Time to share why you are a good employer in housing

What makes a good employer? All of us will have worked for companies or organisations that we remember fondly, while conversely some we would rather forget.

But what is it that actually makes workers feel their employer is good?

Perhaps it is the learning and skills offered, the sense of continuous development and progression? Or is it inclusivity and the working culture? Is it the employer’s health and wellbeing policies? Perhaps it is the flexibility or pay and benefits offered by the organisation?

Maybe it is a combination of all of the above and more. In social housing of course there is also the added benefit of the satisfaction that comes from working towards delivering an organisation’s social purpose.

I know from many years reporting on the social housing sector that many housing associations are excellent employers, but I’m not convinced the sector always gets this message across.

It’s an issue tackled by the outgoing president of the Chartered Institute of Housing Elly Hoult through her campaign Choose Housing, which seeks to raise awareness of the benefits of working in the sector.

At Housing Today we are keen to showcase the work done by good employers in the sector. We feel that this will not only promote their great work to a wider audience but will also enable the sharing of valuable learning for landlords as they seek to evolve their employment practices and initiatives.

We are therefore launching our first ever Good Employer Guide for the housing sector.

The guide will be a directory of housing association employers, providing data from each organisation on their approach to skills and staff development, benefits, diversity and inclusion and health and wellbeing. Providers completing the survey can also supply supporting documentation outlining further what makes them a good employer.

The guide, which will also include analysis of the findings from our survey, will be published at our Good Employer Guide Live event in London in March, which will feature panel sessions, keynote speakers and networking. A similar guide will be published by our sister publication Building magazine for the construction sector.

>>See also: Housing Today’s first ever Good Employer Guide opens for entries

We will then produce quarterly good employer reports for the sector throughout next year on different themes; skills and training, diversity and inclusion, health and wellbeing and culture and innovation. We will be keen to hear from leaders in the housing association sector about their views on varying aspects off these topics. 

The guide will not only help you tell the story about why people should work for your organisation; it will also help the sector tell its story and share valuable learning for boards and executive teams

Telling housing’s story about why people should work in housing has never been more important. Social housing providers need skilled workers to meet the myriad challenges facing the sector today, from development, to decarbonisation, to improving housing management and more. A report by the London Homes Coalition, which includes member of the G15 group of associations in London, last year warned that if we don’t take action, the group’s members alone will see a gap of over 2,600 skilled workers over the next five years.

So please take the opportunity to apply for inclusion in our Good Employer Guide by completing our survey (see button below). Doing so will not only help you tell the story about why people should work for your organisation; it will also help the sector tell its story and share valuable learning for boards and executive teams.

Carl Brown is deputy editor at Housing Today, Building and Building Design

Click here to enter the survey