Nurturing our people is absolutely vital to achieving our core purpose of better outcomes for more children. Access resources and policies below to support you.
Access learning
Learning starts with YOU. With busy jobs, busy lives and competing priorities, it can be easy to overlook your own development and growth. Barnardo's can support you to plan your learning and development journey: our commitment is that all our employees and volunteers will have three or more days learning per year. You should always be exploring ways to integrate learning in your everyday work. Discover learning opportunities below:
- Access our online learning portal, b-Learning, for all our learning resources and information to support you throughout your career at Barnardo's.
- Develop core skills including project management, IT and trauma-informed practice
- Complete our mandatory training
- Training for retail colleagues and volunteers: visit our Retail Academy
- Resources to support your finance learning
- Apprenticeship Academy - guidance for employees looking for apprenticeships and managers recruiting apprentices
- Emerging Leaders Programme (ELP) - our flagship, in-house, leadership development programme, co-facilitated by our Learning and Development Team and our external partner, Advance Coaching Ltd.
Performance and Development
Performance Development Reviews (PDR)
A PDR is for Barnardo’s employees who have successfully completed their probationary period and who have one year’s service or more on 1 April 2023.
Colleagues who sit in Grades, D, E and F should follow this PDR process until 31 May 2024. In line with our new approach to pay progression, you will be introduced to a new framework for developing next Spring. You should have a PDR meeting with your manager by 31 May 2024.
View Policy, Frequently Asked Questions and Form.
Delivering Excellence: Performance and Development Policy
This policy covers how we recognise colleagues' contributions to Barnardo's, and in line with our new approach to Performance and Growth, provides a framework for developing our colleagues across the charity.
Policies and procedures
- Acting Up Policy and Procedure: Learn how can employees can take on higher-graded responsibilities.
- Movers Procedure: When a colleague moves to a different role and/or department within the organisation there are various procedures that must be followed by the line manager, People Team and the colleague.
- Performance Improvement Policy: View the support available for managers and employees to resolve performance issues as soon as possible.
- Probationary and Managing Transition Periods Policy: Procedure and performance agreement form for employees and managers
- Secondment and Project Policy and Procedure: Find out more about how we manage internal and external secondments.
- Study Support Policy: Discover the types of learning Barnardo's support
- Study and Examination Leave: Find out how we can help with time off for learning