Where we began.....
Manchester Mediation Network was set up in March 2013 as part of a BIS pilot to help small businesses avoid the trauma and expense of employment tribunals. The intention was to do this through getting people to talk to each other and work through conflict issues at work, rather than resorting to the formal route of tribunal. This was part of the Government’s push for changes in Employment Tribunals and its support for small businesses. It was an informal part of the new legislation – the Enterprise and Regulatory Reform Act 2013. The Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) was asked to be involved at the start – and this is where Holly Bonfield, MMN Coordinator, started her involvement i.e. representing FSB in the Manchester pilot.
Twenty-four mediators were put through the rigorous training delivered by Consensio and were accredited through the Open College Network and a year later, when the pilot came to an end, the Network became autonomous. The intention was for the pilot to offer free mediations within its membership, and that includes FSB’s Manchester and Cheshire Region, and this is still the case. Since the end of the pilot, the Network has grown and flourished, gathering new mediators, some of whom work in other mediation disciplines – family, commercial, community. And less than a year into the life of the pilot, the Network earned a prestigious award through the Professional Mediators Association, the independent professional association for workplace, employment, business and consumer mediators. Best Newcomer to Mediation Award was presented to the Network in September 2013. Holly Bonfield (FSB regional vice chairman and coordinator of the Network) proudly accepted the award at The TCM Group’s offices in Hatton Garden, London. In 2014, Holly Bonfield and Tanya Greaves won Mediation Champions Awards again through the Professional Mediators Association. Just as proudly, Holly and Tanya received the award from David Liddle, PMA President, in London in September 2014. If you have experienced a tribunal, you will know the time, energy and emotion this costs. If not, it’s worth knowing that the average cost to employers of dealing with ET claims (excluding management time) is £20,000. And it is said that conflict in the workplace claims 370 million days each year in the UK. Mediation offers a real alternative. back..... |
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© 2015 Manchester Mediation Network
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