Agenda item

Brian Lee asked the Executive Member for Adults' Services the following question which in his absence was answered by the Deputy Executive Member for Adults' Services :

 

Question:

The Council’s 21st Century Project is having a major impact on the functions carried out by the Asset Management team within Housing Services. How much longer are we as Tenants expected to tolerate the growing staff shortages and the Councils’ failure to appreciate the problems that both the team and Tenants are having to tolerate?

 

The Council’s embargo on the recruitment of permanent staff and the consequent use of agency or temporary contractors is costly in financial terms but also places pressure on the remaining staff who are unable to attract applications for the vacancies or retain experienced staff. Eventually the increased pressure will lead to increasing staff welfare issues and gaps appearing in the services to residents across the Borough. Prior to the start of the 21st Century project this team was a busy, proactive group who had improved the Councils property Assets bringing 99% up to the Decent Homes Standard but are now in very real danger of collapse. They have let major contracts and monitored them effectively to ensure that the Council is achieving improved value for money and that Tenant Satisfaction continues to improve. We are now in the position where staff shortages mean that not all of these functions can be fully carried out. The Council needs to change their recruitment policy now before further damage is done and your assets depreciate.

 

Minutes:

The Council’s 21st Century Project is having a major impact on the functions carried out by the Asset Management team within Housing Services.  How much longer are we as Tenants expected to tolerate the growing staff shortages and the Council’s failure to appreciate the problems that both the team and Tenants are having to tolerate?

 

The Council’s embargo on the recruitment of permanent staff and the consequent use of agency or temporary contractors is costly in financial terms but also places pressure on the remaining staff who are unable to attract applications for the vacancies or retain experienced staff.  Eventually the increased pressure will lead to increasing staff welfare issues and gaps appearing in the services to residents across the Borough.  Prior to the start of the 21st Century project this team was a busy, proactive group who had improved the Councils property assets bringing 99% up to the Decent Homes Standard but are now in very real danger of collapse. They have let major contracts and monitored them effectively to ensure that the Council is achieving improved value for money and that tenant satisfaction continues to improve.  We are now in the position where staff shortages mean that not all of these functions can be fully carried out.  The Council needs to change their recruitment policy now before further damage is done and your assets depreciate.

 

Answer

Without being accused of repeating myself, the answer I will give will be the same as the one I gave to Steve’s question because your question is very similar actually.

 

Again I can confirm that there is not an embargo on recruitment of permanent staff.  Managers have been asked to undertake a careful management when filling vacancies to ensure that they minimise the risk of future redundancies, but where a post is vital, and I have already said this, to continued delivery of the service it should be filled and that is important.

 

There are certain posts as I have said, like surveyors that are difficult to fill, such as surveyors, where we are at the mercy of the market on that.

 

The Operational Housing Team are almost fully staffed as I have said. Yes, the majority we have got are permanent but we have got some temporary staff.  That is not to say that our temporary staff are not excellent.  We have got some very good temporary staff there and they might even migrate in to permanent staff, we do not know.  It is all part of the 21st century.

 

With regards to the Housing Needs, Tenant Involvement and Housing Management Teams, as I said, are virtually fully staffed, and that is a welcome picture there, and as I said earlier on, I can confirm that as of 22nd August there are 30 permanent staff, 10 fixed term contracts, 7 agency and 8 secondees in there.

 

The capacity of the team has improved so maybe when you filed that question in your mind it probably was not, but it has improved over the last month.  We are continually monitoring this issue not just in Housing, but across the whole Council.