Summary of OD Plan Achievements by Theme

September 2022

Strong Leadership Achievements

Strong Leadership runs through all levels of management to empower staff to deliver Council priorities Sponsor: Ian Floyd – Chief Operating Officer

· Work progressed to reinforce and embed the Council Values and behaviours including Circulars sent to managers and cascading key themes

· Corporate Induction has been reviewed and updated

· Performance Development Reviews format revised to aid strong discussion and direction for employees re succession planning and key priorities

· Equality and diversity priorities have been identified for the workforce and the new AD Customer and Communities will take forward equality agenda for community and workforce alongside other key officers

· Engagement with services via departmental newsletters and Departmental Question time sessions (Place, Customer and Communities and People Services) 

· COO visibly continues with senior managers across the Council including attendance at team meetings.

· Employee staff event in June 2022 was a success but also set the scene on where are going as a Council and how we can work together.

· Two sessions of LT group taken place and further 4 to deliver in current programme.  Focus on key skills for leaders, new ways of working and current leadership challenges.

· Programme of soft skills for managers currently in progress and branding for this as a programme that managers and future managers can access is being created

· Key role for leaders to promote and embed strong leadership behaviours and manager programme clarifies the role of managers – ‘York Manager Programme’ in development

Staff Engagement Achievements

Actively engage staff in a meaningful way to help shape and deliver priorities

Sponsor: Claire Foale – Assistant Director of Policy and Strategy

· HR Brief established to give consistent key messages for the workforce on topics

· MS Teams training rolled out including the usage of Team Channels for group engagement to reduce emails, further developments coming online soon, and time and usage should embed this as a method of communication. 

· The Working as One programme will also have a workstream on Teams as part of communication strand to manual workforce.

· Looking at roll out of Employee survey end Sept 22. 

· We are actively encouraging all hybrid meetings via Teams and not other platforms and now have hybrid meeting rooms available with OWL technology

· Review of equalities related groups stalled pending AD Customer and Communities and Access Officer appointments however discussions have started.

· Wellbeing group has been re-established and work assigned to group members

· Menopause guidance to be issued and a support group established soon

· Health and wellbeing champions identified and promotion via monthly email and Teams channel.

Performance Culture Achievements

Embed a performance Culture – build high performing teams motivated to respond to emerging opportunities and challenges

Sponsors: Bryn Roberts – Director of Governance and Debbie Mitchell – Chief Finance Officer and s151

· Work has started on the review of the PDR process but need to looked at further, can also be looked at in line with the review of services plans, embedding the values and expected behaviours of all employees. Need to make sure that this is not an onerous exercise, the importance is the quality of conversations and development

· HR continue to support and advise managers on probation, capability and performance issues but some work required in some areas to ‘reset’ some issues that have not been managed.  Link with managers training

· Services should also be data driven and access the information that they have available to drive outcomes – some managers may need training on this

· Managers to be provided with standard agenda items for meetings to include wellbeing, health and safety, sickness absence, performance and finance

Adjust to new ways of working achievements

Adjust to new ways of working and continue to build on the new ways of working experienced through the pandemic

Sponsor: Pauline Stuchfield – Director of Customer and Communities

· Good progress has been made on the working as one programme (the Council’s hybrid working programme) on all workstreams.  As the programme continues to grow, we are now moving into engagement with services based at Hazel court whilst still enhancing the offer at West offices. 

· Our culture and ways we work are already changing and evolving now that we are working differently to support our residents and ‘living with COVID’.  Recruitment challenges are changing the dynamic of our culture and we need to ensure that we have strategies in place to attract and retain quality staff.  This challenge is ongoing and one size approach will not work and needs creative approaches.

Staff Learning and Development Achievements

Staff learning and development – continue to build capacity, skills and develop staff to increase staff’s commitment to deliver the Council’s priorities

Sponsor : Neil Ferris – Corporate Director of Place

· Corporate induction reviewed and now online option, and alternative face to face and one line available from September

· Mentors embedded as part of new starter induction 

· Training delivery changes where possible to virtual or other alternative platforms with some success

· Mandatory training has taken place during pandemic and ongoing reviews of training needs and the training offer

· Good uptake of upskilling of staff via Apprenticeships and CYC achieved the Public Sector Target for Apprenticeship starts in 2021/2022

Encourage staff retention and recognition Achievements

Encourage staff retention and recognition – Attract, retain and recognise our staff now and for the future.

Sponsors:  Jamaila Hussain - Corporate Director of Adult Social Care and Integration

· Promoted values and behaviours as part of recruitment exercises 

· Some successes on recruitment campaigns but continue to operate in a difficult recruitment market which is posing challenges

· Recruitment campaigns appearing on Facebook and been sent to range of community groups.  Currently reviewing who applies for CYC jobs with protected characteristics and % of who is appointed.

· Promotion of the whole employment offer, including to WWY staff

· The review of the pay structure has started as has the review of terms and conditions. 

· Looking at Employer Branding and promotion of the T&C that make CYC an attractive employer. HR and Comms working together on Employer Brand and what makes CYC a good employer

· Started conversations with local universities and what will attract graduates to stay in York after their studies. Looking at National Graduate Development Programme and intern placements recommencing now services are returning from working from home 

Improve staff health and wellbeing Achievements

Staff Health and Wellbeing – Continue to improve and develop health and wellbeing culture which proactively and positively contributes to the delivery of the council’s priorities and builds a resilient workforce

Sponsor: Sharon Stoltz – Director of Public Health

· Continuing to improve and develop health and wellbeing culture which proactively and positively contributes to the delivery of the council’s priorities and builds a resilient workforce

· HR reinforcing and supporting managers to manage absence and HR and BI ensuring that timely and effective reports are sent. 

· HR have refreshed the absence training and rolls out to new managers and those with high absence as part of reminders of their responsibility to manage wellbeing.

· Wellbeing monthly update created and Teams Channel.  Progressing mental health support and resilience in teams and promotion of the Counselling service (and other support services too). 

· As officers start to return to the office evidence that different level of face-to-face peer support returning which is positive. 

· Managers need to allow time for peer contact on an informal basis and encourage wellbeing conversations at team meetings etc.  Reminders have been sent around this as part of sharing values and OD plan themes – suggestions for discussions at team meetings been sent.  Health and safety dashboard and people safe devices rolled out recently reinforcing H&S reporting and H&S protection whilst lone working.

Health

Abbreviations

COO – Chief Operating Officer                         

WWY – Work with York                                       

HR – Human Resources

BI – Business Intelligence 

CMT – Corporate Management Team                       

Was1 – Working as One

OD – Organisational Development

H&S – Health and Safety     

PDR – Performance Development Review

T&C – Terms and Conditions

CYC - City of York Council