Housing chiefs in pledge on skills

Apr 1 2009 by Sue Scott, Evening Gazette

HOUSING Hartlepool has signed up to a major initiative demonstrating its commitment to staff training and development.

By signing the Skills Pledge, Housing Hartlepool chairman Peter Olsen has publicly declared that the organisation will ensure that all its staff are skilled, competent and able to make a full contribution to its success.

He said: “Ongoing staff training is vital if we are to continue to provide the best possible services for our tenants and the wider Hartlepool community.

“Well-trained staff are more motivated, with training also having been shown to improve job satisfaction and employee retention.”

Housing Hartlepool’s Head of Human Resources, Kay Taylor, said: “Housing Hartlepool has always been committed to staff training and development at all levels.

“We continue to invest in learning and development as an organisation with a particular focus on developing key skills such as numeracy and literacy through our network of Union Learning Representatives.

“However, we are taking that responsibility a significant stage further by making a public commitment through signing up to the Skills Pledge.”

Housing Hartlepool, the biggest housing association in the borough, which employs 330, including 18 apprentices, has pledged to:

Actively encourage and support its employees to gain the skills and qualifications that will support their future employability and meet the needs of the business/organisation.

Actively encourage and support its employees to acquire basic literacy and numeracy skills and, with Government support, work towards their first Level 2 qualification in an area that is relevant to the business/organisation.

Demonstrably raise employees’ skills and competencies to improve company/organisation performance through investing in economically valuable training and development.

The Pledge is supported by Investors in People UK, British Chamber of Commerce, Learning and Skills Council and Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills.

Organisations pledge to enable all employees to develop their skills to at minimum of Level 2 qualification.

The Pledge was one of the recommendations which came out of the Leitch Review of Skills, published in December 2006, which warned that the UK must “raise its game” on skills at all levels if it was to sustain and improve its economic position.