Agenda and draft minutes

Any substitute members should declare their substitution.

Councillor Andy McGregor substituted for Councillor Mandy Buxton.

Councillor Cathy Glynn-Davies substituted for Cllr Margaret Howard.

To approve the minutes of the Joint Staff Committee meeting held on 10th October 2022, copies of which have been previously circulated.

Resolved that the minutes of the Joint Staff Committee meeting held on the 10th October 2022, be approved as an accurate record and signed by the Chairman.

Members and officers must declare any disclosable pecuniary interests in relation to any business on the agenda.  Declarations should also be made at any stage such an interest becomes apparent during the meeting.  

If in doubt, contact the Legal or Democratic Services representative for this meeting.

There were no declarations of interest by those present.

To provide the best opportunity for the Committee to provide the public with the fullest answer, questions from the public should be submitted by midday on Friday 24th March 2023.

Questions should be submitted to Democratic Services - democratic.services@adur-worthing.gov.uk

No questions were received.

Pre-submitted Members questions are pursuant to rule 12 of the Council & Committee Procedure Rules.

Questions should be submitted by midday on Friday 24th March 2023 to  Democratic Services, democratic.services@adur-worthing.gov.uk 

(Note: Member Question Time will operate for a maximum of 30 minutes.)

No questions had been submitted in advance.

To consider any items the Chairman of the meeting considers to be urgent.

There were no items raised under urgency provisions.

To consider the report by the Director for Digital, Sustainability and Resources, attached as Item 7.

Before the Committee was a report by the Director for Digital, Sustainability & Resources, copies of which had been circulated to all Members and a copy of which is attached to the signed copy of these minutes as Item 7.

The report requested that the Joint Staff Committee note the changes to the Adur & Worthing Councils Alcohol and Drug Policy.

The aim of the policy was to protect the health, wellbeing and safety of the Councils’ employees and the public and to help employees who may have problems with drug and alcohol abuse.

Members sought clarification in relation to which union was consulted about the changes to the policy, whether drug misuse was an employment or police matter, whether the policy applied to all employees and whether any employees had failed an alcohol / drug test.

The Committee welcomed the proposals and supported the recommendations as set out in the report.

Decision

That the Joint Staff Committee

1.    noted the changes to the Alcohol & Drug Policy which were to be implemented with immediate effect;

2.    noted that the changes had been agreed by the Head of Human Resources, in consultation with the Chief Financial Officer and the Head of Legal Services under the delegated authority given to them, as these were deemed as minor and non-consequential amendments to the Policy.

To consider the report by the Director for Digital, Sustainability and Resources, attached as Item 8.

Before the Committee was a report by the Director for Digital, Sustainability & Resources, copies of which had been circulated to all Members and a copy of which is attached to the signed copy of these minutes as Item 8.

The report sought approval of the proposed changes to the Adur & Worthing Councils’ Managing People Change Policy.

The overarching aim of this policy was to manage the impact of organisational change, particularly in relation to where the need for redundancy arose, and to provide members of staff with a clear understanding of the principles that would underpin any change in the organisation.

The Committee welcomed the report and a minor amendment was proposed - that the Head of Human Resources be delegated authority to amend paragraph 8.1 to better reflect the ring fencing policy as set out in paragraph 5.1 of the report.

Decision

That the Joint Staff Committee

1.    approve the amendments to the Managing People Change Policy with immediate effect;

2.    noted that the amendments to the policy were deemed as more than minor and non-consequential by the Head of Human Resources, (in consultation with the Chief Financial Officer and the Head of Legal Services), and therefore were brought to the Joint Staff Committee for approval;

3.    delegated authority to the Head of Human Resources to amend paragraph 8.1 to better reflect the ring fencing policy as set out in paragraph 5.1 of the report.

To consider the report by the Director for Digital, Sustainability and Resources, attached as Item 9.

Before the Committee was a report by the Director for Digital, Sustainability & Resources, copies of which had been circulated to all Members and a copy of which is attached to the signed copy of these minutes as Item 9.

The report requested that the Joint Staff Committee note the changes to the Adur & Worthing Councils Blended Working Policy.

The aim of the policy was to enable staff to voluntarily work a proportion of their working hours from home, where their role was deemed by their manager as suitable.

Members sought clarification in relation to the support available for staff with telephone and internet bills. Officers advised that as staff had an organisational base i.e. the Town Hall and Portland House, it was a choice to work from home and use those facilities. Therefore, staff were not entitled to support with telephone or internet bills.

Members sought clarification about how staff working from home could be monitored. Officers advised that managers were encouraged to meet regularly with their teams and discuss home working arrangements. Staff were also required to undertake a workspace appraisal.  

The Committee welcomed the report and expressed their support for the policy as amended.

Decision

That the Joint Staff Committee

1.    noted the changes to the Blended Working Policy which were to be implemented with immediate effect;

2.    noted that the changes had been agreed by the Head of Human Resources, in consultation with the Chief Financial Officer and the Head of Legal Services under their delegated authority, as these were deemed as minor and non-consequential amendments to the Policy.