WARRINGTON-based charity Making Space has been awarded the prestigious Gold-level accreditation from Investors in People, with the assessor remarking that the organisation’s approach to living its values through its employees is “phenomenal”.
Investors in People is an internationally recognised standard of best practice in people management. Making Space, which runs adult health and social care services across England, has been ranked sixth overall out of all the organisations with between 250 and 4,999 employees in the category of Human Health and Medical Activities. Only 17 per cent of organisations which undertake assessment achieve the Gold standard.
“Making Space has had a challenging five years with huge upheaval as a result of the changes in the sector, the pandemic and the subsequent challenges around recruitment,” the Investors in People assessors noted. “However, it has responded well and quickly to all of these challenges”.
“True to the heart of the business has been the inclusion of the people that the charity supports in the development of business and people strategies. The development of the values has been central to the culture change required to embed new structures and processes.”
The report also noted the “high levels of trust and belief with leadership.”
Phil Orton is the chief people officer with Making Space, which has over 1,000 employees across the UK. He said of the findings: “It requires leadership, consistency and high levels of engagement to achieve this accreditation, as well of course as being totally passionate and committed to the people we support and always wanting to improve.”
Paul Devoy, CEO of Investors in People, said: “We’d like to congratulate Making Space. Gold accreditation is a fantastic effort and places Making Space in fine company with a host of organisations that understand the value of people.”
Other comments in the report included: “Making Space is a great place to work,” “people at all levels are passionate about the work that they do to make a difference,” “there is a strong team culture,” and “line managers are regarded positively as being supportive and as good people managers.”
The report added: “Flexible working practices are believed to be better than other health care providers. Many people described how the policies had led them to a better work life balance, and also say that this is a significant factor in making the company a good place to work.”
Rachel Peacock is the CEO of Making Space and said: “At a time when recruitment and retention in the care sector is becoming increasingly difficult, we are delighted that our approach has been recognised and rewarded with this prestigious accreditation.
“We are incredibly proud of all our employees who, as the report notes, live and model our organisation’s values. This is the result of a continuous strategic effort to ensure that all the services we deliver and the people we support receive the best possible care and attention.”
