Moments that matter

Flexible working in my case means that I permanently work from home (for more than a decade now), and now also choose to work a four-day week, which gives me additional time to undertake projects which  require more time than a 5-day working pattern will allow.

I was originally offered the opportunity to work from home on a permanent basis some years ago when my parents were beginning to have health problems and require additional support – as I was based in the Oxford Office and doing a weekly commute back to Devon (where my partner, Sue, and I live), my line management at the time suggested that it could be helpful to be based at home, to allow me to provide additional care for my parents. Over the next several years, this was a great help, and I was able to ensure that my parents both ended their days cared for at home, as they both wished.

I have continued to work permanently from home, which has allowed Sue and I to maintain a 'normal' home life, it has also allowed us to keep dogs (it was not really possible previously, with both of us working, and me away from home all week). We both have a passion for HPR breeds and currently have an English pointer (Bandit), a wire-haired Hungarian visla (Finn) and a rescued Parson’s Jack Russell terrier (Patch).  More recently, I have reduced my working week to four days, which gives me much more time to undertake larger management tasks in a small woodland which we purchased many years ago, with the aim of improving its ecological value. Having an extra day allows me time to spend in the woodland, maintaining tracks and fencing, and tending the young trees we have planted, and planning ecological enhancements. Sometimes I just sit and get lost in watching the wildlife and surroundings!

RPS has been very supportive of my decisions both to work from home and to reduce my hours.  My line managers recognised my need to provide more care for my parents and initiated the discussion that led me to working from home permanently (more than a decade ago now).  They have provided appropriate equipment to allow home working.

RPS has changed massively over the 25 years I have been working here. There has always been a very visible focus on success in business, but underneath I have also found there to be a sense of team and caring for an individual’s situation.  This becomes much more obvious in times of need.

Working from home has had little impact on the projects I undertake – since 2015 my main focus has been the A465 Heads of the Valleys Section 2 improvement scheme, in south Wales. It has been a complex project and I have been able to provide the required levels of support quite successfully while working from home.  I have needed to spend considerable time on site, and have found that travelling to this site from Devon has been as straightforward as from the Oxford office!

To others, I would say consider how working flexibly could improve your work/life balance – while work is an important part of life, time passes quickly and there are often other parts which can be neglected if one does not seize the opportunity.  Flexible working requires some effort, it is easy to become overwhelmed when working from home all the time, and you will probably need to find some way to separate work and home life.  I found it has become easier since I moved my home office out of the house and into a shed, so that I have some “separation” between work and home.

I take a break from clearing windfall in the woods.  Finn sits patiently with me. I listen to the birdsong and plan exactly where I should dig the wildlife pond.