EXCLUSIVE: Luxury travel organisation Secret Escapes has seen 26% of its 350 UK-based staff engage with financial coaching since the benefit was implemented in June 2018.
The financial planning and coaching benefit, provided by Hatch, was introduced for UK employees in June 2018; it enables staff to attend face-to-face, on-site coaching sessions once a quarter. Employees are also able to pay for additional support via salary sacrifice, such as a full financial plan and ongoing help from their coach, as well as access to relevant tools, resources and experts.
In the last year, 26% of employees have attended financial coaching sessions and staff have awarded the benefit a 4.93 rating out of five.
Secret Escapes introduced Hatch in order to support employees with their financial wellness and to encourage them to be proactive in taking control of their finances. Prior to launching the benefit, the organisation found that 40% of its employees believed they would be able to cope with a large, unexpected expense.
The benefit, which is communicated to employees using emails and on-site events, forms part of Secret Escapes’ wider wellbeing strategy, which focuses on mental, physical and financial wellbeing. This includes policies such as a generous maternity policy and flexible working arrangements, mental health awareness training for managers, meditation and yoga classes, partnerships with local gyms and a health cash plan.
Natalie Humphries, HR business partner at Secret Escapes, said: “Our team is made up of people at various stages in life. They have a lot of different goals, from buying their first home, to starting to invest, to planning for retirement. We wanted to introduce a service that can support them through all of that, not just focus on one area.
“Hatch was a solution we found that takes a holistic approach and considers all aspects of someone’s finances. [The] financial coaches ensure that everyone gets the personal support they need, to build the future that they want. This is crucial.
“The Hatch coaches are now a regular fixture in our offices and the feedback from our team has been fantastic.”
