NEWS & RESEARCH

UK Commission for Employment and Skills to champion Investors in People

Responsibility for the Investors in People standard will be passed from Government to the UK Commission for Employment and Skills (UKCES) placing it at the heart of business.

Skills Secretary John Denham commented; “I am pleased that the UK Commission for Employment and Skills will be taking on the role of championing and developing the Investors in People standard. “It will be working to make sure that the standard continues to prosper. Investors in People is a highly effective approach to improving performance through people, and I believe strongly that organisations of all sizes and sectors should take the time to appraise what the framework can do for them.”

The new arrangements will mean that UKCES will take over from Government as the guardian of the Investors in People standard and framework across the UK, with responsibility for ensuring its continued high quality.

The Commission will also champion the standard across the UK with employers, employer organisations and other key stakeholders and customers, and will identify ways in which it can maximise impact and reach.

Sir Mike Rake, Chairman of the UK Commission, said “The UK Commission is pleased to welcome this responsibility for the Investors in People standard as it provides a real opportunity to further develop its contribution to organisational success, and extend its use across a wider range of private, public and voluntary employers.  We look forward to working with employers across the UK as we develop and promote the standard further.”

Welcoming the new arrangements on behalf of the Board of Investors in People UK, Philip Williamson, chairman, said: ““I firmly believe that it is beneficial for UK business to have a UK–wide body with strategic oversight of the Investors in People standard and brand. Placing Investors in People at the heart of the employment agenda will ensure the continued growth of the framework which is unique in its contribution to UK productivity over the last 16 years.”

The Governments of England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland will be responsible for determining the role that Investors in People will play in their national skills strategies, including arrangements for delivery, together with any targets or performance ambitions.

The UK Commission will now work closely with DIUS, Investors in People UK and the devolved administrations to establish the detail of their role, which is likely to include licensing an appropriate body in each country to take responsibility for delivery of the standard. UKCES, Investors in People UK, DIUS and the devolved administrations will also develop detailed transition arrangements, with the aim of completing the transition process by Summer 2009.

Each organisation will ensure that existing Investors in People customers have a seamless service and that momentum on development of the Investors in People standard and framework is maintained.