Consideration was given to the
Workforce Development Strategy six-months after
adoption.
The Group Manager –
Organisational Development delivered a presentation to the Panel
which outlined the following points:
- The six key themes of
the strategy included:
- attraction and
retention of talented employees;
- a flexible approach
to delivery;
- a healthy and active
workforce;
- the maximisation of
staff engagement and shaping of organisational culture;
- to be efficient and
effective; and
- the celebration of
successes and rewarding of excellence.
Each of the six themes
comprised the following:
- Why was it a
priority?
- What action would be
taken?
- What would success
look like?
- Governance, risk and
supporting work programmes included:
- Monthly Workforce
Development Board;
- Annual Action
Plan;
- Strategic Risk
Register;
- Scrutiny;
- ICT Strategy Road
Map; and
- Performance
Framework.
The following key pieces had
been delivered during the first six months:
Attraction:
- Resourcing and
Assessment managers workshops had taken place which had ensured
that managers were equipped to deal with the adapting nature and
pace of the current recruitment market and ensured attraction and
appointment of the right candidates;
- local schools,
colleges and universities had recommenced careers fairs and
officers had attended three local events;
- a draft Onboarding
Platform had been introduced as part of the workforce
induction. The platform enabled the
input of feedback from new recruits regarding their initial work
period, induction and training. The
final draft had been submitted to the Corporate Management Team for
feedback, and would be launched to new appointments in due
course;
- the Council had a
commitment to attain level 3 Leader Disability Confident Status and
a mapping exercise had been completed across the Partnership which
assessed current working practices;
- a series of visual
Career Maps had been showcased at recent career events which showed
the variety of careers in Local Government. Videos which highlighted roles and careers were
being used in recruitment campaigns.
Retention:
- shared workforce
values and behaviours had been launched to the workforce which had
included workshops with the Corporate Management Team and service
managers;
- a single set of
aligned progressive employee policies had been developed. The first
three phases had been supported by SHDC and the remaining phases
were pending for consideration by the Policy Development Panel on
13 December 2022 and Council in January 2023;
- a single Employee
Benefits Platform had been launched;
- an Internal
communications review had commenced;
- a quarterly staff
poll tracked workforce responses in the following 4 areas:
- whether staff felt
valued;
- whether staff felt
informed;
- positive mental
health recognition and support; and
- developmental
opportunities.
Development:
- a single annual
training plan had been implemented which included mandatory,
essential, and desirable training for services, alongside a number
of corporate focussed training which included Leadership Training,
Mental Health Support and Resilience training. Training spend was monitored monthly and shared
with the Workforce Development Board;
- a Future Leaders
Programme across the Partnership had been launched. Each delegate
was assigned a mentor from the Corporate Management Team and the
programme had consisted of leadership training elements. The Future
Leaders Programme was positively recognised in the recent Peer
Review;
- managers undertook a
Year Reflection one-to-one session with staff which focussed on
wellbeing and workplace support awareness for staff;
- investigating officer
training sessions had taken place; and
- some of the
Apprenticeship Levy Fund had been committed to supporting Higher
Level Apprenticeships.
Health and Wellbeing:
- targeted sickness
absence case management support had been introduced;
- CareFirst Support
Service had been launched;
- further training of
Mental Health First Aiders across the workforce had taken
place;
- the following manager
coaching sessions had been delivered:
- pillars of
wellbeing;
- practical advice
around fit notes;
- menopause support;
and
- guidance for managers
and employees had been developed.
Plans for the next 12 months
included:
Attraction
?
a resourcing plan would be developed which included
the Traineeships, Apprenticeships and Graduate
Programme;
?
the Onboarding Platform would be
launched;
?
disability confident to achieve leader level status:
extending beyond internal practices to influence practices across
partnerships, supply chains and within communities; and
?
all initiatives supported by the Communications Plan
to raise the profile of the Council as an employer of
choice.
Retention:
?
a programme to embed shared values and
behaviours;
?
the delivery of outcomes from the internal
Communications review;
?
the review of a total reward system;
?
further development of employee recognition schemes
to share and recognise examples of innovation; outstanding service;
leadership; and colleagues who exceed expectations for
communities.
Development:
?
implementation of a single Annual Review process
across our workforce;
?
further development of the current 1-year Future
Leaders Programme which would be extended to a 2-year
programme;
?
delivery of an Organisational Wide Skills Gap
Analysis – which was identified as a key recommendation from
the 2022 Peer Review; and
?
a Matrix Management organisational structure style
would be investigated which supported a work environment where
talents and skills could be shared across departments and which
reduced silo working.
Health and Wellbeing:
?
the development and delivery of an overarching
Health and Wellbeing plan which incorporated a whole
self-approach;
?
support work which related to ‘aftermath of an
incident’ and ‘access to work mental health
support’; and
?
attaining recognition through a Workplace Wellbeing
Charter.
Members considered the
presentation and made the following comments:
- Members noted that
the plan was extensive and asked whether the strategy had been
tested; and how many staff members had been involved.
- The Group Manager
– Organisational Development stated that:
- the Workforce
Development Strategy had been developed from the existing People
Plan;
- the strategy was
progressive and responded to the current working environment which
needed to be ambitious; and
- the following staff
members had worked on the strategy: the Group Manager –
Organisational Development plus two staff from the wider Corporate
Development team; in addition, PSPS provided HR support. The
Workforce Development Strategy was included in the PSPS Service
Level Agreement and in workplans.
- Members requested
that a table of information be provided which detailed the staff
resources involved in the work on the strategy and the amount of
time devoted to this area of work.
- Members asked how the
success of delivery of the plan would be monitored.
- The Group Manager
– Organisational Development stated:
- that the team met
regularly with recognised unions who presented feedback on behalf
of their members;
- that feedback was
received from staff forum members every six weeks;
- that success was
monitored through the Forward Trend Performance Indicator and since
the implementation of the Workforce Development Strategy, baseline
data for Q2 had been obtained from employee survey responses;
and
- that as part of the
joint consultative committee, HR provided the team with a quarterly
workforce update which included details relating to staff turnover
and sickness.
- Members noted that
the strategy was detailed and therefore expressed surprised that
employees had felt disconnected and ill-informed. This underlined
the need for improved internal communication.
- Members asked for a
definition of ‘Mental Health First Aider’ and asked how
training was delivered and by whom.
- The Group Manager
– Organisational Development stated that the role of a Mental
Health First Aider was to respond to mental health issues in the
same way that First Aiders responded to physical health issues. A
Mental Health First Aider was trained to identify the signs and
symptoms of mental health distress and signpost employees to
support mechanisms. The two-day training for Mental Health First
Aiders was delivered by Mental Health First Aid
England.
AGREED:
That the six-month update on
the Workforce Development Strategy be noted.