In 2024, Housing 21 opened its doors to Investors in People (IIP) to promote a new, collaborative approach to continuous improvement.
As a result, Gwen Powell, International Manager at IIP and Housing 21’s partner in the initiative, has spent the last 12 months embedded within the organisation, attending resident and employee forums, team meetings and visiting schemes, working with internal teams to continuously strengthen the organisation’s people practices.
Gwen said: “There are so many things that have happened during the year and that's the beauty of this collaborative programme.
“Being embedded in the organisation gives me the chance to see how the infrastructure in place has helped achieve Platinum accreditation. These processes and practices are becoming well‑established, supporting people to do their best work every day.
“But beyond that, there's some higher-level impact dynamics, which Housing 21 also meets as part of the accreditation, because as an organisation you're constantly looking at what you’re doing and what people’s needs are, and not just telling people what they need but also asking them.”
The annual partnership between IIP and Housing 21 is instead of the standard three‑year accreditation.
Ian Hodson, Director of People and Culture at Housing 21 comments on the organisation’s experience of this new initiative: “Our ongoing partnership with IIP helps us stand out, with Platinum recognition placing us in the top two per cent of organisations. The additions and improvements made over the last 12 months have come from listening to our people. We've got lots of different channels to try to make sure that we're always doing things, that are driven by what our employees are telling us.”
Achieving Disability Confident Level 2, introducing inclusive employee forums and rolling out a digital upgrade to over 2000 of its operational employees, are some of the changes which have contributed to the not-for-profit's success.
Gwen elaborates: “This partnership is truly distinctive, built on the unique strengths each of us brings, enabling us to keep adding value and amplify our collective impact. I love that Housing 21 has won so many accolades this year; what the organisation is doing has accelerated the positive impact for its employees.”
Thanks to the innovative approach, the leading provider of older people’s housing has retained IIP Platinum, achieved IIP Wellbeing Gold, and proudly won the Best People Team award at the Investors in People Awards.