Success for Longhurst Group of companies with Investors In
People Silver Standard
News Section: Longhurst Group RSS
Feed 
Publish Date: 16th September 2011
Author: Hannah Bence
“People are committed to delivering high quality
services and want the organisation to be successful.” -
Richard Tomes, Investors in People assessor
In its tenth year of working with Investors in
People (IIP), the Longhurst Group of companies has achieved the
prestigious Silver Standard, putting the housing and care services
provider in the top 3% of all IIP companies.
First to receive the award was Friendship Care
and Housing in August. IIP announced the results of the second
audit this week, which means that the award now extends across
Longhurst Group, L&H Homes and Spire Homes.
To be awarded the Silver Standard, launched in
2009 as an extension of the IIP accreditation process, is a huge
honour and not easily achieved.
"This validates the hard work and
commitment, learning and development that staff have achieved over
a number of years,” said John Fletcher, Group Director of HR.
He added: “It is fantastic to achieve this
external recognition and confirms the commitment and value we place
on developing our staff across the whole Group.”
The accreditation process is based on
confidential interviews with a representative sample of employees
(people from different levels across the organisation, from
managers to front-line staff) who are all chosen by the IIP
assessor and interviewed on a one-to-one basis.
Staff are asked to discuss their knowledge and
opinions on a variety of company matters.
In his report, IIP assessor Richard Tomes
said: “People are very proud to work for Longhurst because of its
vision and values, as well as the difference that they are able to
make to people’s lives and the communities in which they live.”
He added: “They are also proud of an
organisation that puts people’s welfare and involvement at the
forefront of how the business is run and encourages them to play an
active part in making it better.”
Around 40 members of Longhurst Group staff
were interviewed on this occasion, based across every site within
the organisation.
Thousands of employers apply for the initial
IIP Standard every year, for which they must meet 39 of 170 set
requirements. From here, organisations can go on to apply for
Bronze, Silver and Gold status by meeting additional stipulations.
To meet Silver Standard, IIP assessors must see evidence that the
company meets 140 of the 170 set requirements.
Group Training Manager Helen Mather said: “Longhurst Group and
its member companies recognise the value and importance of its
employees through the IIP award. We approached this year’s
application with the same level of commitment and enthusiasm as in
our first accreditation process 10 years ago.”
Strengths
In his report, IIP assessor Richard Tomes
identified several key strengths within Longhurst Group,
including:
- The Group’s core values, work/life balance,
and management style/support
- The feeling of empowerment encouraged among
all members of staff, the organisation’s supportive culture and the
level of pride that staff take in working for the Group
- The levels of consultation with, and
recognition for, all members of staff
- The Group’s delivery of training not just for
job-specific operational roles, but in encouraging long-term
personal development.