Agenda and minutes

Venue: Committee Room - 2nd Floor West Wing, Guildhall. View directions

Contact: Sacha Than
tel. no.: 020 7332 3419  Email: sacha.than@cityoflondon.gov.uk

Items
No. Item

1.

Apologies

Minutes:

The Chairman explained that this would be Nigel Challis’ final Establishment Committee meeting and thanked him on behalf of the Committee for all of his support.

 

Apologies for absence were received from Deputy Richard Regan and Angela Starling.

 ...  view the full minutes text for item 1.

2.

Members' Declarations under the Code of Conduct in respect of items on the agenda

Minutes:

There were no declarations of interest.

 ...  view the full minutes text for item 2.

3.

Minutes pdf icon PDF 209 KB

To agree the public minutes and summary of the meeting held on 17 January 2017.

 ...  view the full agenda text for item 3.

Minutes:

RESOLVED – That the public minutes and summary of the meeting held on 17 January 2017 be approved as an accurate record.

 

Matters Arising

 

Former Officers As Members

 

In response to a Member’s query on the accuracy of item nine, the Committee confirmed that the minutes were a correct record and summary of the meeting, but noted that the information discussed may have been incorrect.

 

 ...  view the full minutes text for item 3.

4.

Outstanding Actions Report pdf icon PDF 68 KB

Report of the Town Clerk.

 ...  view the full agenda text for item 4.

Minutes:

The Committee considered a report of the Town Clerk which provided details of outstanding actions from previous meetings.


RESOLVED – That the Committee note the report.

 ...  view the full minutes text for item 4.

5.

Appointment of Chairmen of Sub-Committees pdf icon PDF 64 KB

Resolution of the Policy and Resources Committee.

 ...  view the full agenda text for item 5.

Minutes:

The Committee considered a resolution of the Policy and Resources Committee concerning the appointment of Chairmen of Sub-Committees.

 

RESOLVED – That the Committee note the resolution.

 ...  view the full minutes text for item 5.

6.

Draft High Level Business Plan for Town Clerk's Corporate and Member Services pdf icon PDF 92 KB

Report of the Town Clerk.

 ...  view the full agenda text for item 6.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Committee received a report of the Town Clerk which provided the draft high level business plan for Town Clerk’s Corporate and Members Services.

 

In response to a Member’s query on editorial control of the intranet and internet, the Town Clerk confirmed that individual departments had responsibility for their relevant web pages. However, the Communications Department should have overall control of web content.

 

RESOLVED – That the Committee note the draft high level business plan.

 ...  view the full minutes text for item 6.

7.

Risk - Town Clerk's Department pdf icon PDF 153 KB

Report of the Town Clerk.

 ...  view the full agenda text for item 7.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Committee received a report of the Town Clerk which sought to provide assurance that there were satisfactory risk management procedures in place within the Town Clerk’s Department.

 

Members asked that risks affecting the Establishment Committee be included within the report, such as the recent departure of Chief Officers.

 

In response to a Member’s query on the amber rating of the Health and Safety risk, the Director of Human Resources explained that it was not possible to change the rating of the risk to green as there were a number of recommendations that would need to be put in place first.

 

RESOLVED – That the Committee note the report and the actions taken in the Town Clerk’s Department to monitor and manage risks effectively.

 ...  view the full minutes text for item 7.

8.

Corporate Human Resources High Level Business Plan pdf icon PDF 105 KB

Report of the Director of Human Resources.

 ...  view the full agenda text for item 8.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Committee received a report of the Director of Human Resources which provided an overview of the draft high level Human Resources Business Plan.

 

In response to a Member’s request to soften some of the wording within the report, the Director of Human Resources explained that those comments were not targeted at employees, but instead referred to departmental demands.

 

RESOLVED – That the Committee note the report.

 ...  view the full minutes text for item 8.

9.

Comptroller and City Solicitor's Departmental Business Plan 2016-2019 Progress report as at 31 December 2016 pdf icon PDF 153 KB

Report of the Comptroller and City Solicitor.

 ...  view the full agenda text for item 9.

Minutes:

The Committee considered a report of the Comptroller and City Solicitor which provided a summary of progress toward achieving the aims and objectives of the Comptroller and City Solicitor’s Departmental Business Plan 2016-2019. The report also asked that the Business Plan be reviewed by the Committee biannually rather than quarterly.

 

Members agreed that the Business Plan move to a biannual reporting basis, but asked that if any areas of concern arose, these be brought before the Committee sooner.

 

RESOLVED – That the Committee:

 

a)    agree that the Comptroller and City Solicitor’s Business Plan be considered by the Establishment Committee biannually rather than quarterly; and

b)    note the report.

 ...  view the full minutes text for item 9.

10.

Comptroller and City Solicitor's Departmental Risk Management report pdf icon PDF 579 KB

Report of the Comptroller and City Solicitor.

 ...  view the full agenda text for item 10.

Minutes:

The Committee received a report of the Comptroller and City Solicitor which provided an update on the Comptroller and City Solicitor’s departmental risks as at 31 December 2016.

 

RESOLVED – That the Committee note the report.

 ...  view the full minutes text for item 10.

11.

Involvement of external parties in City of London Recruitment pdf icon PDF 31 KB

Report of the Director of Human Resources.

 ...  view the full agenda text for item 11.

Minutes:

The Committee considered a report of the Director of Human Resources which sought to clarify the position of the inclusion of external parties and stakeholders in the recruitment of City of London staff.

 

The Committee noted that it had previously been agreed that Members had involvement in recruitment for posts at Grades I and J.

 

RESOLVED – That the Committee approve:

 

a)    that only City of London Elected Members, Co-opted Members, and Officers may take part as voting members of appointment panels for posts within the City of London Corporation;

 

b)    that for appointments which have a substantially outward facing or stakeholder engagement function, the inclusion of stakeholders or external advisers in the assessment and appointment process is to be encouraged;

 

c)    that the nature of the inclusion of any stakeholder or adviser should be agreed between the Chairman of the service committees, the Town Clerk (or other relevant Chief Officers), and the Director of Human Resources, and might include:

·         the inclusion of a non-voting adviser on the appointment panel; and/or

·         the involvement of stakeholder representatives in the assessment centre process; and/or

·         consultation with stakeholder representatives as to the nature of the role and the type of candidates to be sought; and

 

d)    that Officers be instructed to prepare amendments to the Recruitment and Selection policy to implement this decision.

 ...  view the full minutes text for item 11.

12.

Pay Policy Statement pdf icon PDF 88 KB

Report of the Director of Human Resources.

 ...  view the full agenda text for item 12.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Committee considered a report of the Director of Human Resources which asked the Committee to agree the draft Pay Policy Statement 2017/18.

 

Members noted that there had been significant changes to the Pay Policy Statement and acknowledged that whilst these had been summarised in the covering report, it would be helpful for any changes to be highlighted within the Statement.

 

RESOLVED – That the Committee agree the draft Pay Policy Statement 2017/18 to ensure the City Corporation meets its requirements under the Localism Act 2011.

 ...  view the full minutes text for item 12.

13.

Developments in Employment Legislation pdf icon PDF 106 KB

Joint report of the Comptroller and City Solicitor and the Director of Human Resources.

 ...  view the full agenda text for item 13.

Minutes:

The Committee received a joint report of the Director of Human Resources and the Comptroller and City Solicitor which updated Members on recent developments in employment and trade union law.

 

In response to a Member’s query on the gender pay gap, the Director of Human Resources confirmed that the Human Resources Department had carried out work in this area and members of staff at senior levels were paid fairly. The Director of Human Resources explained that there had been difficulties recruiting women to senior grades, but a report would be brought before the Committee at a later date with new proposals in relation to recruitment.

 

RESOLVED – That the Committee note the report.

 ...  view the full minutes text for item 13.

14.

Human Resources Dashboards pdf icon PDF 93 KB

Report of the Director of Human Resources.

 ...  view the full agenda text for item 14.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Committee received a report of the Director of Human Resources which provided Members with information from the Corporate Human Resources Dashboard.

 

Members noted there was some information missing within the dashboards such as reference to e-learning courses and course cancellation costs. The Director of Human Resources agreed that this information would be circulated to Members via email.

 

In response to a Member’s query on reducing the high number of unoccupied positions listed within the dashboards, the Director of Human Resources confirmed that work was being carried out in this area and departments had been asked to delete obsolete posts from the system, particularly when restructures had taken place.

 

In response to a Member’s query on sickness caused by stress, the Director of Human Resources confirmed that the City of London Corporation has a number of measures in place to manage and help alleviate sickness caused by work-related stress.

 

During a discussion of whether other Committees should receive the relevant dashboards, the following comments were raised:

·         Service committees in addition to the Establishment Committee should have the opportunity to view the dashboards for their areas in order to see what resources were available;

·         the issue of confidentiality arose and it was noted that whilst the dashboards were public reports, if the dashboards were to be circulated to other committees, any information that could potentially identify individuals would need to be removed first;

·         that in order for the data within the dashboards to be meaningful, comparison data should be available to provide context and for interpretation purposes; and

·         a Member suggested that the frequency of dashboard reporting to the Establishment Committee be reduced from quarterly to biannual, but instead of the three dashboards currently provided, that dashboards for all 19 City of London Corporation departments be made available.

 

The Committee asked

 ...  view the full minutes text for item 14.

15.

Questions on Matters Relating to the Work of the Committee

Minutes:

There were no questions.

 

 ...  view the full minutes text for item 15.

16.

Any other business that the Chairman considers urgent

Minutes:

There were no urgent items.

 

 ...  view the full minutes text for item 16.

17.

Exclusion of the Public

MOTION - That under Section 100A(4) of the Local Government Act 1972, the public be excluded from the meeting for the following items of business on the grounds that they involve the likely disclosure of exempt information as defined in Part I of Schedule 12A of the Local Government Act.

 ...  view the full agenda text for item 17.

Minutes:

RESOLVED – That under Section 100(A) of the Local Government Act 1972, the public be excluded from the meeting for the following items on the grounds that they involve the likely disclosure of exempt information as defined in Part I of the Schedule 12A of the Local Government Act.

 

Item

Paragraph

18,23

1,2,3

19

3

20

2

24

1

 

 ...  view the full minutes text for item 17.

18.

Non-Public Minutes

To agree the non-public minutes of the meeting held on held on 17 January 2017.

 ...  view the full agenda text for item 18.

Minutes:

The non-public minutes of the meeting held on 17 January 2017 were approved.

 ...  view the full minutes text for item 18.

19.

Outstanding Actions Report

Report of the Town Clerk.

 ...  view the full agenda text for item 19.

Minutes:

The Committee noted a report of the Town Clerk which provided details of non-public outstanding actions from previous meetings.

 ...  view the full minutes text for item 19.

20.

Resolution of the Markets Committee

Resolution of the Markets Committee.

 ...  view the full agenda text for item 20.

Minutes:

The Committee noted a resolution of the Markets Committee.

 ...  view the full minutes text for item 20.

21.

Non-Public Questions on matters relating to the work of the Committee

Minutes:

Two questions were raised in respect of recruitment.

 ...  view the full minutes text for item 21.

22.

Any other business that the Chairman considers urgent and which the Committee agrees should be considered whilst the Public are excluded

Minutes:

There were no items of urgent business.

 ...  view the full minutes text for item 22.

23.

Confidential Minutes

To agree the Confidential minutes of the last meeting held on 17 January 2017.

 ...  view the full agenda text for item 23.

Minutes:

The confidential minutes of the meeting held on 17 January 2017 were approved.

 ...  view the full minutes text for item 23.

24.

Reorganisation of a department

Report of the Town Clerk.

 ...  view the full agenda text for item 24.

Minutes:

The Committee agreed a report of the Town Clerk in relation to the reorganisation of a department.

 ...  view the full minutes text for item 24.

25.

Town Clerk's Update

Town Clerk to be heard.

 ...  view the full agenda text for item 25.

Minutes:

There were no matters for the Committee to be updated on.

 ...  view the full minutes text for item 25.