Summary

Investors in People is the national standard which sets out a level of good practice for the training and development of people in order to achieve business goals.  The expansion of the standard is a key element of the Government's Skills Strategy. The Investors in People Standard has been a major UK success story in schools and other organisations since its introduction in 1991.

Background 

The Investors in People Standard was developed in 1990 by the National Training Task Force, in partnership with leading business, personnel, professional and employees organisations.  The Standard provides a national framework for improving business performance and competitiveness through a planned approach to setting and communicating business objectives and developing people to meet these objectives.  The result is what people can and are motivated to do matches what the organisation needs them to do.  

The Standard is based on three main principals:

• Plan - develop strategies to improve performance
• Do - take action to improve the performance 
• Review - evaluate the impact 

These three key principles are broken down into 10 indicators, against which organisations wishing to be recognised as an Investor in People are assessed.  Investors in People UK was set up in 1993 to take ownership of the Standard and every three years it reviews this to make sure that it is still relevant, accessible and beneficial to organisations of all types and sizes.

Investors in People in Schools  

In 1999, the Department for Education and Employment (now DCSF), launched a three year strategy to encourage more schools in England to use the Investors in People Standard to support the school improvement and raising standards agenda.  Currently there are 6,867 primary schools and 2,404 secondary schools recognised as Investors in People.  A further 1,548 primary schools and 390 secondary schools are commited to achieving investors in people.

Schools that are working with the Standard have found it invaluable in evaluating their existing practice and performance. It provides a coherent framework for:

• The professional development needs of all staff
• Leadership, management, and the management of change
• Performance management
• Assessing, recording and reporting schools and pupil achievement

Research shows that Investors in People in schools leads to:

• A more structured approach to employee development, with more focus and better targeting and school development (involving all employees)
• Greater flexibility in meeting training and development needs and better sharing of good practice
• Greater resilience of employees
• More effective use of resources for professional development 

More Information

Measure your improvements - Investors in People in schools and colleges ( 559 Kb)

This booklet introduces the Investors in People Standard and its simple process of assessment. The benefits which arise when schools and colleges become Investors in People are described while recent case studies provide concrete evidence of what that means in practice. For those who want to take it further the next steps towards 'recognition' are outlined.

Links

Investors in People website   

Learning and Skills Council website 

Investors in People Research

Last updated 11 May 2007