Agenda item

To receive the Quarter 1 Agency report.

The Board considered the Agency Worker report Q1 and Q2.

During the discussion of this item, the following points were made:

·       The report covered 1 April to 30 September 2023.

·       HR continued to work with the Finance team on the Council’s agency spend.  It was recognised that there were times when the use of agency workers was appropriate. 

·       Year on year spend on agency workers was down by approximately £142,000.  There was a commitment to reducing this spend further.  Members commented that this could go up and down and was largely impacted by circumstance such as the completion of a specialist project.  Officers highlighted that HR was working with the recruitment managers on recruitment.  The use of Matrix was also helping to reduce agency spend.

• The headcount for agency workers at the end of Q1 was 72.  At the end of Q2 it was 86.  Over the summer, figures tended to increase as adequate cover was required.  Members asked whether data existed for previous years which would enable comparison.  Louise Livingston, Assistant Director OD and HR, indicated that data from a year ago could be used for comparison.  However, there were questions around the integrity of earlier data, which may not provide an accurate comparison.

·       Future reports would highlight any emerging trends and patterns.  It was thought that this would provide Members with a more informed picture of the situation regarding agency staffing.  This would likely be from the new year.

·       Louise Livingston referred to recruitment campaigns around social work, and the award of funds from the Department of Education for Children’s Services apprenticeships. 

·       Benchmarking with the other Berkshire local authorities continued to be carried out.  Wokingham often spent less in comparison.  Members questioned what impact Bracknell receiving the London weighting allowance had.  Louise Livingston commented that it was something to keep a watching brief on.

·       Members asked that Q1 and Q2 be split to give a clearer picture of the direction of travel.

·       Councillor Bray indicated that in Children’s Services some social workers and managers had left, being able to command a higher salary elsewhere in Berkshire.  This was being reviewed.  She went on to comment that several specialist consultants in Children’s Services were helping to make changes which would ensure that the service was even more cost effective going forwards.

·       Officers would bring a report to a future Board meeting on apprenticeships.

·       In response to a Member question regarding how much more agency staff cost as a percentage per post, Louise Livingston indicated that this varied according to the post and skills in question.  She agreed to feed back to the Board.

·       Councillor Jorgensen commented that the fully loaded cost of a permanent member of staff versus an agency member of staff should be considered e.g. pension costs, annual leave, sickness.  Agency workers were not always the more expensive option in all cases.

·       Louise Livingston emphasised that particularly with some of the more challenging to recruit to roles, efforts were made to move the worker to a permanent role, where possible.

RESOLVED:  That the report be noted.