Decision details

The Committee considered the report on the draft People Strategy 2025 –29 which set out the vision for the workforce and aligned people management practices with the Council’s strategic objectives and the Improvement and Transformation Delivery Plan.

Members noted that the strategy had been co-produced with staff and focused on six outcomes supported by four core values, covering the full employee lifecycle. Key deliverables for year one included staff engagement events, a staff survey, leadership and manager development programmes, refreshed performance reviews, and career pathways. The strategy aimed to improve engagement, retention, performance, and wellbeing while ensuring legal compliance and best practice.

The Committee welcomed the strategy and confirmation that further work was underway to address particular areas within the organisation that had high levels of absence and that significant work had already taken place to improve resilience and support staff. The Committee also agreed that it was important for the authority to improve its diversity metrics and that this would be promoted through via methods including staff network groups, noting that Staff Networks and Trades Union representatives were invited to quarterly staff events. The Committee also agreed that exit interviews information was of particular interest as was visibility of leadership across the organisation.

Officers agreed to share a functional structure of the Council with Elected Members via a future Members Bulletin.

The Committee queried how the authority would assess and measure progress against the strategy. It was agreed that this would be reviewed further and that the appropriate Committee would be sighted on the delivery of the strategy in the future. Officers committed to providing clarity on the timing of future progress reporting via a written response.

RESOLVED (unanimously):

That the Corporate Policy Committee

1. Approve and adopt the People Strategy 2025-29 (Appendix 1 of the report) and note the additional appendices.