Achieving royal recognition for excellence in training: The Princess Royal Training Awards

In a climate of uncertainty, with skills shortages in many sectors, a commitment to training is more significant than ever. Importantly, it is also a means of demonstrating that organisations are prepared to invest and upskill their employees; this can be an important differentiator for an organisation when trying to attract and recruit employees. Achieving a prestigious Princess Royal Training Award is a great way to demonstrate this dedication to training, learning and development.

In 2023, the eighth year for the Princess Royal Training Awards, there were 53 Awards with applications from large and small employers and including public, private and not-for-profit organisations across a variety of sectors and locations. The range of recipients included large national employers such as IBM, Mortgage Advice Bureau, Persimmon Homes, Pret a Manger, Royal Mail, Severn Trent and smaller organisations such as the Ancient Technology Volunteers Association, East Coast FM and Rockleigh. Remarkably, leading global life sciences organisation Labcorp received three Awards for three different workplace programmes.

Post-pandemic recovery

A number of recipients for 2023 achieved the Award for programmes that focused on post-pandemic recovery. Ascot Racecourse reflected that the Covid pandemic caused major problems for the organisation with a gap in public racing between 2019 and 2022 whereby 70% of the workforce was furloughed and many competent staff were lost. Ascot Racecourse established a comprehensive training programme to maintain the ‘Ascot Way’ values. 3,599 employees and contractors attended the training, profitability exceeded targets in 2022, Ascot 2023 sold out and commitment to training following the programme’s success was evidenced through a 10% increase in the training budget for 2023.

Also notable for training focused on post-pandemic recovery is Pret a Manger. In order to reach its ambitious growth targets to return to pre-pandemic sales and growth levels and re-establish itself as the ‘go to’ place for refreshments, it launched the Pret Academy as a way of developing existing employees and providing clear career pathways. The training has been undertaken by 2,847 employees and outcomes include increased safety scores, greater staff retention figures and sales exceeding targets

A focus on diversity, equity and inclusion

The Princess Royal Training Awards have always included the facility for a commendation for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) to be made to Award recipients whose programmes demonstrate a notable commitment to DEI. The number of organisations focusing on encouraging and supporting a diverse workforce has steadily increased and five of this year’s Award recipients achieved the commendation.

Learning and development company Taye Training, for example, launched the Training 4 Influence programme, which encourages participants to make use of their lived experience of trauma and difficulties. 10% of the 53 participants trained to date are from the LGBTQI community, 23% are from a BAME background, 12 delegates are neurodivergent and 20 are disabled. Return on investment has been evidenced through growth in turnover, which has almost doubled year on year, with the organisation now operating nationally.

Leading infrastructure services and engineering company Amey Plc also received the DEI commendation for a women’s leadership programme focused on attracting and retaining women in a male-dominated industry. 58 women have completed the programme and 77% have been promoted. The number of women in the business has increased from 25% to 30% post programme and the number of women in senior leadership positions has increased from 14% to 18%.

An Award with impact

Previous recipients of a Princess Royal Training Award have reported clear positive benefits for their organisations, with 99% of Award recipients in a recent survey highlighting the increased confidence in their organisation’s approach to culture and training, 90% citing the positive impact on their organisation’s ability to demonstrate the role of L&D in their commitment to Social Value, and 88% reporting increased investments into learning and development programmes. Organisations have also commented on the invaluable nature of the application process for their continued development:

“I thought I was being a little cheeky at the end by actually adopting the application process into a new process that we are going to roll out again and again across all of our other areas in the company… that just goes to show what a really good thought process there is behind the way the application is set out because it is something you can really adopt and use in the future to test and measure your own processes.” Cox London, 2022 recipient. 

And it doesn’t end there. The journey continues for Award recipients through membership of an active Alumni network of 600+ members. Many go on to collaborate on projects with other Alumni organisations who also recognise the value of investing in their people.

Interested in applying?

If you put training at the heart of your business, why not consider applying for an Award in 2024? The Princess Royal Training Awards are evidence-based, completely free to enter and are open for applications until 28 March 2024. What’s more, as a standard of excellence to be achieved, you are not competing against other organisations, you simply have to show that you meet the criteria.

You can apply for an Award here.

Or, for more information visit the website.  

I wish you the best of luck with your entry and look forward to seeing your organisation amongst the 2024 recipients. 

Becki

Useful links:

Details for the workshops

The Princess Royal Training Awards impact report: Celebrating the impact of learning and development

The Princess Royal Training Awards website

Boost’s guide to entering in 2024 https://awards-list.co.uk/princess-royal-training-awards/

Boost’s award writing services https://boost-awards.co.uk/

Achieving royal recognition for excellence in training: The Princess Royal Training Awards

In a climate of uncertainty, with skills shortages in many sectors, a commitment to training is more significant than ever. Importantly, it is also a means of demonstrating that organisations are prepared to invest and upskill their employees; this can be an important differentiator for an organisation when trying to attract and recruit employees. Achieving a prestigious Princess Royal Training Award is a great way to demonstrate this dedication to training, learning and development.

In 2023, the eighth year for the Princess Royal Training Awards, there were 53 Awards with applications from large and small employers and including public, private and not-for-profit organisations across a variety of sectors and locations. The range of recipients included large national employers such as IBM, Mortgage Advice Bureau, Persimmon Homes, Pret a Manger, Royal Mail, Severn Trent and smaller organisations such as the Ancient Technology Volunteers Association, East Coast FM and Rockleigh. Remarkably, leading global life sciences organisation Labcorp received three Awards for three different workplace programmes.

Innovative training programmes

The 2023 Awards saw numerous innovative training programmes amongst recipient organisations. Particularly notable were training programmes with a novel focus, including Fifty Shades Greener, a small company in Dublin – and the first Irish recipient since the Awards opened in Ireland for 2023 – which enables people and organisations to learn how to reduce their environmental impact and practices what it preaches through the Green Skills for Life programme. Staff receive multiple opportunities to apply learning to real situations and as staff numbers and knowledge have increased, there has been a steady increase in turnover.

The Ancient Technology Volunteers Association equally stands out for a three-year strategy which has helped to retain the Ancient Technology Centre in Dorset through attracting and training volunteers. Volunteers learn skills such as blacksmithing, tanning, archery and willow weaving as well as textile weaving, wool washing, spinning, natural dyeing and sheep shearing. Active volunteer numbers have increased from 15 to 48 and the site has just achieved its largest annual income. 

Post-pandemic recovery

A number of recipients for 2023 achieved the Award for programmes that focused on post-pandemic recovery. Ascot Racecourse reflected that the Covid pandemic caused major problems for the organisation with a gap in public racing between 2019 and 2022 whereby 70% of the workforce was furloughed and many competent staff were lost. Ascot Racecourse established a comprehensive training programme to maintain the ‘Ascot Way’ values. 3,599 employees and contractors attended the training, profitability exceeded targets in 2022, Ascot 2023 sold out and commitment to training following the programme’s success was evidenced through a 10% increase in the training budget for 2023.

Also notable for training focused on post-pandemic recovery is Pret a Manger. In order to reach its ambitious growth targets to return to pre-pandemic sales and growth levels and re-establish itself as the ‘go to’ place for refreshments, it launched the Pret Academy as a way of developing existing employees and providing clear career pathways. The training has been undertaken by 2,847 employees and outcomes include increased safety scores, greater staff retention figures and sales exceeding targets.

Outstanding leadership and management programmes

Leadership and management programmes have always featured strongly amongst Award recipients and 2023 was no exception. Henry Ford Academy, which provides training services to Ford dealerships in the UK and Ireland, devised a training programme to equip leaders with the skills to navigate change in an industry facing considerable disruption. Many graduates from the programme remain with the business and feedback includes changes in leadership styles and new staff induction processes being transformed.

Charterhouse School has also seen significant benefits following the introduction of a programme designed to enable middle managers to oversee their staff and resources effectively and support the growth of the organisation. With manager attrition rates falling to zero, a rise in employee satisfaction levels, and the freeing up of senior managers to focus on more strategic priorities, the programme’s success has resulted in it being rolled out to the teaching staff middle manager population.

A focus on diversity, equity and inclusion

The Princess Royal Training Awards have always included the facility for a commendation for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) to be made to Award recipients whose programmes demonstrate a notable commitment to DEI. The number of organisations focusing on encouraging and supporting a diverse workforce has steadily increased and five of this year’s Award recipients achieved the commendation.

Learning and development company Taye Training, for example, launched the Training 4 Influence programme, which encourages participants to make use of their lived experience of trauma and difficulties. 10% of the 53 participants trained to date are from the LGBTQI community, 23% are from a BAME background, 12 delegates are neurodivergent and 20 are disabled. Return on investment has been evidenced through growth in turnover, which has almost doubled year on year, with the organisation now operating nationally.

Leading infrastructure services and engineering company Amey Plc also received the DEI commendation for a women’s leadership programme focused on attracting and retaining women in a male-dominated industry. 58 women have completed the programme and 77% have been promoted. The number of women in the business has increased from 25% to 30% post programme and the number of women in senior leadership positions has increased from 14% to 18%.

An Award with impact

Previous recipients of a Princess Royal Training Award have reported clear positive benefits for their organisations, with 99% of Award recipients in a recent survey highlighting the increased confidence in their organisation’s approach to culture and training, 90% citing the positive impact on their organisation’s ability to demonstrate the role of L&D in their commitment to Social Value, and 88% reporting increased investments into learning and development programmes. Organisations have also commented on the invaluable nature of the application process for their continued development:

“I thought I was being a little cheeky at the end by actually adopting the application process into a new process that we are going to roll out again and again across all of our other areas in the company… that just goes to show what a really good thought process there is behind the way the application is set out because it is something you can really adopt and use in the future to test and measure your own processes.” Cox London, 2022 recipient. 

And it doesn’t end there. The journey continues for Award recipients through membership of an active Alumni network of 600+ members. Many go on to collaborate on projects with other Alumni organisations who also recognise the value of investing in their people.

Interested in applying?

If you put training at the heart of your business, why not consider applying for an Award in 2024? The Princess Royal Training Awards are evidence-based, completely free to enter and are open for applications until 28 March 2024. What’s more, as a standard of excellence to be achieved, you are not competing against other organisations, you simply have to show that you meet the criteria.

You can apply for an Award here.

Or, for more information visit the website.  

I wish you the best of luck with your entry and look forward to seeing your organisation amongst the 2024 recipients. 

Becki

Useful links:

Details for the workshops

The Princess Royal Training Awards impact report: Celebrating the impact of learning and development

The Princess Royal Training Awards website

Boost’s guide to entering in 2024 https://awards-list.co.uk/princess-royal-training-awards/

Boost’s award writing services https://boost-awards.co.uk/