Strategic Performance Framework - latest performance results for People Resources
North Lanarkshire Council · 1 March 2023
Back to Finance and Resources Committee — 1 March 2023 and its agenda
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North Lanarkshire Council Report Finance and Resources Committee Does this report require to be approved? ☒ Yes ☐ No Ref FW Date 01/03/23 Strategic Performance Framework - latest performance results for People Resources From Fiona Whittaker, Chief Officer (People Resources) E-mail WhittakerF@northlan.gov.uk Telephone 1. Background 1.1 There are six inter-related strategic frameworks which are key to assessing the success of The Plan for North Lanarkshire and monitoring delivery towards achieving the overall Executive Summary The Council’s overall performance against the key performance indicators included in this report is largely favourable when taken over time. This comes in the context of particular challenges with absence performance over the course of the pandemic, and the impact of this can be seen within the overall data. Despite these challenges, the Council has recently implemented a revised approach to absence management for non-teaching employees, and we continue to see the benefits of this approach in the figures for 2021/22. Further targeted work within key services and a revised absence policy for teaching employees are also in progress, and these are expected to bring further benefits over the course of 2022/23 and into 2023/24. Finally, the Council has key strengths in terms of its consistently low gender pay gap and strong senior female representation across all services, and these will continue to form a core part of our wider focus on equality and the Council’s ongoing commitment to the Public Sector Equality Duties. Recommendations It is recommended that the Finance and Resources Committee: (1) Review the high-level performance overview presented in Appendix 1, and the supporting data contained within the linked Excel spreadsheet, and identify where further information is required to understand or investigate performance further. The Plan for North Lanarkshire Priority Improve North Lanarkshire's resource base Ambition statement (23) Build a workforce for the future capable of delivering on our priorities and shared ambition
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vision by ensuring each stage is appropriately planned, guided, implemented, and governed. 1.2 The six frameworks focus on ensuring a corporate one council approach in respect of Policy, Governance, Performance, Self- Evaluation, Project Management, and Demonstrating Improved Outcomes for Communities. 1.3 The Strategic Performance Framework comprises performance measurement at three levels (as per the diagram on the right). This aims to collectively provide an overview of performance to help understand the impact of council activities on improving services and outcomes for the people and communities of North Lanarkshire. The measures in this Framework allow for day to day activities, and progress towards achieving the long-term vision set out in The Plan for North Lanarkshire, to be regularly monitored, reported, assessed, and scrutinised. 1.4 The Strategic Performance Framework is aligned to the Accounts Commission statutory direction which places a requirement on councils to report a range of information in terms of (1) improving local services and outcomes, and (2) demonstrating Best Value. Key points of note in this respect are that the Accounts Commission also expect to see: (a) A balance in reporting areas of improvement that have been achieved and not achieved. (b) Reporting that is undertaken in a timely manner. (c) Easy access to performance information for all citizens and communities. 1.5 A Performance Reporting Schedule supports the timely submission of a range of performance information that facilitates Elected Members and senior management to undertake regular performance reviews that inform scrutiny, challenge, and decision making processes. This Schedule, endorsed by the Audit and Scrutiny Panel in February 2023, includes Chief Officer’s individual six monthly Performance Reviews at Service Committees in line with the Strategic Performance Framework. 1.6 This report therefore presents the Finance and Resources Committee with the latest performance results for People Resources for Members’ further review and scrutiny. 2. Strategic Performance Framework Finance and Resources Committee responsibilities 2.1 In line with the terms of reference outlined in the Scheme of Administration, the Finance and Resources Committee is responsible for monitoring and reviewing performance information for the following Ambition Statements from The Plan for North Lanarkshire: 23. Build a workforce for the future capable of delivering on our priorities and shared ambition. 2.2 The high-level performance overview in Appendix 1 presents Members with a summary of the latest results for each performance indicator within the remit of the Chief Officer (People Resources). 2.3 The information in Appendix 1 comprises the following:
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• An ideal direction arrow - this indicates whether a higher or lower figure is the preferred direction of travel. • Measurement unit - for example whether the result is a %, a number, a unit cost (in £), or a ratio. • Performance results for the last four financial years (depending on availability of data) along with the latest year’s target and corresponding RAG status (for indicators where it is appropriate to set targets). • The most recent monthly or quarterly results, along with the corresponding target and RAG status. Note the inclusion of this information is dependent on the measurement frequency of the indicator and availability of data as at the time of reporting. • A trend graph - this captures the direction of travel achieved over the four financial years and includes the most recent monthly or quarterly results where available. • Comments - narrative summarising the current position and providing an explanation for any significant variations in performance. Where applicable, this narrative also highlights the effect of the pandemic on service delivery, e.g. any increase or decrease in the volume of transactions or enquiries processed. 2.4 A large volume of data supports the high-level performance overview in Appendix 1. This is outlined in the latest performance results for People Resources Excel spreadsheet which is available through the following link for Members to carry out a deep dive and review and scrutinise each performance indicator further. The Menu on the second tab of the spreadsheet contains built in hyperlinks that automatically take the user to a tab for each performance indicator and therefore provides a useful navigation aid to review the contents of the file. • Latest performance results for People Resources.xlsx Current context 2.5 It should be noted from the data highlighted in Appendix 1 that levels of short-term absence were significantly affected during 2020/21 by the pandemic and therefore this cannot be used as a comparator for overall absence performance in 2021/22. 2.6 This impact was seen across all Local Authorities and can be seen in the detailed data which shows the Councils data compared to the Scottish and family group average figures. 2.7 Non-teaching related absence in 2020/21 did not decrease to such an extent, and this was due to high levels of absence being seen in frontline services such as Health and Social Care, which have continued to be impacted by the post pandemic and other known system pressures within this sector in 2021/22. 2.8 A similar pattern of reduction in Riddor reportable Health & Safety incidents was seen in 2020/21 due to the reduction of operational activity in some services. Recent performance highlights 2.9 The Council agreed a new Absence Management Policy for non-teaching employees A higher figure is better A lower figure is better Key to RAG status Performance is on target and/or within acceptable thresholds Performance does not meet target and is outwith acceptable thresholds Performance surpasses the target and exceeds expectations
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in March 2021, with a much clearer approach to targets and the management of absence stages. This has now been rolled out across all services and is yielding results particularly with respect to our numbers of long-term mental health related absences which have decreased by around 10% over the last 12 months. 2.10 This can be seen in the Councils overall absence performance which has not returned to the previously high levels of absence seen in 2019/20 before the start of the pandemic. 2.11 With respect to the Council’s gender pay gap, the Council performs well in this area and has a stable gender pay gap of around 4% which is significantly lower than the UK average pay gap of 8.3%. 2.12 The Council also has good female representation in its senior positions, including Chief Officers across all services. Areas of performance requiring improvement 2.13 Despite significant improvements seen in overall absence between our comparator years of 2019/20 and 2021/22, and a cumulative reduction of more than 10% over time, levels of absence in non-teaching employees remain high and above the Council’s intended target. 2.14 Our revised Absence Policy is yielding results, but more targeted work is required within key frontline services including Heath & Social Care and Enterprise and Communities to bring levels down further to meet the Councils target of 9.86 days per employee. 2.15 Work is currently underway to revise the Managing Absence Policy for teachers and this will be taken forward in 2023. Although levels of teacher absence are low in comparison to non-teaching employees, the Council’s remains 29th out of 32 Councils in terms of teacher absence and this would suggest that there is room for significant improvement in this area. Next steps 2.16 As noted in paragraph 1.5, the Strategic Performance Framework is supported by a Performance Reporting Schedule. This sets out the arrangements for service, statutory, and Strategic Performance Framework reporting to committee. In this respect the relevant Committees can expect to receive the following in respect of insert service name during 2023/24. Report Description Committee Committ ee cycle End of year absence statistics This reports on the council’s year-end outturn position (including teachers and local government employees) for the average FTE days lost due to sickness absence. JCC for Local Government Employees Cycle 4 of 2023 Public Sector Equality Duties Every two years public bodies covered by the Public Sector Equality Duties (PSED) are required to publish a number of reports and information to evidence how they are meeting the needs of people whose characteristics are protected by the Equality Act 2010 - the PSED (General Duty). Wellbeing and Tackling Poverty Committee / Policy and Strategy Committee Cycle 2 of 2023
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3. Measures of success 3.1 Measures of success include: • Regular oversight and monitoring of performance across the organisation to gain assurances in terms of governance and accountability. • Regular review and challenge processes to scrutinise the performance of the council to ensure effective use of resources and that resources are directed in accordance with agreed policy and according to priorities, while ensuring sound decision making and clear accountability for the use of resources in achieving improved outcomes for service users and the local community. • Performance monitoring, management, and reporting arrangements that support the demonstration of improved performance in local services and outcomes, and the delivery of Best Value. 4. Supporting documentation 4.1 Appendix 1 - High-level performance overview Fiona Whittaker Chief Officer, People Resources
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5. Impacts 5.1 Public Sector Equality Duty and Fairer Scotland Duty Does the report contain information that has an impact as a result of the Public Sector Equality Duty and/or Fairer Scotland Duty? Yes ☒ No ☐ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? If Yes, has an assessment been carried out and published on the council’s website? https://www.northlanarkshire.gov.uk/your-community/equalities/equality- and-fairer-scotland-duty-impact-assessments Yes ☐ No ☐ 5.2 Financial impact Does the report contain any financial impacts? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, have all relevant financial impacts have been discussed and agreed with Finance? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? 5.3 HR policy impact Does the report contain any HR policy or procedure impacts? Yes ☒ No ☐ If Yes, have all relevant HR impacts have been discussed and agreed with People Resources? Yes ☒ No ☐ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? Changes are planned to the Managing Absence Policy for teachers and these will be fully managed in line with our normal approach. 5.4 Legal impact Does the report contain any legal impacts (such as general legal matters, statutory considerations (including employment law considerations), or new legislation)? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, have all relevant legal impacts have been discussed and agreed with Legal and Democratic? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? 5.5 Data protection impact Does the report / project / practice contain or involve the processing of personal data? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, is the processing of this personal data likely to result in a high risk to the data subject? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, has a Data Protection Impact Assessment (DPIA) been carried out and e- mailed to dataprotection@northlan.gov.uk Yes ☐ No ☐ 5.6 Technology / Digital impact
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Does the report contain information that has an impact on either technology, digital transformation, service redesign / business change processes, data management, or connectivity / broadband / Wi-Fi? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? Where the impact identifies a requirement for significant technology change, has an assessment been carried out (or is scheduled to be carried out) by the Enterprise Architecture Governance Group (EAGG)? Yes ☐ No ☒ 5.7 Environmental / Carbon impact Does the report / project / practice contain information that has an impact on any environmental or carbon matters? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? 5.8 Communications impact Does the report contain any information that has an impact on the council’s communications activities? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? 5.9 Risk impact Is there a risk impact? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the key risks and potential impacts, highlighting where the risk(s) are assessed and recorded (e.g. Corporate or Service or Project Risk Registers), and how they are managed? 5.10 Armed Forces Covenant Duty Does the report require to take due regard of the Armed Forces Covenant Duty (i.e. does it relate to healthcare, housing, or education services for in-Service or ex- Service personnel, or their families, or widow(er)s)? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the provision which has been made to ensure there has been appropriate consideration of the particular needs of the Armed Forces community to make sure that they do not face disadvantage compared to other citizens in the provision of public services.
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Appendix 1 People Resources High-level performance overview - as at January 2023 Indicator id ideal direction unit of measurement 2018/19 2019/20 2020/21 2021/22 2021/22 target 2021/22 RAG status 2022/23 ytd 2022/23 target 2022/23 RAG status trend comments Sickness absence, all employees - average number of days lost per employee Pi132 lower figure is better number 10.39 11.12 7.06 9.46 9.86 green The Council saw a significant drop in overall short term absence during 2020/21 due to the impact of high levels of covid related absence. This pattern was also seen in other Local Authorities. Although levels of short term absence have returned over the last 12 months, we have seen an improvement in our long term absence figures, due to the implementation of our new policy and therefore our end of year outurn has now stabilised at a lower figure. Sickness absence, teachers - average number of days lost per employee Pi133 lower figure is better number 8.01 8.15 4.53 6.43 6.42 green The number of days lost per FTE within teaching positions is generally lower than for non-teaching. A focus on long term absence cases over the last 12 months has also brought benefits to the level of teachers absence which is currently tracking on target. Teacher absence in 2020/21 followed the same pattern of a drop in short term absence over the course of the pandemic. Sickness absence, all employees but excluding teachers - average number of days lost per employee Pi134 lower figure is better number 11.20 12.21 8.05 10.57 9.86 Red The number of days lost per FTE within non- teaching positions is generally higher than for non-teaching and is currently above the target of 9.86. This is primarily driven by levels of absence in frontline services such as Homcare and Waste. Recent joint action on absence between the Adult Health & Social Care Service and the HR team has started to show benefits, and we have seen a reduction in levels of absence within this service in the last three months. Gender pay gap - % gap between average hourly rate of pay for male and female employees Pi136 lower figure is better % 4.65 3.09 4.65 4.90 only measured annually The Councils pay gap of 4.9% compares well with the median UK pay gap figure of 8.3% for the UK as a whole. Equal opportunities - % of women employees in top 5% earners of all employees Pi135 higher figure is better % 61.0 61.5 63.0 61.4 only measured annually The Council performs well in this area and has good female representation across its senior positions in all servcies. RIDDOR - number of reported injuries, diseases, dangerous occurrences Pi143 lower figure is better number 64 60 30 44 only measured annually Overall levels of reportable injuries have shown a positive deacreasing trend over the last 4 years, with a significant drop in 2020/21 due to the impact of the pandemic on operational services. A rise in activity over the last 12 months has seen levels increase however there has not been a return to the highest levels seen in 2018/19. 0.00 5.00 10.00 15.00 2018/19 2019/20 2020/21 2021/22 0.00 2.00 4.00 6.00 8.00 10.00 2018/19 2019/20 2020/21 2021/22 0.00 5.00 10.00 15.00 2018/19 2019/20 2020/21 2021/22 0.00 2.00 4.00 6.00 8.00 10.00 2018/19 2019/20 2020/21 2021/22 0.0 20.0 40.0 60.0 80.0 2018/19 2019/20 2020/21 2021/22 0 20 40 60 80 2018/19 2019/20 2020/21 2021/22