Hello Tosh, gotta new treadmill?

Itís not long ago that a smoking room was a must-have for most companies, with walking to the coffee machine the only exercise. But from 1 July offices and public places will, for the first time, be smoke-free by law. In the run-up to the ban, companies with smoking rooms have been looking for alternative uses for these spaces. With this in mind, Nuffield Proactive Health launched a competition open to all UK companies to win the prize of a turning a smoking room into a gym, complete with a Proactive Fitness & Lifestyle advisor to manage the facility on a part time basis.

The appeal of promoting wellness as opposed to providing facilities to support an unhealthy habit was hugely popular ñ with over 100 companies who still had smoking rooms interested in refitting these as fitness facilities. The prize - worth 30,000 ñ was won by Toshiba, and sees them receive the latest Technogym equipment and the services of a Proactive Fitness & Lifestyle advisor for six months.

Chris Jessop, CEO at Nuffield Proactive Health comments, ìThe national no-smoking ban presents a real opportunity for companies to rethink their current position on the health and wellness of their employees. Employers are in the perfect position to help people make healthy choices and if they do there are proven benefits to their businesses too. Progressive companies like Toshiba are improving the working environment with appropriate programmes designed to enhance the health and wellbeing of their most important asset; their people.î

Susan Stevens, Head of HR at Toshiba says, ìThe response has been overwhelmingly positive, with employees looking forward to making the most of the new facilities. We had 20 requests for membership within half an hour of the email going out. Smoking has no place in the modern work-place and if it can be replaced with something positive then so much the better.î

The judges felt that Toshiba demonstrated a real commitment to the health and well-being of its employees and was a worthy winner. They have already introduced seminars on the management of stress, the distribution of free fruit on ìFruity Fridaysî, guidance and support for staff wishing to quit smoking, healthy eating options in the canteen and subsidised on site head and shoulder massage.. In addition, as part of their flexible benefits programme, each year staff can opt for benefits to enhance and support their wellbeing such as health assessment screening.

Thomas Cunliffe, Commercial Manager at Toshiba said: ìWe all work hard here, but Toshiba are great at making sure we know how to balance work and play. I know many companies say this, but Toshiba really comes up with the goods ñ we even had a health week which included consultations with a nutritionist and a smoking cessation programme. The only thing we were missing was a gym so itís great to have one on-site - itís a fantastic replacement for the smoking room. I think it will make employees more aware of their health and encourage them to give exercise a tryî.

Another employee, Tim Cox, said ìWhen youíve got to work late itís tough to go to the gym as you often canít be bothered. With a gym on site it makes it much easier and thereís no pressure to finish things in a hurry.î

Steve Parkin, MD of Technogym, who supplied all the kit commented: ìToshiba now has a great health and wellness facility for experienced and new exercisers alike. These gyms are really easy to install ñ we were in and out within a day. I hope that Toshiba enjoy the facility and that we have made a real contribution to their employeesí health and wellnessî.

A recent piece of research commissioned by Nuffield Proactive Health with YouGov indicated that 67% of employers expect the ban on workplace smoking to encourage smokers to try to give up and 59% were in favour of turning smoking rooms into facilities to improve employee health and wellbeing. By offering solutions to motivate a healthier lifestyle ñ rather than supporting an unhealthy habit ñ employers will benefit from a healthier, happier, more productive workforce that is likely to appreciate the fact that their employer has demonstrated a tangible concern for their wellbeing.

The Toshiba facility in Weybridge is the Head office of UK Information systems with a staff of just over 250. Staff enrolling in the gym will get a consultation with a Nuffield Lifestyle Advisor when they first sign in, checking their blood pressure, BMI and planning a bespoke training programme.