Lorraine Atherton is the Workforce Innovation Manager, HR & OD Team at ELHT. She has been working flexible hours since September 2019.
"My working hours used to be a typical Monday to Friday but when my partner got a new job working shifts in September 2019, it meant she often worked all weekend and our time off together was very limited. Therefore, through a flexible working request, it was agreed that I would work longer days over nine days and take a day off every fortnight. This allowed us to have some time off together, even when she was working weekends.
Although both our roles have changed since, and my partner no longer works shifts, I have continued with my nine-day fortnight because I find this flexibility helps me achieve a better work-life balance, unwind properly from work and gives me time during the week to catch up on personal jobs.
I also find working slightly longer days means I am more productive in my role and I am flexible about my non-working days. I’m happy with the arrangement and believe it works well not just for me, but my team and the organisation as a whole."