Capita Insurance Services (CIS) has become a governing member of North of England Excellence in a move that underlines its commitment to achieving world-class standards of customer service and business quality. As part of the commitment, Andrew Beer, Capita Insurance Services managing director of business process outsourcing contracts, has taken up a seat on the organisation's board.

CIS provides business support services to the insurance industry from its network of offices throughout the UK. The organisation began its relationship with North of England Excellence earlier this year, when Capita Coal Health Contract (CHC), part of CIS, entered the 2007 North of England Excellence awards. Following the rigorous assessment process, Capita CHC, which has employees in Sheffield and Cheadle, Cheshire, was presented with an award for excellence in the category of a private sector company employing more than 250 employees.

Mr Beer said: "With a number of business units located in the north, becoming a governing member of North of England Excellence provides CIS with the opportunity to share best practice with like-minded organisations in the region. In addition, strengthening our partnership with North of England will assist us in continuing to improve the quality of our operations, which will increasingly benefit our employees, the local community and the business itself."

David Teale, chief executive of North of England Excellence said: "We are delighted to welcome Capita Insurance Services to the board, which demonstrates their ongoing commitment to business excellence and to the community as a whole. As a governing member, they will be working with us to help other businesses across the North to enhance their performance."

Capita Insurance Services is one of nine governing members, the others being Bradford & Bingley, the North West Development Agency, the North West Aerospace Alliance, United Utilities, Liverpool John Moores University, Liverpool City Council, Urenco and Venture Housing Association.

Business people from across the North are being offered an opportunity to improve their management skills by becoming an assessor for the 2008 North of England Business Excellence Awards.

Each year North of England Excellence recruits assessors from the private, public and voluntary sectors who then visit and assess award applicants. Their findings are used by the jury to determine the finalists and winners.

Assessors need to possess a high level of expertise in business improvement, together with a balanced approach and a reputation for integrity. They also need to be familiar with the EFQM Excellence Model, the management tool which organisations use to improve their businesses.

Assessors are likely to be managers from organisations committed to business improvement, quality or change management specialists from business and the academic sector and retired business people. Current assessors include managers from organisations including Lancashire Constabulary, 3663 First for Foodservice, Urenco (Capenhurst) Ltd, Bradford MBC, Department for Work and Pensions (Newcastle), Liverpool John Moores University, British Nuclear Group, Axa Insurance and Siemens plc, as well as a wide range of smaller organisations.

Pete Macartney of North of England Excellence says: "Becoming an assessor is a significant personal development opportunity and also benefits your organisation. It helps you to enhance your leadership skills, gain experience of best practice and an understanding of the way other businesses work. It's also great for networking."

All assessors undergo specialised training and pay a fee to cover the cost of this.

One assessor, Justine Bennett from Royal Bank of Scotland, says: "I can't tell you just how much I got from the experience. I found it really engaging and inspiring and learned so much. I've already asked my boss if I can put my name forward to be an assessor for next year and will encourage a few of my colleagues to also apply. It was the best learning event I have taken part in for a long time."

For further information contact Pete Macartney on 01925 715245 or see our Assessor page for more details...

Bradford and Bingley plc has become a governing member of North of England Excellence in a move that underlines the bank's commitment to achieving world-class standards.

It is the first governing member to be based in Yorkshire. Bradford & Bingley's operations director Havana Abid will now take up a seat on the board of North of England Excellence. The move also gives the organisation the opportunity to share best practice with other leading businesses in the region and benefit a wide range of services including seminars and consultancy.

Havana Abid said: "Bradford & Bingley has a long and proud history of helping people build a better future for themselves and the community around them. Becoming a governing member of North of England Excellence shows our commitment not only to Yorkshire businesses, but to the community as a whole."

David Teale, chief executive of North of England Excellence said: "We are delighted to welcome Bradford & Bingley to the board. Becoming a governing member demonstrates their commitment to achieving the highest standards. I am sure their expertise in customer service and quality will be of great benefit in helping other businesses across the North to enhance their performance."

Bradford & Bingley is one of seven governing members, the others being the North West Development Agency, United Utilities, Liverpool John Moores University, Liverpool City Council, Urenco and Venture Housing Association.

A new scheme aims to recognise well-run businesses in the North of England.

The North of England Marques of Excellence scheme is the only one of its type to cover all aspects of a business's operation - from the quality of leadership and people management to process efficiency, customer service, corporate social responsibility and financial results.

The scheme, launched by North of England Excellence, offers three levels of accreditation. Companies judged to have met the criteria will be allowed to use the marque on their stationery and promotional material.

Step 1, the Commitment Marque, shows organisations have carefully assessed all areas of their operation and set out detailed plans for improvement. Step 2, or Achievement Marque, recognises those who have worked through the first stage and have developed a second improvement plan, while Step 3, or Continuity Marque, is awarded to those who reach a score of 400 or more judged against the internationally recognised EFQM Excellence Model.

Richard Lloyd-Mullen of North of England Excellence, who is in charge of the scheme, said: "While initiatives such as Investors in People or ISO 9001 are valuable in their own right, they cover only one area of a business's operation. The Marques of Excellence scheme covers all areas of activity and recognises well-managed businesses which are committed to improvement. We hope it will play a part in driving up the performance of businesses throughout the North of England."

For further information about the Marques of Excellence scheme contact Richard Lloyd-Mullen at North of England Excellence on 01925 715242 or email richard@northofenglandexcellence.co.uk

A North West primary school is celebrating success after becoming one of the first in the country to achieve the UK's highest quality standard.

Holy Cross and All Saints Primary School in Salford has gained accreditation to the Investors in Excellence standard, placing it in an elite group which includes some of the country's top businesses.

To achieve the award, organisations must demonstrate outstanding performance in all areas of their operation, from management and leadership to efficiency and customer satisfaction.

Headmaster Vincent Sheedy said the school had undergone four years of continual improvement to achieve the award. Amongst the initiatives which had been introduced were annual questionnaires for staff, parents and children to gauge satisfaction levels. The school also carries out regular interviews with the school council, made up of pupil representatives, to identify barriers to learning and gives it a small grant to spend in an attempt to encourage economic awareness.

Mr Sheedy added: "The award reflects the hard work of everyone involved. The changes we have introduced have resulted in widespread improvements, including greater involvement by children and increased customer satisfaction.

For example, we know that parents rate the school very highly with approval levels regularly in excess of 95 per cent.

"From a management point of view we now have a much more efficient operation and the lessons we have learned have also helped greatly when preparing for Ofsted inspections."

The Investors in Excellence Award was presented to the school by North of England Excellence, formerly North of England Excellence, the accreditation body for the region. Richard Lloyd-Mullen of North of England Excellence said: "Achieving the Investors in Excellence award is powerful evidence of the school's high standards and, in terms of performance, places it alongside many world-class businesses. We hope this will encourage more schools to pursue this goal."

A new scheme is helping neighbourhood warden teams to improve their performance and work towards national quality standards.

The Wardens Excellence Scheme has been pioneered in the North West but it is hoped to extend it to other areas of the UK. It was developed by the Stockport Training and Resource Centre which is hosted by Stockport Metropolitan Borough Council and which supports warden schemes in the region, in conjunction with North of England Excellence and with funding from the Department for Communities and Local Government.

The scheme offers three levels of accreditation, the highest of which is equivalent to the nationally recognised Investors in Excellence standard. It covers all areas of a team's operation, from leadership and management to efficiency and community impact. A team from Kensington, Liverpool has already achieved level one while another from Trafford, Manchester has achieved level two accreditation.

Richard Lloyd-Mullen of North of England Excellence said: "Warden schemes are enthusiastic about improving the service to their local communities and keen to achieve accreditation. However the existing industry standard was considered too long-winded and progressing from that to the national excellence standard meant starting from scratch. Our three-stage process helps schemes achieve the same standards but in a more streamlined fashion. We hope it will inspire more warden schemes to improve their performance and so provide a better service to the community."

Susan Hall of the Stockport Training and Resource Centre said: "The Wardens Excellence Scheme will ensure high-quality warden teams get the recognition they deserve. Accreditation is important for wardens as it helps them build credibility within the community. It will also help them to prove their worth when they come to seek new sources of funding in a few years' time."

For further details about the scheme contact Susan Hall on 0161 474 2501 or email susan.hall@stockport.gov.uk