Southwark Council is a Gold-standard employer

29 January 2019

Southwark Council has unveiled a gold plaque in its Tooley Street office following a rigorous reassessment by Investors in People (IIP), building on its earlier accreditation in 2015.

The gold plaque celebrates Southwark Council attaining ‘Gold’ status – its second in two consecutive IIP assessments.

IIP looks at how well an organisation is performing, and whether it is meeting its own objectives, with a particular focus on how it supports its staff to do the very best for customers.

The 2018 assessment was a more thorough and difficult test than before. As part of the revamped testing, staff participated both in a council-wide survey and face-to-face interviews with an IIP expert.

Southwark Council has maintained its Gold status against this harder test – already an achievement in itself – with glimmers of the newly-introduced Platinum rank shining through in some elements of the assessment.

The report noted that Southwark has a culture that incorporates openness, truly supports diversity, trust and willingness to communicate, and involves all people at every level in the work of the council as much as is feasibly possible.

These attributes were recognised as influencing the high levels of loyalty and pride in working for the council, with many people at all levels saying they joined Southwark because of what it is doing and achieving.

Southwark Council’s last assessment, in 2015, also yielded a Gold accreditation, with IIP pointing out that Southwark was “enhancing a people culture that maximised the value of engaging, developing, managing and motivating staff to perform at their place of work and to have an impact on the wider community that they serve: the residents of Southwark.”

Three years on, the latest report concluded that “the original momentum has not reduced but has gained pace” and that “the importance of people is understood by the council, as is the relationship with the wider stakeholder network in the borough, with much focus being placed on community groups and the disadvantaged, resulting in a high-performing council in many areas.”

Cllr Peter John, Leader of Southwark Council, said: “The council’s success in delivering our ambitions and promises depends upon the commitment and achievement of our staff, and so it is really pleasing to see that the IIP recognises our approach to supporting and getting the best from our staff, and in turn how loyal and committed they are to the council. One of Southwark’s strengths is how well officers and councillors work together to achieve the very best for our residents, and I would like to thank Eleanor Kelly and all our staff for the work they do every day to help make Southwark a great place to live and thrive."

Eleanor Kelly, Chief Executive, said: “I’m so proud of Southwark Council having been awarded Investors in People’s ‘Gold’ status twice in a row. These results demonstrate our commitment to recruiting, developing and retaining talent and nurturing our staff, whatever their background, in order to provide the best service we can to our residents."
 

Page last updated: 29 January 2019