Minute of meeting of the Joint Negotiating Committee for Teaching Staff of 12 June 2023 for noting
Perth and Kinross Council · 25 October 2023
Back to Learning and Families Committee — 25 October 2023 and its agenda
Text extracted from the council's PDF. Layout and reading order may differ from the original.
Page 1
JOINT NEGOTIATING COMMITTEE FOR TEACHING STAFF Minute of hybrid meeting of the Joint Negotiating Committee for Teaching Staff (JNCT) held in the Council Chambers, 2 High Street, Perth on Tuesday 12 June 2023 at 2.30pm. Present: Representing Perth and Kinross Council Councillors J Rebbeck and C Shiers; S Devlin, S Johnston, L Gordon, J Donnelly, G Doogan and D Macluskey (all Education and Children’s Services); P Johnstone (Corporate and Democratic Services). Representing Teachers’ Associations L Gibb, L.J. Grant, M Laurie, J Leslie, C Rose, M Taylor and C Weston (all EIS); M Mackie (SSTA). In Attendance: L Byrne and C Guild (Corporate and Democratic Services); A McAuley, Joint Secretary (Teachers’ Side); D Williams for Joint Secretary (Management Side). Apologies: Councillor S Carr; S Dowling; S Topen-Cooper. M Laurie, Convener, Presiding. 1. APOLOGIES FOR ABSENCE Apologies for absence were submitted and noted as above. 2. DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST (ELECTED MEMBERS ONLY) There were no declarations of interest made in terms of the Councillors’ Code of Conduct. 3. MINUTES The minute of meeting of the Joint Negotiating Committee for Teaching Staff of 27 March 2023 was submitted and approved as a correct record. 4. MATTERS ARISING There were no matters arising from the previous minutes. 5. TEACHERS’ AGREEMENT FOR THE 21ST CENTURY There was submitted the Teacher’s Agreement for the 21st Century, Guidance to Schools for Session 2023-24 (G/23/71). G Doogan advised that a copy of the Guidance would be circulated to schools, along with any supporting comments, following the meeting and
Page 2
support and training would be provided where necessary. C Weston intimated that she would be happy to be involved. Resolved The Committee noted the contents of G/23/71. 6. UPDATE ON STAFFING EXERCISE S Johnston led on a verbal update to the Committee regarding the staffing exercise. S Johnston advised that the pupil population had changed this year, which had impacted on the exercise and led to a reduction in ten classes across primary schools. S Johnston also advised that there had been a rise in the number of children with complex needs going into P1, and additional staffing and training have been provided. Additional teams which included Educational Psychologists and speech and language specialists were being provided along with some outreach. S Johnston advised that pilot projects had been undertaken with regards to Early Learning Centres and wraparound care, and advised that an outdoor nursery was opening up at Westbank. S Johnston further advised that the Council had been successful in bidding for the Whole Family Wellbeing fund, meaning that parenting and family support could be offered to parents of older children. With specific regards to the primary sector, S Johnston advised that 30 probationers had been taken on during the school year, and that the intention was to take on as many as possible in permanent roles in Perth and Kinross schools. P Johnstone confirmed allocation that 30 probationers had been in place in the primary sector and a further 15 in the secondary sector. With specific regards to the secondary sector, S Johnston advised that many roles which had been traditionally difficult to fill had been filled through the year. S Johnston advised that there had been an increase in the numbers of teachers for those with Additional Support Needs, and there was a plan in place to provide training for HI/VI teachers. She added that there was a rolling advert in place constantly for Pupil Support Assistants and were looking to fund additional training and role progression. Also, a Modern Apprentice Scheme was being explored to attract young people. C Weston commented that she felt the additional teams for P1 were a really welcome development, and added that she would welcome feedback on the pilot projects looking at wrap around care in Inchview and Pitlochry as well as learning more about the Modern Apprentice Scheme. Councillor Rebbeck commented that he felt there was a number of very positive initiatives.
Page 3
M Mackie echoed the comments made by others, and queried whether it would be possible to ring fence strike money for further training. S Devlin advised that this would be through the Council’s Finance and Resources Committee, and that the relevant reports would be circulated to members following the meeting. 7. VIV UP PRESENTATION ON NEW EMPLOYEE BENEFITS PLATFORM The Committee received a presentation from L Byrne on the new Employee Benefits Platform recently rolled-out by Perth and Kinross Council. In presenting, L Byrne advised that this new platform was to make all employee benefits available in one place and advised that the platform would grow over time. L Byrne demonstrated the website to those in attendance. In response to a query from L Gibb regarding Counselling services available to Council employees, L Byrne advised that it remained that there would be six sessions available on any one issue via the benefits platform and MyCare. P Johnstone further advised that employees could also be referred by their manager to counselling via the Occupational Health Service (PAM) and that there was also the Able Futures counselling via DWP. 8. EMPLOYEE SURVEY – CONSULTATION ON WHAT COULD BE INCLUDED The Committee received a presentation from C Guild regarding the employee survey and consultation on what could be included. In presenting, C Guild advised that all local authorities in Scotland were trying to improve engagement with employees, and that many different approaches were being taken. C Guild did add, however, that she was keen for the Power BI dashboard to continue to be used. C Weston raised a query regarding how it was envisaged that consultation would look with Trade Union’s moving forward, suggesting the potential for a working group, to which C Guild agreed that a working group with Trade Union involvement would be beneficial moving forward. 9. SEESAW The Committee received a verbal update from D Macluskey regarding the See Saw app used in schools. In presenting his update, D Macluskey highlighted that Seesaw had become a popular and valuable resource during the Covid-19 Pandemic. However, D McCluskey further advised that charges of £2000 per school were introduced to retain all the features which were initially free of charge. Subsequently, a district package was established, with some schools continuing to use the free of charge version. However, the free of charge version does not fully comply with GDPR and the Council’s obligations under GDPR. As such two new
Page 4
similar platforms to Seesaw have been identified, which will be piloted by some schools. In response to a query from C Weston, D McCluskey advised that there were presently 63 schools from across Perth and Kinross involved in the district package of Seesaw. 10. ANY OTHER COMPETENT BUSINESS There was no other competent business.