Shareholder Committee

Report of the Head of HR and OD

14 October 2024

City of York Trading Ltd Update October 2024

Purpose of Report

1. To consider and receive the City of York Trading Ltd Performance Update as at October 2024 provided as confidential Annex A. The performance update is private due to the commercial sensitivities.

Recommendations

2. Note the confidential Performance Update from City of York’s Trading Ltd attached at Annex A to this report.

Reason: To ensure the Council is updated on the performance of City of York Trading Ltd. 

Background and analysis

3. City of York Trading Ltd (trading as WorkwithYork, WorkwithSchools WorkwithYorkshire and Williams & Anthony “the Company”) was formed in 2011 with the intention of supplying temporary staff to the Council, to local schools and permanent and temporary staff to other outside organisations.  

 

4. In February 2024, the company acquired the assets of a local recruitment business, Williams & Anthony, specialists in pre-construction appointments, including Civil, Structural and Environmental Engineering and Surveying.

 

5. Through the Company, the Council makes a cost saving compared to the cost of agency staff on the open market and is also able to secure staff to cover hard-to-fill roles where permanent recruitment is challenging.

 

6. In addition, the payment of an annual dividend from the Company’s overall profits is designed to assist the Council’s financial position.  The 2023/2024 final accounts for the Company are yet to be audited and finalised and therefore, the annual dividend not yet prepared for consideration. 

 

Key Company Matters 2024/25 and Current Workplans

7. The Company’s Board of Directors compromises Karen Bull (Managing Director) with Non-Executive Directors Cllr Kallum Taylor, Cllr Ian Cuthbertson, Cllr Jason Rose, Ann Vickers, Lisa Wood and Chloe Kerridge-Phipps and usually meets monthly to consider monthly financial and performance reports and discuss strategy going forward.

 

8. Key Performance Indicators are monitored on weekly and monthly basis.

 

9. Marketing activities continue, including utilisation of the Company’s websites and social media channels.

 

10.        Following Executive approval in July 2024, CYT have been working with CYC Legal Services on agreeing formalities and templates for the set-up of Company 2.  It is proposed that Company 2 will be providing service to CYC from 1st April 2025 to fall in line with the new budget year 2025/26. 

 

11.        The Council is working with CYT to ensure compliance on the pending implementation of the Statutory guidance for local authorities on the use of agency children and family social workers.   The Statutory guidance comes into full effect for all agency children and family social workers from 1st October 2025, however, the effective date for rules to apply for new agency social work assignments apply from 31st October 2024. 

 

12.        Under the guidance Councils must publish data on the Department for Education (DfE) Website from Winter 2024/2025.  Arrangements are in place across the region for agreement and implementation of price caps for core job types prior to submission on 1st August 2025. 

 

13.        The key provisions of the new Statutory guidance placed on local authorities include, Local Authorities, must :

·        Provide the DfE with quarterly data on use and cost of agency workers, including project teams, 

and Local authorities should:

·        Agree and implement agency worker price caps that all Local Authorities within the region should comply with (York will be aligned with the Yorkshire and Humber Region Councils).

·        Ensure contracts to supply agency workers via a project team/packaged model comply with requirements.

·        Ensure a four-week notice period for all agency assignments (or align with same substantive job roles).

·        Not engage agency workers for a minimum of three months after the worker has left a substantive role in their authority or that of an local authority in the same region.

·        Not engage agency workers with less than three years post-qualifying experience.

·        Provide detailed practice-based reference using the standard reference template for all agency workers, and require at least two standard references for all agency social workers before offering an assignment.

 

14.        There are no current agency workers that meet the criteria covered by the new Statutory requirements, however, should CYT provide any future children and family social workers to CYC, compliance with the price caps will be required.

 

Risk Management

15.        There are no specific risk issues arising from this report.

Implications

16.        There are no financial, legal, HR, equalities, crime and disorder, information technology, property or other implications arising from this report.

Author:

Chief Officer responsible for the report:

 

Karen Bull, MD CYT Ltd

 

 

Helen Whiting

Chief Human Resources and Support Services Officer

 

Report Approved

Y

Date

1 October 2024

 

Wards Affected: 

All

For further information please contact the author of the report

 

Annex A – CYT Performance Update October 2024 CONFIDENTIAL