National Thank You Day - 4 July 2021

Staff at Stratford District Council who helped keep frontline services going during the pandemic are being recognised as part of National Thank You Day.

The pandemic forced the council to make drastic changes to how it delivered its services, and meant councillors and officers were under pressure to keep services going to a high standard.

Despite the challenges, the council did not make cuts to any frontline services during the pandemic, and has delivered its services consistently since March 2020.

In addition, the council was able to pay out millions of pounds in grants to thousands of businesses and organisations across the district to keep them afloat as restrictions forced them to close.

To coincide with National Thank You Day, which falls on Sunday, July 4, the council wishes to publicly thank all the staff who contributed to achieving this.

Cllr Tony Jefferson, leader of the council, said: "Like many other local authorities, Stratford District Council faced enormous challenges, at short notice, to continue to deliver good services for taxpayers at the height of the pandemic.

"The shift to home working and the extra demands on our services, such as processing new grant applications and hosting meetings remotely, meant many of our staff had to work long hours, with some working seven days a week for a time.

"Everyone was forced to adapt significantly and quickly to the restrictions imposed on us. This was not easy for any of us. The bulk of that work was done by council officers who often get on with their jobs in the background, away from the public eye. The efforts they put in did not go unnoticed.

"I'm pleased to say our staff did a fantastic job across the board, and continue to work incredibly hard to help our residents, business owners, and visitors.

"On National Thank You Day, we want to put it on the record that we are so grateful for their hard work during the pandemic, and that without their sterling efforts and total commitment, services in our district would have been seriously affected."