Helm Housing - The new name for BIH

COMMITMENT

Helm Housing is committed to developing everyone to maximise their potential and ultimately achieve strategic goals. A comprehensive training and development programme supports this. Managers are involved in creating a workplace where people want to stay. Colleagues are enthusiastic in shaping the direction of the Association by participating on various project groups ensuring they have a voice.

Colleagues are rewarded for their contribution by making Helm Housing the housing association of choice.

A career at Helm Housing can be both challenging and rewarding.

EQUALITY OF OPPORTUNITY

In addition to fulfilling our statutory responsibility to promote equality of opportunity in all our activities, we are committed to developing an organisational culture which values people from all sections of the community and the contribution each individual can make to our work. Helm Housing has a commitment to:

• developing services to achieve equality and diversity in all our activities;
• have a workforce generally reflecting the population;
• understand how valuing diversity can improve our ability to deliver better services;
• actively consult with all our customers to ensure the delivery of our goals;
• support registered social landlords, NIHE and other bodies in the achievement of equality and diversity;
• actively consult with different individuals and communities to ensure that the services we provide are responsive and reflect the diversity of need;
• providing all employees with the training and development they need to enable them to achieve organisational goals;
• providing a supportive, open environment where all employees have the opportunity to reach their full potential;
• listen to our customers and involve them in the development of services that recognise and value diversity.
• We believe that both customers and employees have important parts to play in making this happen.

TRAINING & DEVELOPMENT

It has only been through the hard work and dedication of our employees that Helm Housing as an organisation has been able to deliver a high quality of service throughout the year. We recognise that our most important resource is our employees and we depend on employees to do the very best job they can. We believe that by increasing the skills and knowledge of our employees the Association will produce confident, highly qualified staff working as an effective and efficient team and to this end training and development plays a big part in our day to day business. We spent approximately £69,500 on training and development this year. Our department continues to develop and delivering internal training initiatives which provides opportunities for both tapping into employee knowledge and expertise and also assisting in achieving efficiency savings.

The Association will be assessed for re-accreditation of its IIP status in November 2007.