Further to Minute 17 of the previous meeting, the Committee considered a report that provided an update on the actions that had been taken to address the issues that had been identified in the 2024 Staff Survey and shared the headline results from the Brighter Futures for Children (BFfC) Staff Survey.  The Corporate Staff Survey Action Plan together with an update on progress to date was attached to the report at Appendix 1.

The report reminded the Committee that overall the results from the Staff Survey had remained positive with scores being broadly similar to, or showing a modest improvement on the previous survey.  Very high positive scores (85% plus) had related to the following:

·       Enjoying my job;

·       Making a valuable contribution;

·       Being clear about what was expected of me and how this supported the Council;

·       Manager support and flexible working;

·       My Team working together;

·       Managers being approachable and supportive and displaying Team Reading values;

·       Understanding Team Reading values;

·       The Council valuing a diverse workforce and opportunities to contribute ideas.

There were, however, a number of areas of concern including a modest increase in the number of staff saying that they had witnessed or experienced bullying and harassment. The Corporate Management Team and Directorate Management Team had been considering the scores for the Council as a whole and for individual Assistant Director areas and had agreed where focused activity should be taken. Three areas had been identified for action at a corporate level: Bullying and Harassment, Leadership and Aligning What We Do. Analysis by Assistant Director level had suggested that there were significant differences between teams in respect of some questions with some teams scoring significantly better than others when responses to individual questions were compared and Directorate Management Team plans had reflected these different areas for action.

In BFfC the Staff Survey had run between 18 November and 18 December 2024 and had been a replica of the Council Survey to allow comparisons to be made. 204 (37%) employees had taken part and overall, like the Council, the responses had been positive and had compared well with the Council’s overall scores.  Additionally. BFfC had reviewed how the company’s results compared with the Council’s Adult Social Care Teams, the nearest comparable staff group, and again, overall, BFfC had performed well against the Council comparator team for the vast majority of indicators. BFfC had scored significantly better than equivalent Council teams in relation to pay, a similar percentage to Adult Social Care colleagues believed they felt respected, appreciated and valued at work and a lower percentage overall had witnessed or experienced bullying or harassment at work. Similar to the Council, there were differences between scores for different teams, for example, in relation to issues like access to support, confidence in line manager leadership skills and rewards and benefits. Scores for the questions “I have the same opportunities to progress” had also shown significant variation between teams. Actions to address issues that had been identified would be drafted and agreed by BFfC’s Senior Leadership Team by mid-April 2025.

The Committee discussed the timing of the 2025 Staff Surveys and felt that holding them at the usual times of year would mean that many of the agreed actions would not have had time to fully take effect. The Committee suggested that delaying the surveys until Spring 2026 would allow time for this, and produce more meaningful responses. Surveys could then be held annually again from 2027.

Resolved:

(1)        That the Staff Survey Action Plans for the Council and the headline outcome for the BFfC staff survey be noted.

(2)        That consideration be given to moving the 2025 Council and Brighter Futures for Children surveys to Spring 2026.