral if say, the money had been given to 20 deserving members of staff £150 each enough, for a weekend away maybe. I guess that those who organise these things are closer to the “Fat Cat” world and would not necessarily understand.

Anyway, thanks to all those at the council who do a good job which is most of you.

Finally this seems to me to be a perfect example of Thanet council having a good idea and flushing the money down the drain. Back in January I made some fairly negative comments about this award and this is probably what motivated me to do so, the certainty that the council would as ever, pour a good proportion of the money in the wrong direction, in this case advertising, rather than staff what a waste.