The awards, coordinated by the Living Wage Foundation, celebrate Living Wage Employers that have made great contributions to communities and industries by implementing and recognising the life changing importance of the Living Wage.
The awards are part of Living Wage Week 2016, a national celebration of responsible pay, running from October 31st-5thNovember.
Living Wage Foundation Director, Katherine Chapman, said: “Congratulations to Children North East on becoming a Living Wage Champion Award winner. With 2,600 employers now signed up, it is wonderful to have Children North East leading the way in the North East. The leadership of responsible employers is making a profound difference in the lives of families and communities across the UK. Thank you very much for celebrating and championing the Living Wage in Newcastle.”
Jeremy Cripps, Chief Executive of Children North East, said: “We are delighted to have won the North East Living Wage Champion Award in our 125th year. As a charity it is important for us to recognise the hard work that our staff do which ultimately makes what we do a success. Part of this is ensuring that they are paid a wage that reflects this.
We hope other north east employers will follow our example and pay the Living Wage; it would make a huge difference to the lives of children growing up in poorer families.”
A Children North East employee said, “It’s great to know that Children North East not only offers support to children and young people but also to its contractors as well as their staff. The Living Wage has given me more freedom and independence, but of course knowing that your place of work sees you as someone responsible and valuable is priceless.”
The Living Wage Foundation offers recognition for employers that commit to paying the voluntary Living Wage rates to their directly employed staff and sub-contractors on their premises. There are now over 2,8000 employers registered with the Foundation.
The Living Wage is an hourly rate set independently and updated annually, and is calculated according to the basic cost of living using the ‘Minimum Income Standard’ for the UK. Decisions about what to include in this standard are set by the public; it is a social consensus about what people need to make ends meet.
One Champion Award winner has been named in each region of the UK: Scotland; Wales; Northern Ireland; the East Midlands; the West Midlands; the East of England; Yorkshire and the Humber; North East England; North West England; South East England; South West England; and London.
The awards were judged by an independent panel of community leaders from Citizens UK, national community organising charity and home of the Living Wage campaign.