Case Study: Ashford Borough Council achieves 81% staff engagement with Reward Gateway

Local government organisation uses engagement hub and employee advocates to engage 81% of its staff

Ashford Borough Council, a local government organisation of about 457 employees across 18 locations, needed to justify spending on employee reward in the face of shrinking government grants and limited pay rises. To attract and retain talent while convincing senior management of the value, the council partnered with Reward Gateway to trial an engagement hub and employee discounts.

Reward Gateway launched the branded "My Ashford Rewards" hub (employee discounts platform), a mascot-led communications campaign and a volunteer engagement team, supported by intranet, posters, desktop images, newsletters and roadshows. The programme delivered 81% engagement, 371 registrations, £1.3m in staff spend and £126,000 saved for employees — a saving nearly double the cost of an equivalent company-wide pay rise — and paved the way for further Reward Gateway features like eCards.

Ashford Borough Council