Good work & skills

We believe in better working lives

The traditional view of a successful working life begins soon after we finish our education, progresses steadily and ends when we reach pension age. At least it did for our parents and grandparents. Today, things are different.

Now we’re living longer, people are choosing to explore flexible working, extend their careers or switch tracks, learning and reskilling along the way. But training and employment structures aren’t set up to support these increasingly ‘squiggly’ career paths. Yet.

We believe work should be redesigned to help people achieve the future they want. To make the most of careers that may span more than five decades, we need access to good work at all stages of life.

And we’ve been encouraging people to engage in conversations about how career changes can positively impact their future with our Living Longer campaign.

Living Longer Campaign

The future of work and retirement

On average, we're living longer than previous generations. This means we need to think about how and when we work and save for the kind of retirement we want. That’s why it’s important that we start thinking about work in different ways.

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Harnessing the power of good work

But what is good work and what does it look like? We think good work is secure, rewarding, flexible to meet changing needs, sustainable over our longer lives and supportive of employee wellbeing.

That’s why good work can lead to a journey of growth and fulfilment, and a secure financial future. But it requires employers to:

Value and empower every individual
Understand that needs change as circumstances change
Support employees to work how they want, for as long as they want

We’re campaigning for better work, flexible working and lifelong learning

Read the Research

Lifelong Loan Entitlement (LLE) policy

We're recommending several enhancements to the government’s proposed Lifelong Loan Entitlement (LLE) policy, including clear guidance on the role played by employers and a more flexible delivery model which works around caring responsibilities and other needs.

Mid-career

We're advocating for the reframing of learning programmes for people in mid-career, with a focus on making language appropriate for adults of different ages and providing information about the career-related outcomes of courses available to adult learners.

Flexible learning requirements

We're recommending that the design and delivery of lifelong learning also needs to consider learners’ flexible learning requirements, particularly balancing it with caring or health needs, as well as current work.

Free independent careers support

We're advocating for access to free independent adult careers support to give midlife and older workers the confidence to engage with training and retraining.

Building a place where you belong

It’s our vision to make Phoenix Group the best place any of us have ever worked, so we’re leading by example to drive vital changes in working practices, employment support and lifelong learning provision so we embody our vision of good work.

Ensuring it's never too late to learn

With technology developing faster than ever, people need opportunities to retrain and upskill at all ages.

Our research shows that for many the idea of switching roles can feel daunting, while employers often assume that older workers don’t want or need training. But it doesn’t have to be this way.

At Phoenix Group, we invest in colleagues’ learning and development throughout their careers with our Thrive at Phoenix programme. We also offer regular career workshops and encourage regular personal development conversations with line managers.

To help anyone, whether they work for us or not, to take control of their career we created the Careers Can Change campaign bringing together a group of specialist partners to inspire people to see how they can make career changes, successfully, at any age.

Changing Careers?

Diversity, equity & inclusion

We support diversity, equity and inclusion, and want all colleagues to be treated with the respect and dignity they deserve. This helps us attract the top talent and allows every colleague to fulfil their potential.

We are a stronger business because we are all uniquely different.

Diversity, Equity & Inclusion

Championing age-inclusivity

We were one of the first organisations to sign the Age-friendly Employer Pledge, and we run dedicated guidance sessions for colleagues over 40 to help them assess what they might need to do to achieve their goals.

And, recognising that many colleagues may also have loved ones to care for, we offer flexible working; 10 days' paid carer's leave; and the opportunity to take a 1-12 month career break.

Careers

The future of work

The way we think about work needs to change. We believe it needs to be reimagined to better support the reality of our longer lives.

To fully benefit from careers that might stretch across more than fifty years, individuals need access to good work throughout every phase of their lives.

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