Agenda item

This report provides an update on the Council’s commitment to embedding an inclusive culture in terms of recruitment, internal development, progression and retention of key skills aligned to our overall objective of continually improving our employer value proposition.

Mary Lamont (Assistant Director, People & Talent) introduced the report which provided an update on the Council’s commitment to embedding an inclusive culture in terms of recruitment, internal development, progression and retention of key skills.

Asiya Mohamud (Resourcing and Data Analyst) and Olivia Finlay (Learning and Talent Advisor) addressed the meeting to speak about their experiences of the Council’s apprenticeship programme.

The Chair noted that questions on staffing came up at the last meeting and so it was useful to explore the current situation and hear about the challenges around recruitment and retention. She said the Council wanted to ensure it had a healthy culture to get best from staff, in service of residents.

Councillor Helen Rowbottom asked how the Council planned to bring in new staff and leaders for the coming decades. Mary Lamont said H&F was continuously developing innovative options and solutions around attraction and retention in a competitive marketplace and that the Council was working with many partners including London Councils to promote the exciting, diverse range of services the Council offered. She noted that some of the best ambassadors for the Council were apprentices like Asiya and Olivia.

Councillor Rowbottom asked how the Council was approaching recruitment for hard to fill posts and if it was working with educational institutions. Mary Lamont said the Council was collaborating with local education establishments and universities to create targeted campaigns for hard to fill roles.

Councillor Jacolyn Daly asked if the embedding of the Get Ahead programme and other culture change initiatives was equal across all departments. Mary Lamont said that officers were continuously analysing data to understand if and where there may be discrepancies and the Council was progressing actions to promote and ensure a fair and equitable offer across the board.

Councillor Rory Vaughan asked what the equalities, diversity and inclusion data looked like at different pay scales and at senior management level. Mary Lamont advised that the Council had recently published its pay gap reports which include gender, ethnicity and disability. The Council’s race equality leads had also been speaking to staff about their experiences. She said, cumulatively the Council was doing well, but there were still gaps at some levels and the action plan that sats behind the pay gap report would help the Council to reduce those gaps going forward.

Councillor Vaughan asked if working from home had impacted retention rates. Mary Lamont said staff turnover went down to 10.6 percent during Covid, then in the following period it rose to 15.8 percent, however since then it had settled back to 11.3 percent. The Council’s approach to hybrid working appeared to have had a positive impact on retention rates.

Councillor Natalia Perez asked for more information about the accreditations, mentioned on page 18 of the agenda pack, that promoted inclusive recruitment and retention strategies. Mary Lamont said the Council was selective about which charters and accreditations it signed up to and that there were many benefits for participating through shared practice, networking, and learning opportunities. She gave the example of the Race at Work charter, which led to the Council developing its successful race equality groups.

Councillor Perez noted she welcomed the new initiatives around menopause awareness.

Councillor Perez asked if contractors and other third parties the Council worked with were a part of this work and other initiatives like the London Living Wage. Mary Lamont said all contractors were signed up to the London Living Wage. The People and Talent team also worked closely with Procurement and Economic Development colleagues on social value and other commitments, for example Pertemps was a gold armed forces covenant member.

Councillor Victoria Brocklebank-Fowler, in reference to page 26, noted that the number of staff aged between 50-64 was down from November 2020. She expressed concern that the Council was potentially losing a lot of institutional knowledge. Mary Lamont agreed that it was important to retain knowledge and skills. She noted that the Council was encouraging recruitment and retention of older staff and that the Council had recently signed up to the Age Friendly Employer pledge.

Councillor Brocklebank-Fowler asked officers to confirm that, when interviewing, candidates were chosen based entirely on their qualifications and character – and not positive discrimination. Mary Lamont said the Council did not apply positive discrimination when recruiting. Recruitment was based on knowledge, skills, experience and attitude. The Council had robust recruitment processes and mandatory training for hiring managers to ensure recruitment is inclusive.

Councillor Nicole Trehy asked about the Council’s stance on bullying in the workplace. Mary Lamont said the Council did not tolerate bullying in any form and there were various confidential routes available to staff to raise concerns.

Councillor Nikos Souslous asked if the Council captured any socio-economic data about prospective candidates. Matthew Sales said the Council didn’t track that information.

The Chair asked if exit interviews were conducted with staff to determine their

reasons for leaving and any gaps. The Chair also asked about pay gaps and whether women and minority staff were over-represented in frontline roles but not in senior management. Mary Lamont said all staff leaving the Council were offered the opportunity of an exit interview, but that it mandated and take up tended to be low. Options were being considered to encourage greater take-up. Regarding pay gap reporting, she said new datasets were available at pay band level broken down by gender, ethnicity, and disability.  The Chair asked if there was data available on hard-to-fill posts.  Mary Lamont said there was and that she would share the latest information.

ACTION: Mary Lamont

A resident commented that the data showed the Council appeared to be doing well representing communities it served, but some groups seemed to be over-represented.

Councillor Rowan Ree (Cabinet Member for Finance and Reform) addressed the Board and spoke about the importance of the Council recruiting and retaining the best people to ensure better services for residents. He also highlighted the importance of having a diverse and inclusive workforce, to avoid groupthink and be better able to spot risks and opportunities.

The Chair asked how the Council monitored apprenticeship programmes and good employment practices with its contractors. Mary Lamont said they worked closely with Economic Development colleagues and noted they would be coming to a future meeting with more information on the Council’s Industrial Strategy.

The Chair thanked officers and members for their contributions and noted the following actions:

• The Board requested data on hard-to-fill posts.
• The Board requested an update on the workforce figures and statistics next year.
• The Board asked that the strategy for retaining older workers be circulated to members.

RESOLVED

1. That the Board noted the progress made and plans going forward.