Council staff
The key to a sustainable workforce
At a time when candidates are in high demand and often can call the shots, a well-defined employer value proposition that contains a robust learning and development programme is the key to boosting retention – as Mark Bearn explains.
Telling social care’s story
As adult social care directors gather in Bedfordshire this week for the ADASS Spring Seminar the association’s new president Melanie Williams sets out her plans for the year ahead.
Gaining skills: Overcoming the barriers in Great Yarmouth
Great Yarmouth's skills and employability strategy will provide a positive, collaborative framework for the council and its partners and It will leave residents well placed for careers that improve their lives and those of their families, says Sheila Oxtoby.
Call for action on the adult care workforce
Ensuring care staff gain parity of esteem with the NHS and are valued by the public top the wish list for Association of Directors of Adult Social Services’ workforce lead Carolyn Nice. Ann McGauran reports.
TPA analysis of senior local government pay is relentlessly unsophisticated
Graeme McDonald says: 'Perhaps the diminishing number of national news outlets covering the TPA’s so called "Town Hall Rich List" means the message is finally getting across – their analysis is so simplistic it verges on the dangerous.'
Scots government 'unlikely' to create equal pay body
Scottish Government ministers are unlikely to establish a national equal pay unit, despite calls from the trade union that led to strikes over the snowballing issue.
Transforming social housing: The task ahead for council teams
Now that the new social housing regulatory regime is in place, housing teams are embracing the challenge as an opportunity for positive change despite the immense pressure councils face, says Caroline Green.
The value of managing workplace stress
As April is Stress Awareness Month, Dawn Faulkner outlines how Faerfield have been thinking about what employers can do to help mitigate the impact of stress on individuals and organisations
Huge challenges – but opportunity knocks
Linda Todd feels it is now a positive time to be recruiting for commercial professionals – but urges organisations not to lose focus when it comes to your retention strategy.
An uplifting social alliance
Young people with learning disabilities want to work, but more supported internships are needed. To coincide with National Supported Internship Day, The MJ and DFN Project SEARCH held a round table debate to discuss how local authorities can help. Mark Whitehead reports.
‘Access all areas’
Jonathan Swain and Rebecca Rampat from executive recruitment specialists McLean Public highlight what local government can do to ensure it attracts commercial sector talent in a changing recruitment market.
Future Forum: Councils hit by absence of employee value propositions
The ability of councils to attract, keep and develop future talent is being hit by the absence of a defined employee value proposition (EVP), The MJ’s Future Forum has heard.
Levelling the playing field
Natasha Hilton-Keane takes a look at the increasing tactic of sending out advance questions as one way to get the best out of candidates within an interview.
Mission impassable
After the DfE’s about-turn over its own consultation for councils to end the use of agency social work project teams, Rachael Wardell argues they diminish an authority’s ability to implement a consistent practice model. Ann McGauran reports.
Six observations from my time as PPMA president
Against a challenging backdrop for public services, PPMA president Gordon McFarlane sets out six key reflections from his two years at the helm.
Don’t leave finance professionals short-changed
Andrew Tromans and Mizan Rouf outline the past and present recruitment challenges in public finance.
Adult services will reap the benefits of data
A pioneering initiative funded through the apprenticeship levy is aimed at fostering a community of adult social care data analysts, poised to shape best practices, says Sam Villis.
Revolutionising temporary workforce solutions
The approach taken to temporary workforce management within councils often falls short in several critical areas. Here, chief executive of West Midlands Employers Rebecca Davis discusses why collaboration among local authorities and agencies is key in tackling this issue.
Deprivation of Liberty backlog 'may never be eradicated'
A report has called for councils to get more resources to tackle the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS) backlog.
Woking and Thurrock failures 'embarrassing'
The local government watchdog’s chief executive has said the collapse of councils such as Woking and Thurrock should not have been allowed to happen.
