Agenda and draft minutes

Apologies for absence were received from Councillor Ruth Bowman J.P. and Councillor Clive Springett from the Employer’s side and Claire McKenna and Jane Orton from the Employees’ side.

There were no substitutes present.

The approved Terms of Reference for the West Suffolk Joint Staff Consultative Panel, requires that Chairmanship of the Panel shall alternate between the Employer’s and Employees’ sides.  When the Chairman is a Member of one side of the Panel, the Vice-Chairman shall be a Member of the other side. 

In 2018/2019, a Chairman is required to be elected from the Employees’ Side.

The Panel is requested to ELECT a Chairman in accordance with this arrangement.

It was proposed, seconded and

RESOLVED:

That Mark Johnson be elected as Chairman of the West Suffolk Joint Staff Consultative Panel for the year 2018/2019.

The approved Terms of Reference for the West Suffolk Joint Staff Consultative Panel requires that Vice-Chairmanship of the Panel shall alternate between the Employer’s and Employees’ side.

As the Chairman of the Panel shall be from the Employees’ side, in 2018/2019, a Vice-Chairman is required to be appointed from the Employers’ Side.

The Panel is requested to APPOINT a Vice-Chairman in accordance with this arrangement.

It was proposed, seconded and

RESOLVED:

That Councillor David Nettleton be elected as Vice-Chairman of the West Suffolk Joint Staff Consultative Panel for the year 2018/2019.

To confirm the minutes of the meeting held on 29 January 2018 (copy attached).

Members’ queried whether a copy of the Suffolk Workplace Wellbeing Charter would be made available to display in the Council’s offices as suggested at the previous meeting. The Service Manager (Human Resources and Organisational Development) confirmed that copies would be made available.

The minutes of the meeting held on 29 January 2018 were accepted as a correct record and signed by the Chairman.

The Service Manager (Human Resources and Organisational Development) to give a verbal report.

The Assistant Director (HR, Legal and Democratic Services) explained that the Council had been working with Unison to develop a more formal and efficient way of working together. The Panel were informed that a Committee would be set up comprising of members of the Human Resources team, staff representatives from other service areas and Unison representatives with the intention of holding meetings bi-monthly. The main objectives of the Committee would be to improve communication between Unison and its members, and provide a more formal and accessible platform for consultation on various topics.

In response to questions raised by the Panel, the Assistant Director gave examples of items that could potentially be bought to the Committee for discussion, the outcomes of which would be fed into the West Suffolk Joint Staff Consultative Panel.

There being no decision required, the Panel NOTED the update.

Report No: JSP/JT/18/003

The Service Manager (Human Resources and Organisational Development) presented Report No: JSP/JT/18/003 which set out the annual Workforce Development Data for Forest Heath and St Edmundsbury Councils for 2017-2018. In previous meetings of the Panel workforce data had been reported quarterly, however it felt appropriate to present the full annual report at the meeting.

Overall, there were no significant changes to the data since the previous reporting period. The Service Manager summarised each section of the report and responded to various queries raised by Members in relation to the data.

It was highlighted to the Panel that the total headcount had increased due to the growth of certain service areas. The average age remained similar, although the Panel were informed that the Council had been recruiting an increased number of apprentices and younger people on career pathways.

Pleasingly, the figures for staff turnover remained lower than the average for Local Authorities in the area and staff sickness absence had continued to decrease since the last reporting period. The Service Manager explained that the Council had been offering various health initiatives and training to all staff which was believed to had led staff being able to manage mental health and sickness more effectively.

The number of apprentices recruited in the organisation had increased, with the Council still recruiting to various posts. It was bought to the Panel’s attention that particular success had been achieved with recruiting apprentices to the Planning team and Legal team who had gone on to secure permanent contracts of employment with the Council.  

There being no decision required, the Panel NOTED the report.

The Service Manager (Human Resources and Organisational Development) to give a verbal report.

The Service Manager (Human Resources and Organisational Development) updated the Panel on the progress made in relation to the Human Resources and Payroll processes towards Single Council. The Human Resources team had been working closely with East Suffolk Councils (Suffolk Coastal and Waveney District Councils) to achieve similar timescales in implementing the necessary changes to their processes.

The Service Manager explained that the Payroll team had been working towards combining the Forest Heath and St Edmundsbury Payroll and a full test would be run in October 2018. Any changes to the payroll process would be communicated to all staff and Councillors to ensure they are aware of how to manage the submission of expense claims and annual leave throughout the period of transition to the new Council.

There being no decisions required, the Panel NOTED the update.

The Service Manager (Human Resources and Organisational Development) to give a verbal report.

The Service Manager (Human Resources and Organisation Development) updated the Panel on the Council’s Workforce Strategy and reminded them of the five main work streams that had been focused on.

Recently the Human Resources team had been reviewing the Council’s Performance Development Review (PDR) scheme along with the organisation’s Core Values and Behaviours. Staff workshops had been arranged to collect feedback from staff to help form the new PDR scheme and Core Values. Once a final draft had been formed, the Assistant Director (HR, Legal and Democratic Services) would present it to Leadership Team for approval.  

The Panel were informed that the Human Resources team had also been focusing on the recruitment and retention of Council staff. Research had been undertaken to understand what attracted people to work for West Suffolk along with new staff initiatives that the Council could potentially offer in the future to enhance the employee benefits package.

Staff wellbeing continued to be a high priority focus for the Human Resources team and the Council had been working closely with Occupational Health to offer an annual calendar of Health and Wellbeing initiatives for all staff. Positive feedback had been received from staff who had participated in some of the initiatives.

The Service Manager explained that the Workforce Strategy would be shared across the organisation once it had been completed.

There being no decision required, the Panel NOTED the update.