Balancing Life and Work

As a modern, forward-thinking employer, the Trust is committed to offering flexible, modern employment practices which recognise that all our staff want to strike a sensible balance between their home and work life.

Many staff working for the Trust – both male and female – juggle caring responsibilities, whether they be looking after children, or caring for elderly relatives or other dependents. Many more staff simply want to pursue other interests such as education or leisure interests whilst in our employment.

Because of this, we have developed a range of policies to help staff, including: generous maternity, paternity, adoption, carer and special leave policies; innovative work-life balance policies such as team-based self-rostering, flexible retirement, part-time working, job sharing, home working, employment breaks, flexi-time, unpaid leave and reduced hours.

Childcare Development

Balancing work and home life is becoming increasingly important . Here at East London NHS Foundation Trust, we have a dedicated Work Life Balance Team committed to ensuring that staff achieve a healthy balance between meeting the needs of their children and home life and meeting the needs of their working lives.

The Work Life Balance Team have been involved in setting up a range of initiatives to support all parents, both male and female, within the Trust so that these members of staff feel that they can combine a career with parenthood.


The Work Life Balance Team offer the following services:

  • Advice to parents and carers on all aspect of childcare, flexible working and accessing tax credits
  • Develops, implements and evaluates the Trust's Childcare provision to ensure that it meets the needs of staff and the local community
  • Co-ordinates the provision of subsidised nursery places
  • Co-ordinates the provision of subsidised holiday play scheme places
  • Provides information on pre-school and out-of-school childcare
  • Provides links to an effective childminding network
  • A keep-in-touch scheme for maternity leavers, providing information, advice and support
  • A Welcome Back Pack for maternity returners
  • An approved childcare voucher scheme to assist with the financial aspect of childcare
  • Acts as an advocate in the negotiation of flexible working arrangements to support your childcare needs

The Work Life Balance Team also extends its services to meet the needs of carers who may need to care for someone other than children in their lives.

The Work Life Balance Team meets regularly with parents, carers, managers and staff side representatives to review the needs of staff and identify new ideas and initiatives to be developed and implemented throughout the Trust. This ensures that childcare and other associated provisions are in line with the challenging and demanding needs staff face as parents and carers.