In our culture, it’s quite normal to (deep down) ascribe value to people based on what they do and what they have achieved.
The first thing we ask a new acquaintance is usually, “and what do you do?”
Maybe it’s just small talk – or maybe it says something about how we see people, and how we unconsciously want to categorise them and work out their value.
It’s easy to celebrate people’s achievements and productivity as measures of their worth. But this mindset can quietly cause harm. When we lift some people higher for doing more (the graduate, the person who got a promotion, the senior members of staff) we can unintentionally push others down. Especially those who, for whatever reason, can’t do those things right now, or maybe ever (the homeless, the disabled, the parent).
King's Arms Project sees value differently
At the core of KAP is this belief: that every person has value, not because of what they do, but simply because they are human.
From this belief and practice came our strapline: hope for everyone, always.
Our teams work with people who are often unseen or overlooked. But when they come through our doors, they are met with dignity, not judgment. The aim is not to make our clients become people just like us with all our cultural markers of ‘success’. We believe that every client we see already has all their inherent value and worth. We are simply here to walk alongside our fellow humans through their most difficult times and help them get to where they want to be.
“You can just come and be yourself… Since being here it’s like better world for me. It provides me with hope; the hope to carry on. Coming to the King’s Arms Project is the best thing that’s happened to me.”
We value our team the same
The KAP team see the same value in one another, and valuing our people is so important to us that it’s actually one of our strategic objectives.
What does that look like in our day-to-day work?
It’s things like strengthening our central office services – wanting to value everybody’s time rather than overburdening them with too many tasks. We try to develop a growth mindset, where we believe everyone is capable of learning things they don’t know yet. We promote wellbeing among staff.
Perhaps most of all, we aim to have a positive leadership culture that models and promotes ownership, accountability and involvement in decision-making.
Valuing people for who they are creates an environment people want to be part of – clients and staff alike. We see this in our high staff retention rate. Because everybody who works here has a different job, but equal value.
