Direct employment of a stable workforce is key to Sandwood's construction philosophy. Our fundamental belief is that it matters who constructs our buildings and that you cannot produce a quality product with untrained staff working in unsanitary conditions.

Respect for people starts with recognising people's skills, their strengths and their differences. In Sandwood, that recognition starts with the simple task of keeping staff informed of progress and future workload, and includes:

• holding regular meetings in company time

• listening to and acting on feedback

• operating a profit share scheme that distributes 25% of company profits equally between all staff

• giving all employees the opportunity to view and celebrate the completion of buildings they have worked on.

Sandwood scored a Level 4 in the Investors in People review category 'Recognition and Reward' - the highest level - a score the Investors in People assessor described as

An outstanding, forward-thinking, equitable and motivational approach to reward and recognition.

A level associated with world class organisations.

To achieve this within the construction industry is really exceptional.

It is clear that people feel valued, appreciate this fact, and in return show a great deal of loyalty to and passion for the organisation.

More simply, one of our employees described Sandwood as,

'The best firm I've ever worked for. Why? Because they look after their people.'