North West organisations recognised in City and Guilds awards

Seven North West organisations have been recognised for their outstanding training and skills development programmes by the City and Guilds of London Institute.

Its president, HRH The Princess Royal, announced today (August 15) that a total of 53 training programmes were chosen for the 2023 awards.

Now in its eighth year, The Princess Royal Training Awards continue to recognise organisations truly demonstrating exceptional commitment to learning and development.

With skills shortages across the UK increasing and job vacancies doubling, creating engaging learning programmes to grow and retain new and existing talent has never been more crucial.

From small not-for-profit organisations to large multinational employers, the recipients of the award continue to be refreshingly diverse and increasingly innovative in their approach to learning and development each year.

Some strong themes have emerged from the programmes being awarded this year, including enhanced diversity, equity and diversity schemes, strong management and leadership training schemes, novel ways of addressing sustainability and climate change, and access schemes designed to create new talent pipelines and career pathways.

Companies handed awards with North West bases were IBM UK, Gravitas Recruitment, IPG Health Medical Communications, Northern Care Alliance, Right at Home UK, Stein IAS and Royal Mail Group.

Kirstie Donnelly, chief executive of City & Guilds, said: “The Princess Royal Training Awards demonstrate how training and development can create opportunities and attract new talent to industries to the North West of England, where there are significant skills gaps and labour shortages.

“It’s encouraging to see organisations in the North West gaining recognition, with such a diverse range of employers continuing to apply for a Princess Royal Training Award.

“Despite the obvious challenges in recent years, these employers have shown unwavering dedication to nurturing their workforce through outstanding training and skills development, resulting in a lasting positive impact.”

She added: “As skills shortages and job vacancies rise, investing in training and development can help to increase productivity and harness and retain talent for future growth.

“Not only is this good for business and the workforce – it is also beneficial for wider society and contributes to thriving local economies. These organisations exemplify the transformative power of investing in people, and we are honoured to celebrate their accomplishments.”