Agenda and draft minutes

There were no apologies for absence.

There were no declarations of interest by Members.

There were no declarations of interest by officers.

Resolved that the Minutes of the meeting held on 17^th January 2024 be approved.

Resolved that the Outstanding Minutes List be received.

None.

The report proposed amendments to the Flexible Working Guidelines in light of legislative changes, and sought to convert it to a Flexible Working Policy and Procedure, consistent with other Council HR policies.

The main changes were highlighted within the report.

Resolved that the contents of the report be noted, and the Joint Employee Council support the introduction of the new Flexible Working Policy and Procedure, attached at Appendix 1 of the Report, for recommendation to Cabinet.

The report gave an update on progress against the actions identified in the People Strategy Action Plan for 2023/24, for the period January to March 2024.

The report gave progress in relation to the actions identified for completion during the first three years of the Strategy. Members were advised that a health fair was held in January, details were appended to the report.

Resolved that the Joint Employee Council note the contents of the update report.

Resolved that in accordance with Part I of Schedule 12A of the Local Government Act 1972, and after considering the public interest test as set out by the officer in the body of the report, Members agreed that the following items of business involved the likely disclosure of exempt information as described in Paragraph 4 and, therefore, in accordance with Section 100A(4) of the Act, the press and public be excluded from the meeting:

Agenda Item No. 6(a) – Review of Agency Workers – Paragraph 4

None.

Members received an update on the use of agency workers and consultants by the Council for the period October to 31 December 2023. The information was appended to the report with a year’s worth of data for comparison.

Resolved that:

1.    The information contained within the report and appendices be noted.

2.    The use of agency working be monitored by requiring managers to complete the quarterly monitoring form.