Train to Gain helping cut staff turnover

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It is well known the cleaning industry suffers a high turnover of staff which in turn results in higher costs to businesses.

As the Sector Skills Council for cleaning services, Asset Skills has been working to reverse this by changing perceptions of cleaning as a dead end job – and one effective method of doing this is through training.

One initiative we are always keen to promote is the Train to Gain scheme, available in England and funded by the Learning and Skills Council (LSC).

This programme recognises that business needs are such that often employers can not always release people to attend a college for training. In such cases it can help find training providers who can go to the firm's premises and fit into their schedule.

One company has reported a 13% reduction in staff turnover and believes this is because of their involvement with Train to Gain.

"It has taken us over a year to develop our in-house delivery model but it was really worthwhile," says Sarah Hunt, Head of Skills Funding and Planning at Rentokil Initial.

"We are a large company with several divisions and we are committed to staff training. The model we developed as part of the Train to Gain programme is now offered to all divisions who wish to upskill their workforce."

Rentokil Initial have so far trained 600 workers in Levels 2 and 3 National Vocational Qualifications (NVQs) in the following programmes: customer service, cleaning, support services, hospitality and team leading. A further 250 workers have also undergone basic Skills for Life (SfL) training as part of the scheme.

"When developed and structured in line with business requirements, the Train to Gain programme can be an extremely effective tool to boost the skills of the workforce to meet national standards," says Sarah.

We are now promoting this opportunity to all staff throughout Rentokil divisions as pilot programmes, self selection processes, line management referrals and through newsletters.

"Not only have we seen a 13% cut in staff turnover, we've also increased staff morale and have more motivated workers. I would definitely recommend it to other employers."

The first step of introducing a Train to Gain scheme in the workplace is to find a "skills broker" – someone with the expertise to tailor training packages to individual needs. Whether you have five, 50 or 500 employees, these brokers can work with you to analyse your company's particular requirements, then recommend a plan of action to suit your business needs.

To contact a skills broker in your area you can call the national helpline on 0800 015 5545.