Proud of Your Staff: the Spring Inn, Rochdale

Since the team at the Spring Inn in Rochdale first featured in Proud of Your Staff last autumn they have been spurred on to keep improving their service in new and innovative ways.

Licensees John and Carol Cadwallader have been so impressed with the effort their staff have applied to previous events and fundraisers that they decided to make it a part of their role. The team is split up into groups for the 50 charity events the pub organises each year, and they're responsible for the whole event from making up the menus to choosing the theme.

Carol says: "It's great. The team form task groups and take complete ownership of what they're doing. This Thursday we're having a Good Deeds auction and they've got many members of the community involved, donating pledges such as horse riding lessons, a spin in an MG or even two bin liners of ironing!"

The team have also been actively involved in learning sign language since a group of hearing impaired customers visited the pub a little while ago. Carol suggested the idea to them and the response was enthusiastic.

More than a third of the 45 staff members and a few of the customers have taken up weekly training sessions at the pub.

Overall though it's the dedicated approach that the staff take towards community spirit and towards the team that makes them special.

John says: "We could not ask for better, more committed staff. When they leave for university they find their own replacements from friends and family for us."