University named ‘Living Wage Champion’

University awarded for recognising the life-changing importance of the Living Wage

The University has been chosen as the winner of the Living Wage Champion Awards 2015 for the Wales region and becomes the only university in the UK to receive this recognition.

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 2015, a national celebration of responsible pay, running from 1st-7th November.

Living Wage Foundation Acting Director, Sarah Vero, said: “Congratulations to Cardiff University on becoming a Living Wage Champion Award winner. With 2,000 employers now signed up, it is wonderful to have Cardiff University leading the way in Wales. 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 the Living Wage.”

In November 2014, Cardiff University became Wales's first University to be accredited as a Living Wage employer and one of only a handful of Russell Group universities outside London. 

Cardiff University's Vice-Chancellor, Professor Colin Riordan, said: “We are delighted to be named a Living Wage Champion and to act as an exemplar for other Welsh employers and the higher education sector more broadly. Becoming a Living Wage employer has sent a clear message that we value all the people who work for us.”

The Living Wage Foundation offers a recognition mark 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 2,000 employers registered with the Foundation.

The Living Wage is an hourly rate set independently and updated annually. The Living Wage 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.