Coaching for Change at Joseph Rowntree

Introduction

The Joseph Rowntree Foundation (JRF) is an independent trust working to inspire social change through research, policy and practice. The Trust is funded by an endowment. The Joseph Rowntree Housing Trust (JRHT) is a registered housing association and care provider in Yorkshire and the North East of England in the United Kingdom (UK), working with the JRF to inspire social change. JRF has a strong heritage. It was established in 1904 by the renowned confectioner, philanthropist and Quaker, Joseph Rowntree, to search out the underlying causes of social ‘evils’ and influence social advancement.

As part of his social reform work, Joseph Rowntree built New Earswick, a village in York, for people on low incomes, including staff who worked in his factory, giving them access to decent homes at affordable rents. He was committed to understanding the causes of poverty and disadvantage in order to create a better society. His son, Seebohm Rowntree, was a pioneering social researcher who undertook one of the country’s first investigations into poverty. The Housing Trust (JRHT) shares JRF’s vision of a prosperous, poverty-free UK and works with its residents to help them make ends meet. It manages around 2,500 homes, half of which are located in New Earswick, with the rest located across North East England, including York, Scarborough, Beverley, Leeds and Hartlepool.

JRF’s vision today is for a prosperous UK without poverty, where everyone can thrive and contribute and as such, demonstrates how the organization continues to be driven by its founder’s vision and how relevant that is today as it was in 1904. The organizations (JRF/JRHT) currently employ just under 800 staff. Its Head Office is based in York, and it also has a base in London.