Seven businesses and organisations are celebrating becoming the first in the North East to join an elite band of gold award achievers.
IPS Flow Systems of Seaham in County Durham; Oakdene Primary School, Stockton, South Tyneside Homes; Oxclose Primary School, Washington, Gentoo Group, Sunderland, Wyndham Primary School, Newcastle and Linhope Pupil Referral Unit in Newcastle have all been presented with the region’s first ever Investors in People Gold Awards.
“This is an impressive achievement for these organisations,” said Robert Macleod, Managing Director of Investors in People North East. “They have not only committed themselves to improving their business performance through Investors in People but also chose to go for gold which does involve a significant amount of extra work. Less than 1% of all IIP organisations in the UK achieve gold recognition and it means that they have achieved world-wide best practice.
“The range of businesses involved demonstrates the success of IIP’s flexible approach which is designed to allow employers of all sizes and from every sector to use the framework. We hope more businesses will follow in their footsteps,” he added.
Ian Hunter of South Tyneside Homes said: “We have 660 members of staff and every one of them played a part in achieving this gold recognition. It is fantastic and we are delighted to be one of the first in the region to receive it.”
David Stidolph of IPS Flow Systems in Seaham, the UK’s leading supplier of industrial plastic piping systems and the first business in the region to achieve gold, said: “We have a very loyal workforce of 41 employees and Investors in People plays a very important part in our drive to continually improve our business. It has made a huge difference to our efficiency and to our company.”
Jeff Lough is Headteacher at Linhope Pupil Referral Unit in Newcastle where an Oftsed report said that a strong, committed team provides outstanding care, guidance and support to pupils permanently excluded from school. Employees working in catering, cleaning and teaching as well as members of the management committee are all enthusiastic about Investors in People.
“We decided to go for the higher award on our second re-assessment and are delighted to have achieved gold,” said Jeff Lough. “It was a rigorous process but well worth the effort. IIP is an external validation of our efforts; it identifies any areas for improvement, helps us retain good people and raises our profile. It is just as valuable in the education sector as in the business world.”
The region has more than 2000 businesses and organisations from engineering and construction companies to local authorities and health trusts currently working with Investors in People, now recognised as the UK’s premier business improvement tool. An increasing number of Northern companies are using the free online business advice tool on www.iipne.co.uk to give them a benchmark picture of their business and access free support, information and tips.
Star performers: Robert Macleod (back left) of Investors in People North East congratulates the North East’s first gold award achievers (back row) Jeff Lough, Linhope Pupil Referral Unit and David Stidolph, IPS Flow Systems, (front) Michelle Forbes, Oxclose Primary School; Liz Hopper, Oakdene Primary School; Ian Hunter, South Tyneside Homes; Barbara Redhead, Wyndham Primary School and Deborah Piggett, Gentoo Group.
