Agenda item

Tracey Graham moved a voted of thanks to Edward Lord, the immediate past Chairman.

RESOLVED UNANIMOUSLY: That the Members of the Establishment Committee express their sincere thanks to:

DEPUTY EDWARD LORD OBE JP

for the exemplary manner, diligence and dedication in which they have presided over their deliberations and the detailed attention and interest they have shown in all aspects of the work of the Establishment Committee for the past three years.

The sheer range of policies and initiatives that Edward has successfully overseen during this time has been nothing short of remarkable; from family friendly policies, including uplifts to maternity, adoption & shared parental pay, the introduction of the Premature Baby Paid Leave Scheme, which earned the City Corporation the award of the “Employer with Heart Charter”, and additional provision for paid leave under the Parental Bereavement (Leave and Pay) Act 2018, to significant new initiatives with the wellbeing of staff and Members at their core, including the introduction of a Mental Health and Wellbeing Policy, the roll-out of free private flu vaccinations for all staff and Members, and the expansion of the Employee Volunteering Programme.

However, it is Edward’s drive and passion for the equalities agenda that will stand as their greatest impact. Quite simply, the work of the Committee over the last three years has helped to bring about a transformation to the culture of the Corporation, the legacy of which will leave a truly more diverse and inclusive workplace in the years ahead.  

During their period as Chair, we have continued to enhance data collection and analysis to inform our Equality and Inclusion Action Plan, both at the departmental level and corporately. This has been a vital tool in identifying areas of concern and where further analysis and detailed work needs to be done. This has led us to changing the way the City Corporation attracts and recruits talent so as to enrich the diversity of our work force and to reduce potential barriers to entry.

Other vital initiatives include anonymised recruitment for all senior roles, which is now being introduced for roles at all levels of the organisation; ensuring that all job adverts are written in inclusive and gender-neutral language; and, the introduction of Gender, Ethnicity and Disability Pay Gap reporting, and the development of actions to address these.

Finally, it would be remiss not to reflect that during these last 14 months, Edward has successfully led the Committee during a time of extraordinary circumstances, with the pandemic presenting a set of unenviable decisions and challenges, including the revision to the Pay Award, Furlough, and remote working.

It is to Edward’s huge credit that we have successfully navigated these challenges whilst also playing a leading role in undertaking the fundamental transformation of the Corporation’s structure through the Target Operating Model, a key early outcome of which has been the diversification of the Corporation’s senior leadership team.

This Committee and the whole Corporation are indebted to Edward’s contribution.

AND SO in taking leave of Deputy Edward Lord as their Chair, Members of this Establishment Committee wish to thank them for their service and outstanding leadership during this most challenging and transformative period. The Committee gives to Edward its best wishes for their future health and happiness.