AGENDA ITEM 8

BOROUGH OF POOLE

CABINET

22 JULY 2004

SENIOR MANAGEMENT ARRANGEMENTS

PART OF PUBLISHED FORWARD PLAN: YES

STATUS: STRATEGIC

1.PURPOSE AND POLICY CONTEXT

1.1The overall structure and size of the senior, extended management team is a proper subject for the Head of Paid Service to keep under review with members particularly when opportunities arise to consider change. This report makes recommendations for changes in Policy Director roles and to streamline the Service Unit structure.

  1. DECISIONS REQUIRED / RECOMMENDATIONS

2.1Cabinet recommends to Council:

  • In principle the Council will re-designate post A0009 Director of Children’s Services and amend the job description accordingly wef 1st January 2005.
  • Current holder of post A0007 move to post A0010 – PD(Social Services) with an appropriately amended job description wef 1st January 2005
  • Post A0007 be advertised in September with a likely start date of 1st January 2005.
  • A five point “norm” PD salary range of £75,900 to £83,010 to apply from 1st January 2005.
  • The application for a rule of 85 early retirement for potholder LL0013 , Head of Legal Services, be approved at no cost to the Council, subject to detailed arrangements being made by the Chief Executive.
  • Post CA0016 be declared redundant (date to be determined) subject to detailed arrangements being made by the Chief Executive.
  • Posts CA0016 and LL0013 be deleted and a new post of Head of Legal and Democratic Services be advertised in September.
  • Detailed arrangements for the merger of the Legal and Democratic Services units be delegated to a Policy Director in consultation with the Portfolio Holder, Head of Personnel and appropriate staff.

3.INFORMATION

3.1General Background

  • In January 2004 I reported to Cabinet on Management Team arrangements. I set out the rationale for the existing management model dating back to the Kingsley Lord report of 1992 and commented on how it had been capable of successfully adapting to changed circumstances.
  • As a result of that report one Policy Director post was deleted, and at the post-holder’s request, Cabinet agreed not to renew the contract of the PD (Social Services) and to defer making a decision on replacement until later in the year when the work on ‘Every Child Matters’[1] was further advanced. He will leave the Council on 31 December 2004. I believe we are now far enough forward with that work to make some, but not all, of the decisions arising out of ‘Every Child Matters’.
  • Earlier this year the Head of Legal Services indicated that he wished to take early retirement. This request had not been anticipated but did give the opportunity to consider bringing in options other than a straightforward replacement.

3.2Every Child Matters – Impact on Policy Directors

  • The work on ‘Every Child Matters’ has been progressing with partner organisations and a final report is expected to come to members in October 2004. The legislation is due to come into force by ???? 200?.
  • Our management model[2] provides us with the flexibility to deal with the necessary changes and whilst there will undoubtedly be some issues arising out of the change process, we appear to be free from the friction which is affecting some authorities where there are fears associated with the break up of large, traditional departments.
  • A number of different options are being considered across the country. For example, some organisations are thinking of employing a Director of Children’s services and a Director of Education. In line with our management model and the spirit of ‘Every Child Matters’ I believe it is appropriate for Poole to have just one Director in this field.
  • I can see no reason why Poole should need to consider recruiting another PD to take up the role of Director of Children’s Services. The existing PD (Education) has been in post for a year and has made an immediate, positive impact across the organisation and especially with schools. To introduce another individual in the near future would be entirely wrong in my view. We should look to use the flexibility in our model and re-designate his post.
  • The likelihood is that the ultimate accountabilities in relation to Children’s Social Services will switch from the PD (Social Services) to the new Director of Children’s Services. Nevertheless there will still need to be a “director” of social services. In other authorities where they see the Director of Education becoming the Director of Children’s Services, they are retaining the Director of Social Services role and “beefing up” the department with a variety of other functions. Our service unit structure does not need those consequential changes. So, we need to retain a PD (Social Services)[3] and are fortunate that one of the existing PDs is professionally able and willing to fill that role. By switching that accountability we are able to recruit a replacement Policy Director from a much wider field than would otherwise have been the case. It is of course open to Cabinet not to fill the vacancy but given the size and complexity of our corporate agenda and the recent deletion of one post I would strongly advise against this.
  • The salary rates for PDs vary. The base line is a range from £74,049 to £80,985. Two PDs, including the PD(Social Services) retain a 5% supplement for fixed term contracts. Recent appointments have been made on the basis of open contracts with no supplement but in the case of the PD(Education) there has been a market supplement of 5%. In consultation with the Head of Personnel I propose that PD contracts be standardised at a level £75,900 - £83,010 with protection for 1 PD who has a fixed term contract and another receiving the market supplement. At the top of grade this would increase the total salary bill before on-costs by £2025 including all salary protection.

3.3Every Child Matters – Impact on Service Unit Structures

  • It is still too early to make clear recommendations about any changes that might be required to Service Units. However what is emerging is that just as with the PD position, our overall management arrangements will provide sufficient flexibility for change to be implemented with minimum disruption. Nevertheless we do need to conclude this part of the work as soon as possible and establish the new patterns of work. I would anticipate that the recommendations will come forward in October 2004.

3.4Service Unit Structure – Legal and Democratic

  • The Head of Legal Services has asked the Council to consider releasing him with access to pension under the “rule of 85”. Normally I would have had no hesitation in turning that request down – he is an experienced and immensely able man, so how could the Council justify paying for early retirement? However, this is a most unusual request since the post holder has offered to pay the entire capital sum required by the pension fund to pay for early retirement – so there is no cost to the Council and I need to take a view on whether it might be in the Council’s long term best interests to accept that request and move on.
  • Before the above mentioned request was received, the Management Team were looking to the future for Democratic Services where the Service Unit Head will be approaching retirement age. Although no plans had been firmed up, the Policy Director was especially keen to think through an appropriate exit strategy for a post holder with such vast experience. The creation of a single service unit for Legal and Democratic Services would have clear advantages for the Council. These include:
  • savings of one senior officer post at Service Unit Head level
  • Legal and Democratic Services could be co-located, achieving some long term economies of scale.
  • the removal of anomalies in the role of Monitoring Officer in that the register of Members’ interests would be kept within the same service unit as the Monitoring Officer;
  • the Records Office would sit within the same service unit and close by to Legal Services. Currently this resides in Democratic Services;
  • we would come into line with our neighbours, all of whom have single service units for Legal and Democratic Services;
  • advice to the Chief Executive and the Leader of the Council on a range of matters would stem from a single, consistent source;

The unexpected request from the Head of Legal Services allowed us to think the possibilities through sooner rather than later. Discussions have taken place with the Head of Democratic Services who has agreed that he would accept a redundancy package, paving the way for the two Units to come together in the next few months. The Management Team have examined all of the circumstances and are firmly of the view that the two Units should merge after a period of careful planning.

  • The Head of Legal Services is also the Council’s Monitoring Officer and if members agree to the proposed merger then the new Service Unit Head would also fulfil that role. There is no requirement for the Monitoring Officer to be a qualified solicitor but there may be some advantages in it – that would be a matter for a recruitment panel to judge.
  • The Management Team have also considered whether these circumstances should trigger any other review of the Service Units but have concluded that it does not. There may be some switching of detailed responsibilities but no further mergers would be beneficial at this time. I would also stress that whilst I understand the attractiveness of reducing the number of Service Units, it will seriously impact on our ability to ‘flex’ the structure and to avoid the problems which sometimes go with departmental silos.

4.FINANCIAL CONSEQUENCES

4.1 The cost of deleting post CA0016 will be £26,000 including redundancy and the capitalisation of pension rights. These will be paid for by the new service unit within a three-year payback period.

4.2 A decision on savings arising from deletion of this post ( £??,000 pa) should be deferred until the Service Unit Head is appointed.

4.3 The Head of the new Service Unit should be employed on the same salary grade as the existing Head of Legal Services.

4.4 The changes to PD salary grading would cost £2025 pa before on-costs.

JOHN McBRIDE

CHIEF EXECUTIVE

BACKGROUND PAPERS

Name and telephone number of office contact:

John McBride – 01202 633001

13 July 2004

[1] The Laming report on the Victoria Climbie inquiry and the Government’s subsequent green paper, “Every Child Matters” suggest the formation of trusts for children’s services combining, amongst others, education, and children’s social services. It also makes it clear that there will be a single named director for children’s services.

[2] The model is based on service units with direct accountability to members and not on traditional, professionally centred departments.

[3] Strictly speaking the role does not need to be at PD level but anything else in my view would be unacceptable, not least to the SSSI.