Public Service Workforce Strategy for the Future

Wales Region PPMA Annual Report

Public service workforce strategy for the future

The Welsh Government has developed a Strategic Framework for the Public Service Workforce which has been adopted, following consultation and input, by the major part of the devolved Welsh public service (Health, Welsh Government and local government).

The document has a number of different sections outlining the Welsh Government’s vision for the Welsh Public Services, for example:

Innovation, new Delivery Models and improving the Citizen Experience
Building an Engaged, Motivated and High Performing Workforce
Attracting and Retaining Talent
Developing Skills
Ensuring Equality and Diversity
Changing Culture and Behaviours
Improving Leadership at all Levels
Employee Relations and Partnership Working
Working with our Social Partners and Stakeholders

The PPMA Wales / HRD Network have been undertaking work to develop an HR Performance Improvement Framework based on the Strategic Framework, assisted by Nigel Carruthers at the LGA. All Welsh authority HRDs have had the opportunity to shape the framework which is now substantially complete (although still subject to comments, for example by the Trades Unions who were consulted on it recently and by the Wales Audit Office who were consulted initially and who are due to be consulted again at a meeting on 27/2/13.

New Public Service Operating Models – What are the HR implications?

In Wales there is much emphasis on collaboration between local authorities at a regional level, with councils signed up to a Collaboration Compact with the Welsh Government covering a wide range of service areas. Many major service such as Social Services and Education Improvement services are being developed on a regional and sub-regional basis. The HR implications of these developments are both challenging and complex.

With the support of members of the PPMA Wales /HRD network we are working with Skills for Justice to provide some evaluation of the HR implications of the collaboration projects ongoing across local government in Wales. We have agreed with Skills for Justice and the relevant authorities that there will be a number of potential outcomes/ outputs from this exercise:-

An evaluation of the HR collaborative projects and/or its impact on other collaborative projects (SFJ)

The surfacing and capturing of learning that will assist with the development of Regional Toolkit
An overall HR Good Practice Framework for Wales (SFJ)
A shared learning approach between regions – e.g. virtual network (authorities)

The preparatory work is being finalised January/ February and the projects will commence shortly afterwards.

Attracting talent into public services

The PPMA Wales Branch / HRD Network Wales is overseeing work to develop a Welsh local government Careers Resource. This is nearing completion with a video resource produced which features employees from Welsh local authorities. Further work is ongoing to redevelop the old LGCareers website, re-housing it and making it self-maintaining and appropriate to Wales and Welsh local government (including Welsh language translation over time). The resource will use the video clips and role profiles to promote a range of occupations and the wide range of services delivered by local government to our communities.

It is envisaged that the resource could be of particular interest to schools and may therefore assist in the attraction of young people to work for local government.

“New Ways of Working” – enhancing productivity and performance

(Covered under new public service operating models).

Building engagement with employees in these difficult times

The PPMA Wales / HRD Network has worked with the WLGA to support a number of local authorities to develop staff suggestion schemes through Ideas UK. IdeasUKis the country’s foremost association for the promotion of employee involvement programmes. Authorities have been assisted to develop and build staff suggestion schemes to capture workforce innovationand help convert these into efficiencies and improvements led by the workforce itself. We currently have 6 authorities in Wales who are engaged with Ideas UK.

What is the shape of the new employment deal (EVP) for public services?

The PPMA Wales Branch / HRD network participates in the Welsh Government’s Workforce Partnership council which is a forum within which the major devolved public sector employers meet the relevant public sector unions. One of the recurring themes of discussions in the tension between the desire to create a unified public service workforce and the pressure, particularly within local government, that is driving down terms and conditions as well as numbers employed.

No solution has yet been found, but we are still talking!

Where next on reward strategies?

The PPMA Wales / HRD network meets several times a year to discuss how reward strategies are being progressed in the context of both the current financial position and the issues of single status and equal pay. Those authorities that have completed single status and (mainly) resolved equal pay claims provide support and guidance to those who are still working on these issues.

The PPMA Wales / HRD Network are also signed up to the West Midland / North West Epaycheck Pay Benchmarking system with 14 authorities in membership out of the 22. However, to date it has proved difficult to get authorities to upload their data and only 2 of these have ‘gone live’.

Leadership for the future – organisational leadership and HR leadership

PPMA Wales/ HRD Network participates in Welsh Governments HR Leaders forum which meets several times a year and will send representatives to the HR Leaders conference (held in March 2013). The HRD Network meets 4 times a year and aims to provide a strategic lead on relevant HR issues across Welsh local government.

The Welsh Government runs the ‘Acadmi Wales’ which aims to provide high level leadership programmes across the devolved public sector in Wales. The PPMA Wales Branch / HRD Network has long sought an opportunity to influence this agenda and will continue to do so.

Public service HR as the driver of the business

No specific entry

Sustaining appropriate TU/ Employee relations

The PPMA Wales / HRD Network are actively involved in the Welsh Government’s Workforce Partnership Council where a range of strategic workforce issues are discussed with relevant trades unions. This has resulted in a number of high level agreements, most recently one on Partnership and Managing Change.

Work has also been undertaken on a collaborative basis with Welsh Government, the Wales TUC and Bridgend College to develop a Partnership Training Package to assist the development of a partnership approach to problem solving at an organisational level. So far this has been successfully run in several local authorities and a Health Authority, with more courses in the pipeline. The latest development will see a suite of training materials developed to enable the course to be delivered as a ‘train the trainers’ basis and to facilitate its adaptation to a variety of stages of development in partnership working.

Additionally, within local government PPMA Wales / HRD Network members have participated fully in the Joint Council for Wales forum within which they local government TUs meet twice a year with elected members and HR Heads, with several Executive meetings a year held in between full meetings.

Reuben Bergman Branch Chair

Anna Freeman Branch Secretary

February 20013