Building a healthy workforce

With so much building activity taking place on Campus, the Estates and Buildings department fulfil a leading role in the rejuvenation of the city. However the department also has a leading role in being one of the most active departments within the University, with almost a third of the department regularly accessing the sport and exercise opportunities within the Institute of Sport and Exercise.

A combination of weekly 5-a-side football matches; lunchtime walks; lengths in the swimming pool and conditioning in the fitness suite - not to mention stepping out in the Ceilidh Club exercise class helps to keep the energy levels high for over twenty estates staff every week. The department staff are actively led by the senior management who ensure that they build time in to their daily routine to re-energise and keep a balance between the mental and physical demands of the job.

To complement the current healthy activity levels within the department, Director of Estates, David Yule is supporting his staff in accessing the new Healthy Living Assessment being offered by the Institute of Sport and Exercise. The assessment provides a personalised report on important areas of health (e.g. blood cholesterol, body fat %, blood pressure etc) enabling advice to be given on lifestyle management.

The pro-active approach of the Estates and Buildings staff to building in some form of appropriate physical activity to their working day highlights the wide range of opportunities available to University employees to re-activate their new year. Further details of Healthy Living Assessments and other opportunities through the Institute of Sport and Exercise can be found at: www.dundee.ac.uk/sportexercise/ or by telephoning (384118).