“I think it’s time for me to put my feet up!”

“I think it’s time for me to put my feet up!”

37 years is a long time in anyone’s book, just ask Sally Steade, Arches Housing’s longest serving employee. She has been a part of the furniture at Arches for nearly four decades, from her first day back in 1988, to her last day before retirement, Sally speaks fondly about her time at Arches but now insists it’s time for a little rest and reflection before she plans her next adventure.

Sally comments “In reflection, I’m not sure where those 37 years have gone, I’ve enjoyed every moment of my Arches journey, from my first day on the 18^th January 1988 through to today. People always ask me how have you managed to stay working for one employer for this long – the answer is simple – I’ve loved every minute of it.”

From day one, Sally has been a crucial cog in the Arches wheel, joining the organisation initially as a Housing Assistant before progressing through roles including IT, Development, Housing Management and Asset.

Sally adds “Back in the day, we didn’t have lots of departments or employees, like we do now, so I very much worked on projects as and when they needed me too. I’m proud to say I worked on the IT project which bought in our housing management system and helped to revolutionise how we manage our homes today – in fact, we’re still using the same system now (with numerous improvements and development continuing now and over the many years we have had the system).

“I was also part of the project team who moved the company from our old premises  on Spital Hill up to our current offices on Burngreave Road. I’ve seen the organisation go from strength to strength over the years and it’s quite fitting that Arches is celebrating its 50^th anniversary this year as well – quite a milestone to achieve.”

One thing that Sally keeps mentioning through our chat is the passion of Arches’ employees and its residents to make a difference in the local communities.

Sally continues “You have to be a certain type of person to work for Arches, everyone shares the same passion and drive. We all care about what we do and try to do the right thing even when it is sometimes hard. Don’t get me wrong, not everyone stays around for 37 years but the majority of employees have been here for a significant period of time. We also have a significant  proportion of people who have left and returned to work for Arches – they couldn’t stay away.”

“Our residents are made of a similar stock as well, many of them have been with Arches for decades now and their families have also lived in an Arches home before them – I think this is what bonds everyone together so well – we might not always have the answer for everything, but we’re motivated to find a solution and improve things for the better for our customers.”

Sally has thousands of anecdotal stories from her time with Arches, all of which bring a smile to her face now. 

When changing the name from North Sheffield Housing to Arches Housing those who remember the location of our previous offices just up from the Wicker Arches in Sheffield were not surprised with the choice and how fitting the inspiration for the new name and logo which was initially an arch made from hands joined together symbolic of our commitment as an organisation to working with people and communities that we serve.

Now time has finally come for Sally to retire, she plans on having a well-deserved rest over the coming months before she thinks about what she does next.

She adds “I’m planning on having six months of pure fun – no more phone ringing at weekends, evenings or holidays for Out of Hours calls or working late into the evening to make sure I didn’t let someone or the team down in delivering something I’d promised, and I certainly won’t miss the alarm clock going off every morning. I’m not one to sit still though, so I’m sure it won’t be too long before I’m back doing something very likely in the local communities. I’ll probably look at charity work or volunteering with some of the community groups I’ve helped to set up over the years – giving something back just feels right.”

Finally, when asked what three words she would use to sum up Arches, its employees and residents, Sally takes a moment to think this one through but before long she comes back with the following three words…

“It has to be our ABC – Attitude, Behaviour and Culture – this sums everything up nicely about Arches over the last 37 years. I’m so proud of the journey we’ve been on and how we’ve continued to grow, stay strong and independent. I’m really excited to see what’s next for the organisation – I’ll be watching from a far, wishing everyone the best with my feet up, cuppa in hand, having a rest.”

We wish Sally all the best for her future endeavours and will miss her greatly!