client case studies
Springboard Consultancy and the Police Service – A Winning Collaboration
The Springboard Consultancy are tremendously proud of our long and successful relationship with police services nationwide. We recently spoke to Yvonne Coolbear from Suffolk Constabulary, Amanda Rickwood from Cambridge Constabulary, Steve Rossiter from the Dorset Constabulary and Moana Walker from West Midlands Constabulary to find out more about their experiences of running our courses. Between them they run all of our core programmes - Springboard, the women’s personal and work development programme, Navigator, the men’s work and personal development programme, Spring Forward, for men and women on the way up, and Fresh Steps self development programme for older workers.
Equality and Opportunity
When asked why training was needed, the overwhelming response was ‘to address equality issues’. Yvonne elaborated for us:
"The primary driver for us was findings from the British Association of Women in Policing’s ‘Gender Agenda’. It showed that fewer women than men were applying for promotions and recommended the use of personal development programmes to address this issue.” She continued “Equality is not just about women, it’s about offering the same service and opportunities to all: we concluded that to be a fair organisation we needed to offer the same opportunities to men too – hence why we pursued Navigator.”
Steve re-iterated this statement and added “It was sensible to offer the same opportunities to men in the force that the women had experienced for many years with Springboard. It was also deemed appropriate to offer programmes to increase motivation rather than promotion-driven training.”
The need for individual personal development was also a driving force for Cambridge, Amanda explained:
"We were a failing force back in 2003 and we identified a need to empower individuals within the organisation to help turn the force around. There had also been an under-investment in personal development and leadership which led us to research programmes for women and eventually managers.”
So, that was women, men and management, what about older workers? We asked Yvonne to tell us why she identified a need for this group? She answered:
"Age is an equality issue too. We found that our older workers needed more than Springboard and Navigator could offer them – they had different needs. Also, over 40% of our workforce is over 40 years old. Some seemed to be getting stuck in a rut so we wanted a development programme to re-invigorate and motivate them.”
A Solid Reputation
Why did each of these organisations choose The Springboard Consultancy to provide the training they needed? ‘Reputation’ was the unified response. Yvonne added:
"The Springboard Consultancy have a proven track record and are well respected within the police service. Following the success of programmes elsewhere we had no hesitation in using the same provider for our women, men and older workers."
Steve from Dorset added that "We knew that the training was top quality, the product worked and the back-up was faultless."
We knew that the training was top quality, the product worked and the back-up was faultless."
The Springboard Consultancy have a proven track record and are well respected within the police service."
