Christmas has come early for Warrington Housing Association as it received its Investors in People (IIP) Gold award.
The achievement in leadership, people management and wellbeing will be the gift that keeps on giving for staff as it recognises the social housing not-for-profit’s investment at all levels to become the best workplace possible.
It benchmarks organisations against the best globally with just seven percent of IIP accreditations reaching the gold standard.
WHA chair Judith Winterbourne said: “Achieving IIP Gold is the best Christmas present our organisation could have hoped for and is a real testament to the hard work and enthusiasm of our colleagues. We are always proud of the work that we do and it’s great to celebrate our success with all things gold.”
For more than 40 years, WHA has provided a range of affordable homes and services and is passionate about making Warrington a great place to live, in which the potential of individuals and communities can be realised.
It owns and manages homes across Warrington for families, older people and people needing support, including leasehold and shared ownership properties. The Association is also responsible for Warrington Home Improvement Agency, a not-for-profit service for older disabled and vulnerable residents in the town who wish to repair, improve and adapt their homes. It also runs LifeTime, a network providing opportunities for older people in to connect, be active and keep learning.
Following rigorous independent interviews and assessment, WHA was found to be “innovative” and “phenomenal”.
The new offices, opened in 2019, have improved teamwork already with the assessor noting the agile working spaces having a big impact on wellbeing as colleagues embraced the change.
WHA’s leadership team was praised as strong, insightful and forward thinking, with the managing of performance rated as exemplary. Work was described as structured and having clear key performance indicators. The open culture was reflected in good communications as well as listening to colleagues and encouraging them to make decisions.
