Bents Garden & Home has been awarded a Gold Award from Anthem Engagement, becoming only the second company in the UK to achieve this recognition, based on colleague feedback and communication.

Bents has run regular in-house colleague questionnaires over the past few years, but the work with Anthem Engagement was the Centre’s first official survey, designed to measure colleague engagement and satisfaction within the business. 

With a 92% response rate, Bents recorded an impressive 73.7% overall engagement score; a figure which is 13.9% above the national average and achieving the highest possible award from the survey specialists who work with brands including John Lewis, Regatta and Sofology.

Steve Smith, managing director of survey experts Anthem Engagement was delighted to present the leadership team at Bents with a Gold Accreditation for outstanding engagement results.

He said: ‘Only a handful of companies receive our Gold Accreditation each year, and Bents have demonstrated that they are a highly engaged business who truly care for their people. The leaders at Bents understand that the success of their business is in the hands of their people, and that highly engaged people serve customers better and provide a superior service. These results show that Bents has a great working culture and it is a great place to work.”

As the current holder of the Garden Centre Association’s title of Best Destination Garden Centre in the UK Bents believes much of its success is thanks to the hard work and commitment of its colleagues and understands the importance of recognition and communication.

Said Matthew Bent, managing director at Bents Garden & Home:  “We know how important our colleagues are so we want to make sure their experience of working here at Bents is of the highest standard. 

“These results are not only a fantastic recognition of our colleague engagement but they also allow us to benchmark against other companies and identify opportunities and areas for improvement to make Bents an even better place to work.”

Stand out results from the survey included an 82% emotional engagement level with colleagues feeling that Bents was a great place to work where they are inspired to do their best.  This commitment to the family business can be demonstrated by attendees at the recent Bents 10+ Club Annual Dinner with the Centre’s restaurant catering for 77 out of the 93 club current members; a true celebration of colleague loyalty and longevity.  

Pictured (from left to right):  Tamzin Bates, Head of Dining;  Kate Ganley, HR Manager; Steve Smith, MD of Anthem Engagement; Matthew Bent, MD at Bents; Katherine Bent, Head of HR; Heather Hiley, Head of Retail and Emma Kelly, Head of Buying.