Council and Democracy

Agenda and minutes

Venue: Committee Room 1, Town Hall, Rose Hill, Chesterfield

Contact: Charlotte Kearsey  01246 345236

Items
No. Item

19.

Declarations of Members' and Officers' Interests relating to Items on the Agenda

Minutes:

No declarations of interest were received.

20.

Apologies for Absence

Minutes:

No apologies for absence were received.

21.

Minutes pdf icon PDF 188 KB

Minutes:

RESOLVED –

 

That the Minutes of the Meeting of the Committee held on 31 August, 2017 be approved as a correct record and signed by the Chair.

22.

Contracts for existing Gymnastics and Trampoline Instructors pdf icon PDF 160 KB

Minutes:

The Operations Manager submitted a report seeking approval to apply permanent contracts to existing staff who were on variable contracts relating to the tuition of the gymnastics and trampoline programmes. The report also requested that in the case of an extension to the programmes, as supported by a robust business case, additional hours could be contracted and this would be decided by service officers.

 

The committee was informed that there were currently around 650 children attending weekly trampolining and gymnastics programmes at Queen’s Park Sports Centre. These programmes were delivered by variable staff who were working the same hours.

 

The Operations Manager explained that the aim was to expand these programmes so they could be delivered to additional numbers of children and increase the income for the centre. As the coaches were currently working on a variable basis a risk in developing the existing programmes had been identified as the coaches were not currently required to provide notice if they intended to leave the programmes.

 

The current coaching hours were outlined as 45.5 total hours for gymnastics and 30.5 total hours for trampolining. The officer’s report recommended that the proposed contracted hours be the same as the current hours which were being delivered. Contracting coaches to the same hours would incur extra costs due to annual leave absence and potential sickness; these extra costs were detailed in the officer’s report.

 

To mitigate these costs work would be carried out to investigate developing the programmes further. A business plan had been detailed which would result in an additional 138 children or adults in the trampolining programme and 216 children or adults in the gymnastics programme. It was reported that the waiting list currently had 408 children waiting for gymnastics and 198 for trampolining. This waiting list had been reflected upon within the business plan for expanding the programme.

 

The expansion of both programmes would mean the removal of an existing gymnastics club, Sharley Park Gymnastics Club. The club had used Queen’s Park Sports Centre for a number of years but had a small attendance of around 15 each week. The programme at the Sharley Park Gymnastics Club had been geared towards a specific discipline and aimed at girls. The proposed new programmes would attract a greater number of children to a wider range of disciplines that were suitable for both boys and girls.

 

*RESOLVED –

 

1.   The contracting of staff who were currently employed on a variable basis against the current need within the gymnastics and trampolining programmes be approved.

 

2.   That any additional coaching hours required to deliver the expansion would also be contracted to support a robust business case which had been developed to expand the trampoline and gymnastics courses at Queen’s Park Sports Centre.

 

3.   That delegated authority be granted to service officers to determine the expansion to contract hours as per recommendation 5.2 of the officer’s report in line with financial viability.

 

4.      That changes to the contracts be implemented subject to approval by the Cabinet Member  ...  view the full minutes text for item 22.

23.

Secondary Employment and Probation Period Policies pdf icon PDF 88 KB

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The HR Manager presented a report seeking approval for the Secondary Employment and Probation Period Policies.

 

The secondary employment policy had been produced to ensure that the service needs were achieved when employees take on secondary employment. The policy also recognised the importance that work within a secondary employment position did not adversely affect an employee’s performance and attendance or breach the Working Time Regulations.

 

The policy sought to ensure that employees did not exceed reasonable working hours to provide a suitable balance between work and personal life.

 

The policy would ensure that all secondary employment was dealt with consistently and fairly.

 

The current probationary period policy had been overdue for a review.

 

The probationary period policy aimed to outline the council’s expectations of an employee in a new role and the process for managing a probation period.

 

The policy would allow time for the council to assess the work and behaviour of an employee and to determine whether the employee had a long term future with the organisation in that role.

 

The probation process would work alongside the induction process to create a positive and supportive working environment.

 

The officer’s report outlined the main changes to the policy:-

 

·        The policy had been clarified so it applied to all newly recruited staff, whether on a temporary, permanent or casual contract.

 

·         Clarified extension periods.

 

·        That a probation period would apply to current employees promoted to a different role as this would require a new range of skills and attributes.

 

·        Clarified terms and conditions for new employees.

 

·        Progress review paperwork.

 

These amendments aimed to ensure that the council fulfilled its commitment to fair, equal and consistent treatment of staff.

 

The proposed policies had been submitted to the Employer – Trade Union Committee before submission to the Employment and General Committee.

 

*RESOLVED –

 

That the Secondary Employment and Probation Period Policies be approved.

24.

Car Parking Agreement and Flexi-scheme Policy pdf icon PDF 94 KB

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The HR Manager presented a report seeking approval for the Car Parking Agreement and Flexi-scheme Policy.

 

The report noted that the current car parking agreement had been implemented in 2006 after it had been agreed by UNISON and the council.

 

The proposed agreement would replace previous arrangements which would enable managers to deal consistently and fairly with issuing car park passes to staff who regularly use their car for work purposes. Additionally employees would be offered a subsidised car park permit. 

 

Minimal changes had been made to the flexi-scheme policy, these were:-

 

·        The flexi-time bandwidth changed from 7am-7pm to 7:30pm-6:30pm;

 

·        Implemented changes to reflect the spread sheet introduced in 2017 for recording flexi-time;

 

·        Responsibility placed on managers to supervise the scheme appropriately;

 

·        That a formal review be carried out in 12 months.

 

The proposed policies had been submitted to the Employer – Trade Union Committee before submission to the Employment and General Committee.

 

*RESOLVED –

 

That the Car Parking Agreement and Flexi-scheme Policy be approved.

25.

Minutes of the Council Health and Safety Committee and Corporate Accidents and Work Related Ill-Health Incidents Report

Click here to access the Minutes.

 

Click here to access the Corporate Accidents and Work Related Ill-Health Incidents Report.

Minutes:

The Minutes of the meeting of the Council Health and Safety Committee held on 26 July, 2017 and the Corporate Accidents and Work-Related Ill-Health Incidents Report from that meeting were submitted.

 

RESOLVED –

 

That the Minutes and the Corporate Accidents and Work-Related Ill-Health Incidents Report be received and noted.