UKCES

Responsibility for the Investors in People (IIP) 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 announced today.

Mr Denham said;

“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. IIP 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 IIP 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 IIP 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 IIP 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 IIP standard and brand. Placing IIP 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 IIP 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, IIP 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, IIP 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 IIP customers have a seamless service and that momentum on development of the IIP standard and framework is maintained.

Notes to editors:

1. Developed in 1990 by a partnership of leading businesses and national organisations, the Investors in People standard provides a practical framework for improving business performance and competitiveness though good practice in people.

2. It is currently the UK’s principal standard for business improvement through people. Almost 8 million employees are currently benefiting from Investors in People, equating to 32% of the UK workforce.

3. Investors in People UK is a Non-Departmental Public Body sponsored by the Department for Innovation, Universities, and Skills. It is responsible for strategic direction and development of the standard, promoting and championing the standard, and managing delivery and quality aspects of the standard.

4. The remit of the UK Commission for Employment and skills is to provide vigorous and independent challenge, advising government at the highest levels across the UK on employment and skills strategy, targets, policies and progress towards the challenging competitiveness goals set by Lord Leitch, including the vision of an 80% employment rate by 2020.  It has already been asked by the government to report on crucial issues, such as the employability skills employers need for future economic success, how UK employers can use skills to become more globally competitive, and whether further institutional change is required to deliver better integrated employment and skills services. The principal roles of the UK Commission for Employment and Skills are:

•    To develop an independent view of how employment and skills systems can be improved to increase employment retention and progression, skills and productivity
•    To provide advice to inform strategic policy development and the exchange of good practice to shape these systems to meet the needs of employers and individuals.
•    To express advice at the highest levels of government in England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales.
•    To manage the performance of Sector Skills Councils, including advising Ministers on their relicensing

5. Lord Leitch also recommended that the Government should consider how the remit and role of the IIP standard could be reshaped to support the Review’s ambitions. In response to this recommendation a review conducted by external consultants drew together a body of evidence from questionnaires, interviews and focus groups. Participants included accredited and non-accredited employers from the public and private sector, key stakeholders such as CBI and TUC and members of the delivery network in all four nations. The favoured option of the review Steering Group was to make the standard more “employer driven” by positioning it within an employer body. Ministers have now agreed to pursue this option and that the UK Commission for Employment and Skills is the appropriate body to take this role.