Agenda and minutes

The minutes of the meeting held on 12 December 2024 were taken as read, confirmed and signed.

The Chief Executive reported that no questions had been received under Standing Order 34.

The Chief Executive reported that no questions had been received under Standing Order 7(3) and 7(5).

There were no urgent items for consideration.

The Chairman invited members who wished to do so to declare any interest in respect of items on the agenda for the meeting.

No declarations were made.

The Chief Executive reported that no petitions had been received under Standing Order 35.

The Committee received a presentation from the Director of Corporate Resources relating to workforce demographic, attendance metrics, and diversity and inclusion statistics. A copy of the report, marked ‘Agenda Item 7’, is filed with these minutes.

Arising from discussion, the following points were raised:

(i)             With regards to workforce demographic, a member questioned the difference between the categories ‘Prefers not to state’ and ‘No information’, in relation to data held on ethnicity, gender identity, sexual orientation, and disability status. The Committee were informed that ‘Prefers not to state’ represented instances where an employee had selected this response. ‘No information’ represented instances where there had been no response provided at all. The Committee suggested that staff should be encouraged to provide equality monitoring information in order to ensure that the Council clearly understood its workforce demographic and could introduce interventions to address disproportionality where necessary.

(ii)            A member questioned the gender split within the Council’s workforce demographic. The presentation showed that 73.5% of staff were female and 26.5% were male. The Director advised that this was a result of a larger female workforce within services such as social care and the school food service.

(iii)          Members were pleased with the format of the presentation. However, one member asked whether more information relating to attendance management could be presented on an annual basis in order for the Committee to have oversight of progress in this area. The Director suggested that this data could be provided within an annual focus on workforce performance.

(iv)          A member questioned whether the Committee could be presented with data relating to disciplinary action and performance management, with a focus on how quickly issues were resolved. The Director suggested that this information could be presented within a future Workforce Update.

RESOLVED:

That the update provided on the workforce for 2024-25, be noted.

The Committee considered a report of the Director of Corporate Resources which provided an overview of progress made in relation to recruitment and retention projects as outlined within the Council’s People Strategy. A copy of the report, marked ‘Agenda Item 8’, is filed with these minutes.

In introducing the report, the Director stated that there was an error in the table following paragraph seven. The data in the top line of the table was for 2023 and the data in the bottom line was for 2024.

Arising from discussion, the following points were raised:

(i)             The Council continued to undertake work in order to address the use of agency staff to reduce the costs associated with agency arrangements and would continue to promote the benefits of direct employment with the Authority. The Director acknowledged that for some roles there was often too high an expectation in terms of experience which could deter younger people from applying for such roles.

(ii)            In terms of making the recruitment process inclusive and accessible for neurodiverse applicants, clear questioning around reasonable adjustments was undertaken at the beginning of the application process in order for hiring managers to make adjustments at an early stage. Members noted that some organisations welcomed neurodiversity in the recruitment process in order to create a more inclusive and innovative workforce, and it was suggested that this could be a useful strategy for consideration.  

(iii)          A member raised a question regarding local government reorganisation and the affect that the proposed changes could have on recruitment and retention. The Director acknowledged this concern and stated that the Council would continue to focus on promoting itself as a good employer.

RESOLVED:

That the action taken and future next steps outlined in the report to address the challenge of recruitment and retention, be noted.

The Committee considered a report on pay gap reporting which presented the initial results regarding annual gender pay gap reporting to 31 March 2024, as well as pay gap data for ethnicity, disability and sexual orientation. A copy of the report, marked ‘Agenda Item 9’, is filed with these minutes.

The Director emphasised that it was important to present pay gap data present in order to illustrate changes in the workforce demographic and to identify the work undertaken across the Council to help people with protected characteristics to overcome barriers in the workplace. Members noted that the Learning and Development Service offered a range of development training to support all members of staff, with specific training available to women and underrepresented communities.

RESOLVED:

(a)  That the content of the report on pay gap data relating to gender, ethnicity, disability and sexual orientation, be noted.

(b)  That publication of Gender Pay Gap data by 30 March 2025, be approved.

The Committee considered a report of the Chief Executive which provided an update of the current Action Plans which contain provision for compulsory redundancy and details of progress on their implementation. A copy of the report marked ‘Agenda Item 10’ is filed with these minutes.

RESOLVED:

That the update of the current Action Plans which contain provision for compulsory redundancy and details of progress on their implementation, be noted.

The next meeting of the Committee is scheduled to be held on 22 May 2025.

That the next meeting of the Committee would be held on 22 May 2025 at 10:00am.