Wakefield Council's reliance on agency staff in its children's services department is costing it around £2million. The number of temporary social workers being employed by the local authority has increased in recent years because of high turnover of permanent staff, as well as long-term sickness among employees, according to Ofsted. The regulator made its analysis in a damning report into the children's services failings in July.Now, the corporate director of the department has said that agency staff are "valued but temporary" and that the council eventually want to have permanent staff in every position in the service.Beate Wagner said: "The main expenditures that are draining the service at the moment is additional agency staff, and the other is placements (paying foster parents employed by private companies)."There are advantages to having agency staff. We don’t have to pay them for sick leave or during holiday, but if all our current staff were permanent then I think … [Read more...] about Reliance on agency workers costs Wakefield Council £2million
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Buckingham Town Council seek legal advice over planning decision
Buckingham Town Council (BTC) have taken the decision to spend £3,000 of the public's money on seeking legal advice regarding its opposition to the development of a care home in the town centre. BTC argue that putting the proposed Grand Junction Care Home on the suggested site in Cornwalls Meadow contradicts the Buckingham Neighbourhood Development Plan (BNDP), which they say reserves the area for car parking and riverside walks.The BNDP cost taxpayers approximately £80,000 and received a 91.4% approval by residents in a referendum in 2015, although the turnout was just 21.5%.Aylesbury Vale District Council say that there is no explicit wording in the BNDP which rejects other uses of the land, and so therefore there is no conflict.As a result, the planning application was given approval on 26 October, but BTC believe there is legal precedence to challenge AVDC's decision.However, the appeal will not come cheaply, with an estimated cost of £30,000 attached to taking … [Read more...] about Buckingham Town Council seek legal advice over planning decision
Prime Minister meets with Cuban President of Council of State
Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc (R) shakes hands with President of the Council of State and Council of Ministers of Cuba Miguel Mario Diaz Canel Bermudez (Photo: VNA) Hanoi (VNA) – Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc and President of the Council of State and Council of Ministers of Cuba Miguel Mario Diaz Canel Bermudez agreed to make it easier for businesses’ partnerships and investment in new fields like telecom, pharmaceuticals, banking, and biotechnology. The agreement was made during the leaders’ meeting in Hanoi on November 9. PM Phuc welcomed the first visit by Miguel Mario Diaz Canel Bermudes as President of the Council of State and Council of Ministers of Cuba and said he believes the visit would help cement the special traditional relations between Vietnam and Cuba. Miguel Mario Diaz Canel Bermudez said Cuba highly values the historical traditional friendship between the two countries and asserted the determination to step up the ties. Host and guest … [Read more...] about Prime Minister meets with Cuban President of Council of State
Norfolk councils meet to address ‘sorry history’ of planning applications
PUBLISHED: 13:04 09 November 2018 | UPDATED: 13:04 09 November 2018 Jessica Frank-Keyes Capita staff in offices in Newcastle and Belfast have been handling Breckland planning applications. Pictured is Capita's office in Bournemouth. Picture: Andrew Matthews/PA Wire Press Association Two Norfolk councils have met to review the “sorry history” of the past 15 months of planning applications after issues were raised about private firm Capita handling planning decisions. Controversial planning applications in Breckland, such as this one in Mattishall, led to complaints about Capita. Picture: Matthew UsherYaxham Parish Council (YPC) wrote to Breckland Council last month to request a meeting with officers due to “increasing concern” over a “systemic issue”.Parish councillors have since met with district councillor Gordon Bambridge and council officers.YPC chairman Peter Lowings wrote: “There has been increasing concern … [Read more...] about Norfolk councils meet to address ‘sorry history’ of planning applications
Hackney Council bullying row: Investigation launched into unions’ claims
PUBLISHED: 12:55 09 November 2018 | UPDATED: 13:02 09 November 2018 Sam Gelder The town hall has commissioned an independent investigation into unions’ claims there is a culture of “bullying, harassment and racism” within its workforce, insisting it has a “zero-tolerance” approach. Hackney Service Centre.As revealed by the Gazette yesterday, Unite – which represents more than 1,000 workers at Hackney – sent an explosive 18-page report to all councillors and the mayor last month detailing numerous allegations of serious issues at Hackney Service Centre, the call centre behind the town hall.They included:• Workers’ complaints about discrimination being swept under the carpet, or resulting in them being punished for speaking out;• A black female worker being called a member of the Taliban by a white, male colleague, who also said he would “start embracing his roots because he was white and whites … [Read more...] about Hackney Council bullying row: Investigation launched into unions’ claims