Crossflatts employees taking good health to heart (From Bradford Telegraph and Argus)

Crossflatts employees taking good health to heart

11:00am Saturday 11th February 2012 in Aire Valley By Claire Lomax

Workers at the former Bradford and Bingley headquarters in Crossflatts are going for hearts of gold by taking part in healthy heart checks.

The company, now UK Asset Resolution (UKAR), has been awarded a bronze award by Yorkshire heart charity Heart Research UK as part of the Healthy Heart Mark Employer programme.

The Healthy Heart Mark has three stages – bronze, silver and gold – and UKAR is hoping that over the next 18 months it will be able to achieve the gold award by introducing a range of different initiatives which will improve the health of all staff.

The company teamed up with the charity to help educate more than 400 employees about looking after their hearts and keeping healthy.

The campaign involved employees undergoing individual health checks followed by a lifestyle consultation with a Heart Research UK adviser.

The health checks were also supported by company-led activities such as zumba exercise sessions and a lunch-time pay and weigh club.

Margaret Mooney, of UKAR, said: “It was great to be able to offer these confidential one-to-one sessions to colleagues and give them an opportunity to talk about how to look after their heart health by making small, manageable lifestyle changes.”

Health champion, Vicky Young said: “Based on the information gained, we will be looking to introduce a number of different initiatives to help all colleagues have healthy hearts, as well as improving their overall health.”

Heart Research UK lifestyle manager Barbara Dinsdale said: “We are thrilled that UKAR has taken this first step towards becoming a Healthy Heart employer. We’ve already had some fantastic results from the employees that have come for health checks and made significant lifestyle changes since then. The Healthy Heart Mark is a great way to create employee engagement.”