Agenda Document Pack - Executive Committee - 28/05/2025
South Lanarkshire Council · 28 May 2025
Back to Executive Committee — 28 May 2025 and its agenda
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Council Offices, Almada Street Hamilton, ML3 0AA Tuesday, 20 May 2025 Dear Councillor Executive Committee The Members listed below are requested to attend a meeting of the above Committee to be held as follows:- Date: Wednesday, 28 May 2025 Time: 10:00 Venue: Hybrid - Committee Room 1, Council Offices, Almada Street, Hamilton, ML3 0AA The business to be considered at the meeting is listed overleaf. Yours sincerely Paul Manning Chief Executive Members Joe Fagan (Chair/ex officio), Gerry Convery (Depute Chair), Alex Allison, John Anderson, Robert Brown, Andy Carmichael, Maureen Chalmers, Ross Clark, Margaret Cooper, Andrea Cowan, Maureen Devlin, Gladys Ferguson-Miller, Elise Frame, Gavin Keatt, Susan Kerr, Ross Lambie, Eileen Logan, Katy Loudon, Ian McAllan, Catherine McClymont, Lesley McDonald, Davie McLachlan, Richard Nelson, Norman Rae, Mo Razzaq, Kirsten Robb, John Ross, David Shearer, Margaret B Walker Substitutes Walter Brogan, Poppy Corbett, Margaret Cowie, Celine Handibode, Graeme Horne, Martin Hose, Cal Johnston-Dempsey, Hugh Macdonald, Kenny McCreary, Elaine McDougall, Mark McGeever, Graham Scott, David Watson, 1
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BUSINESS 1 Declaration of Interests 2 Minutes of Previous Meeting Minutes of the meeting of the Executive Committee held on 30 April 2025 submitted for approval as a correct record. (Copy attached) 5 - 16 Monitoring Item(s) 3 Update to Funding Report dated 6 May 2025 by the Executive Director (Finance and Corporate Resources). (Copy attached) 17 - 20 Item(s) for Decision 4 Update on the Expansion of Secondary Schools - Future Capacity Issues Report dated 9 May 2025 by the Interim Executive Director (Education Resources). (Copy attached) 21 - 26 5 Climate Emergency Fund 2025/2026 – Project List Report dated 8 May 2025 by the Executive Director (Community and Enterprise Resources). (Copy attached) 27 - 32 6 Delivering and Enabling Commercial Space - Programme of Activity Report dated 8 May 2025 by the Executive Director (Community and Enterprise Resources). (Copy attached) 33 - 40 7 Council Workforce Strategy and Plan 2025 to 2027 Report dated 2 May 2025 by the Executive Director (Finance and Corporate Resources). (Copy attached) 41 - 106 8 Council’s Youth Champion and Representative on Regen:fx Youth Trust Report dated 7 May 2025 by the Executive Director (Finance and Corporate Resources). (Copy attached) 107 - 108 9 Community Wealth Building Legislation – Call for Views Report dated 25 April 2025 by the Chief Executive. (Copy attached) 109 - 120 Item(s) for Noting 10 Strategic Environmental Assessment Progress 2024/2025 Report dated 8 May 2025 by the Executive Director (Community and Enterprise Resources). (Copy attached) 121 - 124 Urgent Business 11 Urgent Business Any other items of business which the Chair decides are urgent. 2
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For further information, please contact:- Clerk Name: Tracy Slater Clerk Telephone: 07385 370089 Clerk Email: tracy.slater@southlanarkshire.gov.uk 3
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EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE Minutes of meeting held via Confero and in Committee Room 1, Council Offices, Almada Street, Hamilton on 30 April 2025 Chair: Councillor Joe Fagan (ex officio) Councillors Present: Councillor Alex Allison, Councillor John Anderson, Councillor Robert Brown, Councillor Andy Carmichael, Councillor Ross Clark, Councillor Gerry Convery (Depute), Councillor Andrea Cowan, Councillor Margaret Cowie (substitute for Councillor Gavin Keatt), Councillor Maureen Devlin, Councillor Gladys Ferguson-Miller, Councillor Cal Johnston-Dempsey (substitute for Councillor Katy Loudon), Councillor Susan Kerr, Councillor Ross Lambie, Councillor Eileen Logan, Councillor Ian McAllan, Councillor Catherine McClymont, Councillor Kenny McCreary (substitute for Councillor Richard Nelson), Councillor Lesley McDonald, Councillor Elaine McDougall (substitute for Councillor Maureen Chalmers), Councillor Davie McLachlan, Councillor Norman Rae, Councillor Mo Razzaq, Councillor Kirsten Robb, Councillor John Ross, Councillor David Shearer, Councillor Margaret B Walker Councillors' Apologies: Councillor Maureen Chalmers, Councillor Margaret Cooper, Councillor Elise Frame, Councillor Gavin Keatt, Councillor Katy Loudon, Councillor Richard Nelson Attending: Chief Executive’s Service P Manning, Chief Executive; T Little, Head of Communications and Strategy Community and Enterprise Resources D Booth, Executive Director; A Brown, Head of Enterprise and Sustainable Development; D Hashagen, Employability Manager; K McCafferty, Carbon Management Officer Education Resources A Donaldson, Interim Executive Director; D Hinshelwood, Interim Head of Education (Support Services and School Estate) Finance and Corporate Resources J Taylor, Executive Director; E Maxwell, Human Resources Business Manager, K McLeod, Administration Assistant; T Slater, Administration Adviser; I Strachan, Head of Administration and Legal Services Housing and Technical Resources S Gibson, Executive Director; C Jardine, Head of Property Services Health and Social Care/Social Work Resources S Sengupta, Director, Health and Social Care Chair’s Opening Remarks The Chair highlighted that today was International Guide Dogs Day, Guide Dogs for the Blind Association being one of the nominated causes of the Council’s Touch a Life, Make a Difference Initiative. 1 Declaration of Interests No interests were declared. 2 5
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2 Minutes of Previous Meeting The minutes of the meeting of the Executive Committee held on 12 March 2025 were submitted for approval as a correct record. The Committee decided: that the minutes be approved as a correct record. 3 Revenue Budget Monitoring for Period 12 - 1 April 2024 to 21 February 2025 and Probable Outturn A report dated 28 March 2025 by the Executive Director (Finance and Corporate Resources) was submitted on the overall financial position of the General Fund Revenue Account and the Housing Revenue Account for the period 1 April 2024 to 21 February 2025 and the forecast for the year to 31 March 2025. The report and associated appendices:- summarised the 2024/2025 probable outturn position for the Council’s General Fund Revenue Account to 31 March 2025, including details of approved transfers to reserves provided details of the position on the General Fund Account for the period 1 April 2024 to 21 February 2025 advised of the redeterminations of 2024/2025 revenue grant funding provided the Housing Revenue Account position The Committee decided: (1) that the Council’s breakeven probable outturn position, after Transfers to Reserves, as detailed in section 4 of the report, be noted; (2) that the current forecast on the General Fund Revenue Account for 2024/2025 and the actual spend as at 21 February 2025, as detailed in section 5 and appendices 1 and 2 of the report, be noted; and (3) that the projected breakeven position on the Housing Revenue Account for 2024/2025, and the actual spend as at 21 February 2025, as detailed in section 6 and Appendix 3 of the report, be noted. [Reference: Minutes of 12 March 2025 (Paragraph 3)] 4 Capital Budget 2024/2025 and Monitoring for Period 12 - 1 April 2024 to 21 February 2025 A report dated 28 March 2025 by the Executive Director (Finance and Corporate Resources) was submitted providing an update on the progress of the General Fund Capital Programme and Housing Capital Programme for the period 1 April 2024 to 21 February 2025. The revised programme for the General Fund for 2024/2025 was £69.832 million which included previous adjustments approved by this Committee. The revised budget was detailed in Appendix 1 to the report. Appendix 2 showed a forecast for the financial year of £59.024 million, an underspend of £10.808 million which related to timings of spend across 2024/2025 and into the new financial year, and resulted in budget required in 2025/2026 rather than 2024/2025. Funding for projects remaining underspent at the financial year end would be carried forward to allow the projects to be completed in 2025/2026. Actual spend incurred as at 21 February 2025 totalled £39.547 million. Actual funding received up to 21 February 2025 was £52.627 million. 6
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The revised Housing Capital Programme for 2024/2025 amounted to £77.248 million. Programmed funding for the year also totalled £77.248 million. The funding sources were detailed in Appendix 3 to the report. Budget for the period amounted to £50.399 million and, as at 21 February 2025, £50.399 million had been spent. The position on the General Fund Capital Programme and the Housing Capital Programme would be monitored by the Financial Resources Scrutiny Forum. The Committee decided: (1) that the position of the General Fund Capital Programme, as detailed in appendices 1 and 2, and the Housing Capital Programme, as detailed in Appendix 3, as at 21 February 2025, be noted; and (2) that the programmes be monitored by the Financial Resources Scrutiny Forum. [Reference: Minutes of 12 March 2025 (Paragraph 4)] 5 The Employability Promise Prior to consideration of this item, the Chair advised the Committee that there were 2 members of the Champions Board present who had assisted in shaping the Employability Promise, as set out in the report. A joint report dated 2 April 2025 by the Executive Directors (Community and Enterprise Resources) and (Finance and Corporate Resources), Interim Executive Director (Education Resources) and Director, Health and Social Care was submitted on a proposal for the development and implementation of an Employability Promise for care experienced young people. In response to “The Promise”, a commitment from civil society and public services in Scotland to improve the lives of care experienced children, the Council had developed a collective corporate approach to take forward The Plan 2022 to 2024, as set out within “The Promise”. The Plan had the following 4 main areas of focus:- A Good Childhood Whole Family Support Supporting the Workforce Planning Building Capacity The Promise Board, chaired by the Chief Executive and attended by Chief Officers from partner agencies, oversaw all the work being undertaken across the Partnership to achieve progress with The Plan. The Promise Board also worked closely with South Lanarkshire’s Champions Board which was a group of care experienced individuals supported by The Promise Development Team, a collaboration between Who Cares? Scotland and the Council. The Champions Board had highlighted a range of issues to the Chief Executive, including their lived experiences of employment and employability support in South Lanarkshire. A range of potential supports and actions were discussed, including actions that could support more care experienced young people into employment with the Council. The Council currently had a range of employability supports and processes to support care experienced young people to progress to sustainable positive destinations of employment or further learning. Care experienced young people requiring support to progress to a positive destination were supported through the Council’s keyworker-based employability programmes Aspire, for young people in the last 6 months of school) and AspireWorks, which was post-school. 7
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The support provided was individually tailored and involved personal development, employability groupwork, vocational training, health and wellbeing and work placements. Processes were in place to track the destinations of care experienced young people aged 16 to 19 and, in March 2025, there were 364 of those. Details of the current status of those care experienced young people were provided in Table 1 of the report. Information on previous initiatives was provided in Section 4 of the report. Those programmes had been funded by external employability budgets as supernumerary posts. This caused challenges when that funding period ended, and the young people had to be matched to permanent vacancies. To address those challenges and provide increased opportunities for care experienced young people to progress to Council employment, and in line with the aspirations of the Champions Board, a Care Experience Employment Promise was proposed, as outlined in paragraph 5.2 of the report. In order to deliver on the employability promise, a short-life working group would be established to develop an action plan that would include:- continued engagement with Council services to identify suitable placements in response to need the development of training resources for workplace supervisors the development of work placement assessment processes the development of processes to ring-fence vacancies for young people successfully completing work placements ensuring that the voices of young people with lived experience were included in the implementation of the Employability Programme Officers responded to members’ questions in relation to various aspects of the report. The Chief Executive gave an undertaking to clarify the number of care experienced young people who were currently employed by the Council. The Chair commended the collaborative work across Council services to progress the Employability Promise, together with the involvement of the young people themselves. The Committee decided: that the development and implementation of an Employability Promise for care experienced young people be approved. 6 Outcome of the Consultation Proposal to Realign the Catchment Areas of Glengowan, Machanhill and Robert Smillie Primary Schools in Larkhall A report dated 2 April 2025 by the Interim Executive Director (Education Resources) was submitted on the outcome of the consultation undertaken on the proposal to change the catchment areas of Glengowan, Machanhill and Robert Smillie Primary Schools to better align new housing developments in Larkhall to the school geographically closer, and to balance pupil numbers more effectively. The current catchment areas for Glengowan, Machanhill and Robert Smillie Primary Schools were shown in Appendix 1 to the report. Appendices 2 to 4 showed the proposed new catchment zones to take account of new housing developments and to more equitably balance the pupil population. 8
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Details of the outcome of the statutory consultation, undertaken between 28 August 2023 and 13 October 2023 were provided in Appendix 5 to the report. This included comments from Education Scotland. The report provided information on the mitigations that would be taken in response to concerns raised in relation to the capacity for placing requests and safe routes to school. The Interim Head of Education (Support Services and School Estate) responded to a member’s question in relation to timescales for realigning catchment areas. The Committee decided: (1) that, having considered the published consultation outcome report in full, the catchment areas of Glengowan, Machanhill and Robert Smillie Primary Schools be changed to better align new housing developments in Larkhall to the school geographically closer and to balance pupil numbers more effectively; and (2) that the proposal be effective from the start of the school session in August 2026. 7 Mid-term Review of the Council Plan, Connect A report dated 26 March 2025 by the Chief Executive was submitted on the mid-term review of the Council Plan, Connect. Connect 2022 to 2027 had been approved in June 2022 and set out the Council’s key actions to be delivered over its 5-year term. As the Plan approached the mid-point, a review had been undertaken to monitor progress and consider priorities in view of the changing internal and external pressures impacting on the Council. The mid-term review did not change the core elements of the current Council Plan, namely the vision, values, priorities or outcomes. However, to take account of changes that had taken place since the Plan was written, and to reflect the likely demands of the next few years, the mid-term review highlighted the importance of the following 3 themes:- the financial challenges facing local government messages around transformation and service redesign tackling poverty and prevention as an overarching consideration in the work of the Council – fairness and the need to support the most vulnerable The themes had been introduced into the Council Plan through revised wording around the priorities and were supported by significant new material to set the context and tone of the Plan. The 6 outcomes within Connect had also been reviewed by Resources to ensure they were up- to-date and in line with current service delivery models. The proposed updated Council Plan, following the mid-term review, was attached as Appendix 1 to the report. The Head of Communications and Strategy responded to members’ questions:- confirming that climate was a priority within the Council Plan and agreed to include a reference to the impact of climate related severe weather events advising that the Council Plan took a pan South Lanarkshire approach and did not focus on localities, which would be picked up in specific Resource and Service plans advising that work was about to start on the next Council Plan and agreed to look at a focus on support for care experienced young people when developing this 9
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The Chair, as the Chair of the Community Planning Partnership Board, agreed to take forward a suggestion to consider input from agencies that dealt with sustainability. The Committee decided: that the draft updated Council Plan, following the mid-term review, be approved, subject to the inclusion of reference to the impact of climate related severe weather events. 8 Breastfeeding and Return to Work Policy A report dated 3 April 2025 by the Executive Director (Finance and Corporate Resources) was submitted providing an update on:- the Council’s Breastfeeding and Return to Work Policy the Council registering for the Breastfeeding Friendly Scotland (BFS) Scheme the Council’s next steps toward becoming an accredited Breastfeeding Friendly Scotland Employer Information was provided on the key policy changes and updates which had been informed from the NHS and benchmarking with other local authorities’ policies. The Committee decided: (1) that the Breastfeeding and Return to Work Policy, attached as Appendix 1 to the report, be approved; (2) to note that the Council had registered for the Breastfeeding Friendly Scotland (BFS) Scheme; and (3) to note the Council’s next steps, as detailed at section 5, to submit an application to become an accredited Breastfeeding Friendly Scotland Employer (Bronze) in the coming months. 9 Recommendations Referred by Resource Committees A report dated 2 April 2025 by the Chief Executive was submitted on recommendations referred to this Committee by the Housing and Technical Resources Committee of 26 February 2025 and the Social Work Resources Committee of 26 March 2025. The recommendation of the Housing and Technical Resources Committee was that the revised South Lanarkshire Council Housing Repairs Policy be approved for implementation from 5 May 2025. The recommendation of the Social Work Resources Committee was that the proposed changes to the current Adoption Allowance Scheme be approved. The Committee decided: (1) that the revised South Lanarkshire Council Housing Repairs Policy be approved for implementation from 5 May 2025, as referred by the Housing and Technical Resources Committee of 26 February 2025; and (2) that the proposed changes to the current Adoption Allowance Scheme be approved, as referred by the Social Work Resources Committee of 26 March 2025. [Reference: Minutes of Housing and Technical Resources Committee of 26 February 2025 (Paragraph 11) and Minutes of Social Work Resources of 26 March 2025 (Paragraph 9)] 10
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10 Composition of the Council and Membership Places A report dated 8 April 2025 by the Chief Executive was submitted advising of a recent change to the composition of the Council following the resignation of Councillor Corbett from the Conservative Group to join Reform UK and the proposed allocation of committee places. The Head of Administration and Legal Services provided a verbal update advising that Councillor Lambie had resigned from the Clydesdale Licensing Board (Division 1) and it was proposed that Councillor Corbett would take up that place. The Committee decided: (1) that the current political composition of the Council, as detailed in section 3.3 of the report, be noted; (2) that Councillor Corbett be replaced by Councillor Lockhart on Community and Enterprise Resources Committee; (3) that Councillor Corbett be replaced by Councillor McCreary on Licensing Committee and that Councillor Nelson fill the vacant place as a substitute member; (4) that Councillor Corbett be replaced by Councillor Lockhart as a substitute member on Planning Committee; (5) that Councillor Corbett be replaced by Councillor Lockhart as a substitute member on Planning Local Review Body; (6) that Councillor Corbett be replaced by Councillor Nelson as a substitute member on Climate Change and Sustainability Committee; (7) that Councillor Corbett be replaced by Councillor Nelson as a substitute member on Housing and Technical Resources Committee; (8) that Councillor Corbett be replaced by a Conservative Group member on the following:- Education Appeals Committee (from those members/substitute members not serving on Education Resources Committee) Appeals Panel/Grievance and Disputes Panel (from those members/substitute members not serving on Finance and Corporate Resources Committee) (9) that Councillor Lockhart be replaced by Councillor Corbett on the Rural Task Force, with Councillor Lambie appointed as substitute member; (10) that Councillor Corbett be appointed as a substitute member on the following:- Executive Committee Planning Committee Education Resources Committee Finance and Corporate Resources Committee Climate Change and Sustainability Committee Employee, Equalities, Diversity and Inclusion Forum Standards and Procedures Advisory Forum (11) that Councillor Lambie, as Leader of the Reform UK Group, be appointed to the Community Wealth Building Commission; (12) that, as outlined at section 6 of the report, one of the places currently held by the SNP Group on COSLA be allocated to the Liberal Democrat Group; 11
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(13) that Councillor Lambie be replaced by Councillor Corbett on the Clydesdale Licensing Board (Division 1); and (14) that authority be delegated to the Chief Executive, in consultation with the relevant political groups, to finalise any outstanding memberships in implementation of the foregoing recommendations, with a copy of the committee and forum memberships circulated following confirmation. 11 Nomination of Trustee to South Lanarkshire Leisure and Culture Board A report dated 11 April 2025 by the Executive Director (Finance and Corporate Resources) was submitted on the nomination of a trustee to the South Lanarkshire Leisure and Culture (SLLC) Board. The revised governance arrangements and constitution for SLLC were approved by the Council at its meetings on 23 June 2021 and 15 June 2022, respectively. The constitution set out the membership of the SLLC Board which included 14 charity trustees made up of 5 elected members or officers of the Council, 1 representative of the trade unions and 8 who were neither an elected member nor an officer of the Council. The constitution also set out eligibility criteria and the appointment process for trustees. This process required the Council to give written notice to SLLC for the appointment of a trustee, and to be guided by SLLC’s Nominations Committee in relation to the selection of appropriate trustees. There were currently 3 vacant positions for elected members or officers of the Council on the SLLC Board and Councillor Richard Nelson had intimated his interest in an appointment to this Board. The Committee decided: that Councillor Richard Nelson be nominated to fill one of the vacant trustee positions for elected members or officers of the Council on the South Lanarkshire Leisure and Culture Board. [Reference: Minutes of 2 October 2024 (Paragraph 8) and Minutes of South Lanarkshire Council of 23 June 2021 (Paragraph 5) and 15 June 2022 (Paragraph 9)] 12 Scottish Government’s Call for Evidence to Inform the National Tackling Child Poverty Delivery Plan 2026 to 2031 A report dated 3 April 2025 by the Interim Executive Director (Education Resources) was submitted advising of the response from the Council to the call for evidence from the Scottish Government to inform the next National Child Poverty Delivery Plan 2026 to 2031. The Child Poverty (Scotland) Act 2017 aimed to measure, tackle and report on activity to mitigate child poverty issues in Scotland. The Act introduced a requirement for local authorities and relevant health boards to prepare Local Child Poverty Action Reports (LCPARs) as soon as reasonably practicable after the end of each reporting year. Feedback on South Lanarkshire’s LCPARs continued to be overwhelmingly positive. The Council’s response to the call for evidence was attached as Appendix 1 to the report. The Interim Executive Director (Education Resources) responded to a member’s question in relation to the next update of the LCPAR. 12
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The Committee decided: that the response to the call for evidence from the Scottish Government to inform the next National Child Poverty Delivery Plan 2026 to 2031, attached as Appendix 1 to the report, be noted. 13 South Lanarkshire Integration Joint Board Strategic Commissioning Plan 2025 to 2028 A report dated 31 March 2025 by the Director, Health and Social Care was submitted providing an update on the new Integration Joint Board (IJB) Strategic Commissioning Plan 2025 to 2028. The Public Bodies (Joint Working) (Scotland) Act 2014 required IJBs to prepare and agree a 3- year Strategic Commissioning Plan that set out how resources would be directed to secure better health and wellbeing outcomes. The Strategic Commissioning Plan 2025 to 2028, which had been approved by the IJB at its meeting on 18 March 2025, was attached as Appendix 1 to the report. The Director, Health and Social Care responded to a member’s questions in relation to prevention services and the relationship with the voluntary sector. The Committee decided: that the content of the report be noted. 14 South Lanarkshire Council Net Zero Route Map - Scope 1 Organisational Emissions A report dated 2 April 2025 by the Executive Director (Community and Enterprise Resources) was submitted providing an update on:- new climate change legislation and forthcoming changes to national carbon reduction targets the position of Council services in reducing organisational carbon emissions the agreed proposal to develop a Council net zero route map for Scope 1 organisational emissions The Executive Director (Community and Enterprise Resources) responded to a member’s questions in relation to:- the plans to meet the national targets for phasing out new petrol or diesel light commercial vehicles, as outlined at paragraph 4.2.2. of the report the date of the net zero route map The Committee decided: (1) that the publication of the Climate Change (Emissions Reduction Targets) (Scotland) Act 2024, as detailed in section 3.1. of the report, be noted; (2) that the Council’s position, to date, in reducing its organisational carbon emissions, as detailed in section 3.4. of the report, be noted; and (3) that the decision by the Climate Change and Sustainability Committee on 19 March 2025 to approve the development of a Council net zero route map for Scope 1 organisational emissions, as detailed in section 4.3. of the report, be noted. 13
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In terms of Standing Order No 14, the Chair adjourned the meeting at 11.15am and reconvened at 11.21am 15 Urgent Business There were no items of urgent business. 16 Exclusion of Press and Public The Committee decided: that, in terms of Section 50A(4) of the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973, the press and public be excluded from the meeting for the following item(s) of business on the grounds that it was likely that there would be disclosure of exempt information in terms of Paragraphs 6 and 9 of Part I of Schedule 7A of the Act. 17 Heritable Disposal by Clyde Gateway Developments Limited A report dated 2 April 2025 by the Executive Director (Community and Enterprise Resources) was submitted requesting approval, as was required by the Members’ Agreement, for Clyde Gateway Developments Limited to dispose of its remaining heritable interests at Clyde Gateway East Business Park. Information was provided on the Members’ Agreement between South Lanarkshire Council, Glasgow City Council and Scottish Enterprise, as members of the Clyde Gateway Urban Regeneration Company. The Committee decided: that the Council, as a member of Clyde Gateway Urban Regeneration Company, approve Clyde Gateway Developments Limited disposing of its remaining heritable interests at Clyde Gateway East Business Park. Councillors Brown and Cowie, as Partner Directors of Clyde Gateway Urban Regeneration Company Board, made a transparency statement at this item on the agenda 18 Former Bairds Building, Hamilton A report dated 4 April 2025 by the Executive Director (Community and Enterprise Resources) was submitted seeking approval to waive the Council’s pre-emption right over the former Bairds building in Hamilton to allow its sale to a third party. Information was provided on:- the background to the sale of the building the identification of the building as a key site to achieve the vision for the town centre the previous approval by the Executive Committee at its meeting on 8 May 2024 to waive the Council’s pre-emptions right to allow the sale of the building, which had unfortunately, not been completed Officers responded to members’ questions in relation to various aspects of the report. 14
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The Committee decided: (1) that the Council waive its pre-emption right over the former Bairds building to allow the sale of the building by J D Wetherspoon PLC to a third party and subsequent redevelopment of the site; and (2) that the Head of Administration and Legal Services be authorised to enter into such agreement to affect the discharge as was in the best interests of the Council. [Reference: Minutes of 8 May 2024 (Paragraph 15), 13 February 2019 (Paragraph 11) and 21 February 2024 (Paragraph 6)] 19 Regent Shopping Centre, Hamilton - Proposed Assignation A report dated 3 April 2025 by the Executive Director (Community and Enterprise Resources) was submitted requesting approval for consent to be granted to the assignation of the tenant’s interest in the lease of the Regent Shopping Centre in Hamilton by the current tenant, Maration Limited to Parial Limited. Information was provided on the proposed sale of the Centre and the requirement for the Council, as holder of the ground lease, to consent to the assignation of the tenant’s interest. The Committee decided: that authority be delegated to the Executive Director (Community and Enterprise Resources), in consultation with the Head of Administration and Legal Services, to issue consent to the assignation of the tenant’s interest in the lease of the Regent Shopping Centre, Hamilton by the current tenant, Maration Limited to Parial Limited on terms that were in the best interests of the Council. 15
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Report Agenda Item Report to: Executive Committee Date of Meeting: 28 May 2025 Report by: Executive Director (Finance and Corporate Resources) Subject: Update to Funding 1. Purpose of Report 1.1. The purpose of the report is to:- [purpose] advise Members of additional funding that has been made available to the Council by the Scottish Government and other external sources since the last report to this Committee (12 March 2025) [1purpose] 2. Recommendation(s) 2.1. The Committee is asked to approve the following recommendation(s):- [recs] (1) that the additional funding totalling £13.592 million, detailed in appendices 1 and 2, be noted. 3. Background 3.1. In year funding can change, and this can be in relation to funding for specific purposes or funding expected and already included in our budget planning. 3.2. Additional funding may either be paid through the General Revenue/Capital Grant mechanism or by the completion of appropriate grant claims. 3.3. Details of the additional funding is attached in appendices 1 and 2 of the report. The report details additional funding that has been reported by Resources as part of the additional resources’ notification process, as well as any additional funding that has increased the Council’s budget by more than £0.100 million. 4. Employee Implications 4.1. None. 5. Financial Implications 5.1. Additional Revenue funding of £12.665 million has been identified for 2025/2026. This is detailed in Appendix 1. 5.2. Additional Capital funding of £0.927 million has been identified for 2025/2026. This is detailed in Appendix 2. 5.3. The total additional funding is therefore, £13.592 million and Resource budgets will be updated to reflect this additional funding as required. Where appropriate, details of spending plans will be presented to Resource Committees for approval. 3 17
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6. Climate Change, Sustainability and Environmental Implications 6.1. There are no implications for climate change, sustainability or the environment in terms of the information contained in this report. 7. Other Implications 7.1. There are no other implications in terms of the information contained in this report. 8. Integrated Impact Assessment and Consultation Requirements 8.1. This report does not introduce a new policy, function or strategy or recommend a change to existing policy, function or strategy and, therefore, no impact assessment is required. 8.2. There was also no requirement to undertake any consultation in terms of the information contained in this report. Jackie Taylor Executive Director (Finance and Corporate Resources) 6 May 2025 Link(s) to Council Values/Priorities/Outcomes Accountable, Effective, Efficient and Transparent Previous References Executive Committee, 12 March 2025 List of Background Papers Additional Funding Grant Awards Contact for Further Information If you would like to inspect the background papers or want further information, please contact: Lorraine O’Hagan, Head of Finance (Strategy) Ext: 5637 (Tel: 01698 455637) E-mail: lorraine.o’hagan@southlanarkshire.gov.uk 18
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Appendix 1 Additional Revenue Funding Resource Description 2025/2026 £m Total £m Method Community and Enterprise No One Left Behind (NOLB) – Employability Funding of £4,683,431 provided for delivery of NOLB employability support for the financial year 2025/2026, supporting the vision for economic transformation and tackling child poverty. 4.683 4.683 Scottish Government Community and Enterprise No One Left Behind (NOLB) – Approach to Employability Funding of £102,000 for 2025/2026 provided to support the strategic aims of child poverty and transforming Scotland’s economy. This funding is a continuation of previous years, and a Tackling Poverty Coordinator is in post. 0.102 0.102 Scottish Government Community and Enterprise People and Place Local Authority Direct Award (Revenue) Revenue funding of £0.140m provided in connection with the People and Place Local Authority Direct Award active and sustainable travel behaviour change programme. 0.140 0.140 Transport Scotland Social Work Section 27 Grant Section 27 ring-fenced grant funding of £7.740m has been received from the Scottish Government for 2025/2026 for the purposes of delivering and commissioning Justice Social Work Services. 7.740 7.740 Scottish Government TOTAL REVENUE FUNDING 12.665 12.665 19
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Appendix 2 Additional Capital Funding Resource Description 2025/2026 £m Total £m Method Community and Enterprise Active Travel – Tier 1 Funding 2025/2026 The full award is £2.296 million, however, £1.439 million of Cycling, Walking and Safer Routes funding was already advised and is now rolled up into the Active Travel award. £0.857 million is the net increase. 0.857 0.857 Transport Scotland (via General Capital Grant) Community and Enterprise People and Place Local Authority Direct Award (Capital) Capital funding of £0.070m provided in connection with the People and Place Local Authority Direct Award active and sustainable travel behaviour change programme. 0.070 0.070 Transport Scotland TOTAL CAPITAL FUNDING 0.927 0.927 20
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Report Agenda Item Report to: Executive Committee Date of Meeting: 28 May 2025 Report by: Interim Executive Director (Education Resources) Subject: Update on the Expansion of Secondary Schools - Future Capacity Issues 1. Purpose of Report 1.1. The purpose of the report is to:- [purpose] • outline the progress on the secondary school programme for Holy Cross High School, St. Andrew’s and St. Bride’s High School and Uddingston Grammar School and to recommend an implementation plan • consider pupil growth, including new housing developments, in the identification of any other secondary schools potentially in need of building works. 2. Recommendation(s) 2.1. The Committee is asked to approve the following recommendation(s):- [recs] (1) that the expansion proposals for Holy Cross High School, St. Andrew’s and St. Bride’s High School and Uddingston Grammar School proceed to the detailed design and tender stage, be approved; and (2) that a City Deal Change Control Request to refine the City Deal funding across the schools (Section 7.2), be approved. 3. Background and Update 3.1. On 21 September 2022, the Executive Committee considered the report on Secondary School Estate - Future Capacity Issues and agreed to consider the need for Secondary School expansion following assessments of capacity issues at a number of schools. At that point, a funding bid was to be submitted to the Scottish Government’s Learning Estate Investment Programme (LEIP). The paper noted that dependent on funding, the priority would be the secondary school programme. 4. Capacity Requirements 4.1. The planning capacity of a school (shown in column 1 below) is calculated taking account of the teaching spaces available, the physical size of classrooms and maximum class sizes while also allowing flexibility for curriculum choice and the fact that classes will not always be at capacity. It differs from an efficient functional capacity which fully maximises classroom use and assumes full classes in all rooms. 4.2. Pupil projections include consideration to the numbers of actual children within the primary and secondary sectors based on the formal pupil census from October 2024, placing request trends, S5 and S6 staying on rates, and estimate pupil growth from housing developments. 4 21
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4.3. The planning capacity and updated pupil roll projections at each of the schools is identified below:- Table 1. Pupil Roll Predictions (October 24 Census) School Planning Capacity Actual 2023 Actual 2024 Est 2025 Est 2030 Addn’l pupils - new housing post 2030 Planning Capacity after building works Calderside Academy 1,392 1,272 1,247 1,252 1,362 64 Refer s5.2 Holy Cross High 1,377 1,432 1,452 1500 1,649 12 1,652 St Andrew's and St Bride's High 1,537 1,691 1,770 1,767 1,725 37 1,721 Uddingston Grammar ** 1,522 1,341 1,335 1,405 1,650 1 1,645 ** With the application of placing request refusals it is expected that this pupil forecast will reduce. In addition, the full impact of the change in catchment in the Newton Farm/Hallside area will not be experienced until 2030 and beyond. 4.4. Table 1 shows that both Holy Cross High School and St. Andrews and St. Brides High School are operating well above the planning capacity. This is currently being managed on a temporary basis by the creative use of all areas within the school e.g. making use of all available accommodation including spaces deemed as non-teaching areas. This suggests that there is some flexibility between the planning capacity of the school and the efficient functional capacity of a school building. However, there is a point at which this will begin to remove too much of such space used for additional pupil experiences such as nurture and the delivery of counselling interventions, visiting specialists, meeting rooms for multi-agency/parent meetings or reduces the curricular offer where class sizes run too low. Holy Cross HS will benefit from adaptation works for August 2025 in order to ease this pressure and better support the learning and teaching experience for pupils and staff. 4.5. Any pupil changes which may arise from the Newton Farm/Hallside Primary Schools consultation are not yet impacting on Uddingston Grammar School pupil roll projections as they will not take fuller affect until 2030 and beyond. 5. Secondary Schools Programme 5.1. Each of the secondary schools previously identified for consideration are detailed below, including an update on each. They are taken in turn. 5.2. Calderside Academy, Blantyre – Growth in pupil numbers at Calderside Academy has not, currently, been generated to the numbers previously predicted, primarily due to a slow down in housing completions within the catchment area. It is, therefore, proposed to place the expansion of Calderside Academy on hold and to undertake an annual review of pupil projections. 22
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5.3. The revised predicted pupil numbers in 2030 is 1,362 (30 under current planning capacity). However, post 2030 pupil numbers are estimated at 1,426, which is 34 pupils over current capacity. The school is also experiencing growth within its Additional Support Base and is currently utilising mainstream accommodation for this purpose. This expansion may continue in subsequent years and could reduce the overall mainstream capacity. 5.4. The school expansion would be required when pupil numbers increase to the level when action is necessary. 5.5. Holy Cross High School, Hamilton – The school is currently operating 75 pupils over its planning capacity. Internal adaptations to the existing school have been identified that could provide additional teaching accommodation for up to 145 pupils. The proposed new build extension will further increase the planning capacity to 1,652 pupils and is sufficient to cater for anticipated pupil growth. Predicted pupil numbers in 2030 are 1,649. 5.6. It is anticipated that internal adaptation works would commence in summer 2025 and for a further two years. Some elements of the adaptation works cannot be undertaken until the new build element is completed and occupied. Adaptation works would continue until summer 2027 with the new build extension completing spring/summer 2027. 5.7. St Andrews and St. Brides High School – The school is currently operating more than 200 pupils over its planning capacity. Internal adaptations to the existing school have been identified that could provide additional teaching accommodation for up to 69 pupils and would be completed for August 2026. The proposed new build extension will further increase the planning capacity to 1,721 pupils when the extension is complete in late 2026/early 2027. The predicted pupil numbers in 2030 is 1,725. This planning capacity would be very close to forecast pupil numbers. Education Resources will continue to monitor pupil numbers and housing completions, while at the same time evaluate further proposals to increase teaching accommodation should this be required. 5.8. Uddingston Grammar School - Internal adaptations were undertaken during 2022/2023 and 2023/2024 to increase the pupil capacity to 1,522 pupils. Current pupil roll projections show the next 2-3 years to reach around 1,400 pupils. A further review of internal and external space has been undertaken and some additional internal adaptations have been identified. The site has now largely been maximised in terms of internal accommodation and there is little scope to provide additional external accommodation on the site. However, there is a potential site for a small building extension which could accommodate 1 Technical Classroom and 1 Home Economics Classroom. Prior to this being confirmed a detailed design and construction appraisal is required. It is proposed that these further works would be undertaken during 2026/2027 to be available to pupils for August 2027. 5.9. These further works would bring the overall school capacity to 1,645 pupils and pupil roll projections are 1,650 at 2030. This reflects current policy regarding placing requests as well as the impact of the change in catchment in the Newton Farm/Hallside area which will not be realised until 2030 (and beyond). Pupil numbers will continue to be monitored annually and any further works will be considered when numbers increase to a level where action may be necessary. 23
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5.10. Programme of Works. The target programme for the new build elements of Holy Cross High School, St. Andrew’s and St. Bride’s High School is for a construction start in early 2026 with completion in summer 2027. 5.11. A programme for the proposed adaptation works at the secondary schools has been established after further dialogue with the individual School Management Teams. These works would be undertaken predominantly during the summer school holiday periods of 2025, 2026 and 2027. 6. Remainder of the Secondary Estate 6.1. Education Resources have continued to monitor pupil numbers against capacity at the remainder of the Council’s secondary schools and a number of short-medium term emerging issues have been identified. 6.2. This includes Stonelaw High School where adaptation works, utilising existing developers’ contributions monies already received, are being planned to create 3 classrooms by reducing the size of the library space for August 2025. This is included within the 2025/2026 Capital Programme. Further assessment of opportunities to increase capacity will be undertaken for implementation in future years. Table 2. Stonelaw High School Information School Planning Capacity Actual 2023 Actual 2024 Est 2025 Est 2030 Addn’l pupils - new housing post 2030 Planning Capacity of building works Stonelaw High 1,392 1,325 1,353 1,375 1,577 22 1,460 6.3. Potential longer-term future pressures have also been identified at St. John Ogilvie High School, Carluke High School and Larkhall Academy. Capital funding has been identified to undertake internal adaptations at St John Ogilvie in summer 2025 to increase pupil capacity. Further investigation is required at St. John Ogilvie High School to assess the most appropriate way to deal with these issues. The potential issues at Carluke High School and Larkhall Academy are dependent on progression of the longer-term large-scale housing development opportunities, currently identified within the Adopted Local Development Plan. 6.4. All other secondary schools will continue to be monitored on an annual basis, however, no other secondary schools are predicted to be significantly over capacity at this time. 7. Financial Implications – Capital 7.1. The overall estimated cost for the works on the 3 secondary schools of Holy Cross High School, St. Andrew’s and St. Bride’s High School and Uddingston Grammar School has been identified as £18.518m. The funding package to support the 3 Secondary School projects is shown in Table 3 and is made up of Developer Contributions from a range of new housing developments in the affected school catchment areas together with City Deal Grant, as part of the overall City Deal Programme. 24
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Table 3. Estimate Costs Secondary School Projects Estimated Budget £m City Deal Funding £m Developers Contributions £m Total Funding Availability £m Expansion/Adaptations at: - Holy Cross High School - St ABS High School and - Uddingston Grammar School 18.518 13.520 4.998 18.518 7.2. In terms of the City Deal Funding in Table 3, the submission of a City Deal Change Control Request is required to refine the funding across the schools. This includes the realignment of City Deal funding from that outlined in the original Outline Business Case. 7.3. It is noted that the funding from developer contributions will be received in line with the housebuilding activity. The income streams which are dependent on the house- building market, will be impacted by economic conditions, and developments may not progress as planned. If the timing of developer contributions means a temporary shortfall in funding, then the Council will have to borrow to manage this on a cash-flow basis. 8. Financial Implications – Revenue 8.1. There will be increased property costs such as rates, utilities, facilities services and unitary charge and the council has acknowledged the future revenue consequences of these capital works within its medium-term financial strategy planning. The full property related costs would not be incurred until after each element of the project has been completed. An estimate of these is already included in the Council’s Budget Strategy across the years 2025/2026 to 2027/2028 (a total budget allocation of £1.520 million). 8.2. The costs noted in section 8.1 do not include any additional teaching staff or school support assistant requirements. (refer section 9 below). 9. Employee Implications 9.1. For all mainstream secondary schools, the standard teacher staffing formulae is applied annually and is dependent primarily on pupil numbers for the coming year. An element of additional school support assistants will likely also be required dependent upon the needs of children. This will have an implication as to the annual revenue costs referred to in section 8. Requirements around teacher and school support assistants staffing will be covered within the Council’s Revenue Budget Strategy. 10. Next Steps 10.1. As both Holy Cross High School and St. Andrew’s and St. Bride’s High School are already operating beyond their planning capacity, it is proposed to progress planning and delivery of the smaller internal adaptations works. This would be undertaken via a ‘request for work’ through the PPP contract and will help to release teaching accommodation back to the school and ease the pressure being experienced. These works would be undertaken predominantly during the summer school holiday periods of 2025, 2026 and 2027. Works at Uddingston Grammar School will be developed over 2025 for implementation in 2026. 25
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10.2. In respect of the new build elements at Holy Cross High School and St. Andrew’s and St. Bride’s High School detailed design and tender documentation preparation are underway and are targeted to be submitted in September 2025. Subject to formal approval of tenders, the construction works would be targeted to commence in early 2026 and be completed summer 2027. 11. Climate Change, Sustainability and Environmental Implications 11.1. The new build elements will be designed to meet the requirements of the Council energy performance certificate rating of ‘A’, which will significantly reduce carbon emissions from the building during its lifespan. This will be accomplished by utilising renewable energy technologies. 11.2. Throughout the design stage, opportunities will be explored to utilise DfMA (Design for Manufacture and Assembly) and MMC (Modern Methods of Construction) processes to minimise waste on site, including a review of the mechanical, electrical and plumbing system design to pre-fabricate off-site, factory applied pre-fire painted structural steel work. 12. Other Implications 12.1. None. 13. Integrated Impact Assessment and Consultation Requirements 13.1. The monitoring of pupil growth and measuring this against the capacity of the school is not a new policy, however, given the capital works required, an integrated impact assessment will be completed as the project is progressed. Consultation has taken place within Education Resources, and also with Community and Enterprise and Housing and Technical Resources. Anne Donaldson Interim Executive Director (Education Resources) 9 May 2025 Link(s) to Council Values/Priorities/Outcomes ♦ Inspiring learners, transforming learning, strengthening partnerships ♦ Our children and young people thrive ♦ Accountable, effective, efficient and transparent Previous References Executive Committee Report 21 September 2022: Secondary School Estate - Future Capacity Issues Proposal for a New Social, Emotional and Behavioural Needs (SEBN) Secondary School building (KEAR School) List of Background Papers ♦ None. Contact for Further Information If you would like to inspect the background papers or want further information, please contact:- David Hinshelwood, Interim Head of Education (Support Services and School Estate) Tel: 01698 845 4468 (ext. 4468) E-mail: David.Hinshelwood@southlanarkshire.gov.uk 26
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Report Agenda Item Report to: Executive Committee Date of Meeting: 28 May 2025 Report by: Executive Director (Community and Enterprise Resources) Subject: Climate Emergency Fund 2025/2026 – Project List 1. Purpose of Report 1.1. The purpose of the report is to:- [purpose] provide Executive Committee with an update on the recently announced Scottish Government funded Climate Emergency Fund 2025/2026 seek approval from Executive Committee for the proposed spend profile for the fund within South Lanarkshire Council [1purpose] 2. Recommendation(s) 2.1. The Executive Committee are asked to approve the following recommendation(s):- [recs] (1) that the recommended spend profile for the Climate Emergency Fund 2025/2026 allocation for South Lanarkshire Council be approved. [1recs] 3. Background 3.1. In the 2025/2026 Scottish Budget on 4 December 2024, it was announced that, as part of the Local Government Settlement, an allocation of £40 million nationally has been provided for Climate Emergency Funding. This is fully funded from one-off ScotWind funding. 3.2. The Council’s share of this funding is £2.198 million and is included in the General Capital Grant funding from the Scottish Government. Details of the climate fund were presented to full Council on 26 February 2025 as part of the 2025/2026 Capital Programme Update, and it was agreed that a list of potential climate projects would be brought back to Elected Members for approval at the June 2025 Executive Committee. 3.3. In March 2025, the Council was advised that the purpose of this funding is to scale up existing projects such as renewable energy, public transport and active travel networks; this is not an exhaustive list of eligible project areas and other suggestions with a clear benefit in terms of addressing the climate emergency were considered. Local authorities have also been encouraged to invest in new and innovative projects that will tackle the climate emergency, particularly opportunities that will also stimulate the economy and provide additional jobs. 3.4. In terms of reporting requirements, the Council has been advised that the Scottish Government will likely require feedback on the outcomes being delivered by the spend. Although the Council has control over how this allocation is spent, the fund must be spent on projects which fit the criteria and for which evidence can be provided, enabling transparent reporting to the Scottish Government. 5 27
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4. Project Proposals 4.1. In identifying the list of projects within South Lanarkshire, a series of meetings and discussions were held with Enterprise and Sustainable Development Services; Roads, Transportation and Fleet Services; Facilities, Waste and Grounds Services; Property Services, Education Resources and Finance and Corporate Resources. Further meetings were then held with proposed project lead officers to better understand project scope, costs and timescales; and discussions have taken place with Finance and Corporate Resources to confirm proposal eligibility. 4.2. The table below details the list of proposed projects with lead Service, cost, any substitution arrangements, and timeline for delivery noted against each project. Deliverability of the projects, and eligibility in line with the fund priorities, have been key to their selection: Project Project detail Timescales Lead Cost £m Clyde Walkway repairs Clyde walkway is part of the national path network and has a number of wooden structures stairs and boardwalks which despite being repaired are now needing replaced. These are large structures in remote inaccessible locations which need to be dismantled, and then new ones built on site. Benefits of undertaking this work are: greater use of the national walkway so improving health and access; and mitigating the reputational risk of not allowing safe access to the walkway. Confirmed deliverable by March 2026 FWG Services 0.540 Nature Restoration Fund top-up Top-up funding for existing projects delivered through Nature Restoration Fund (NRF). £550k funding for project anticipated through NRF. The focus of the additional funding to the right will be on clearing areas for replanting, improved signage, expanding pollinators for the 17 LNRs, upgrading or putting in new paths, and temporary staff costs to carry our survey work. Benefits of the project are linked to: improving people’s health by creating better access; and compliance with legislation linked to biodiversity and climate change. Confirmed deliverable by March 2026 FWG Services 0.200 Country parks upgrades Funding to carry out upgrade works in two country parks in line with Country Parks Masterplans. This additional money will help with infrastructure such as the pathway network, small wooden structures, bridges, etc. Benefits of this project are: improved access and health benefits; and mitigating reputational risk of paths being closed due to required repairs. Confirmed deliverable by March 2026 1 FWG Services 0.140 Low carbon road resurfacing Warm-mix asphalt trials at five sites. The condition of the current roads asset is such that, the existing Roads budget, including the recent £4m additional funding, is needed to deliver tried and tested solutions related to priority scheme lists for roads surfacing; it does not cover trials. Confirmed deliverable by March 2026 RTF Services 0.462 1 Potential to scale up project if more Climate Emergency Fund becomes available. 28
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Project Project detail Timescales Lead Cost £m Benefits of the project include less carbon/energy in manufacture, potential for lower maintenance requirement and longer lifespan. Traffic signal replacement Replacement of halogen traffic signals with LED alternatives in challenging locations where full crossing/junction replacement is required due to compatibility issues caused by the age of the assets. There are financial benefits to the Council in undertaking this project: changing to low voltage traffic signals is more energy efficient and therefore cost efficient. Confirmed deliverable by March 2026 RTF Services 0.250 New EV charging installation Installation of electric fleet charging infrastructure at SLC depots (£120k) and Montrose Crescent (£30k), thereby supporting the continued electrification of the Council’s vehicle fleet. The proposal for Montrose Crescent car park will increase the number of charge points from 16 to 32. Site surveys also required to determine capacity at some sites. Potential requirement for Distribution Network Operator applications at sites to upgrade capacity. Immediate benefits of the transition to EVs are reduced emissions and lower fuel and maintenance costs. Confirmed deliverable by March 2026 RTF Services 0.150 Composting pilot Fully fund pilot and subsequent roll-out (on assumption of pilot success). Composters would only be for grass and garden waste – not food waste. Promotion costs for composting initiative included. Confirmed deliverable by March 2026 Pilot to run first FWG Services 0.015 Disposable dishware reduction pilot Pilot the removal of disposable plates and cutlery in high schools, replacing with re-usable plates, cups and cutlery. Project would run from August 2025 (in new school year). Consultation with Education Resources in advance of roll-out. The pilot will evaluate any benefits of replacing disposable items with re-usable items. Confirmed deliverable by March 2026 FWG Services 0.011 Sports floodlighting upgrade Upgrade of floodlighting from metal halide to LED at three sports facilities – Bent Pavilion; Ballerup Pavilion; and Jock Stein Centre. Confirmed deliverable by March 2026 Property Services 0.114 PV installation – South Lanarkshire Lifestyles Carluke Installation of PV panels following SPF 24/25 feasibility work on non-school council buildings. Potential for 14.84% monthly saving on energy bills. Confirmed deliverable by March 2026 On site Sept/Oct 2025 Property Services 0.066 Smart storage heating controls Installation of Connected Response smart controls in flats which have existing storage heating systems (within a proportion of SLC housing stock – estimated 250 property pilot). Estimate of 35% saving for tenants across their heating and hot water, from the efficiency of dynamic weather compensation. Confirmed deliverable by March 20262 Housing Services 0.070 2 If no match funding found for project, then project can be downsized. 29
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Project Project detail Timescales Lead Cost £m Seeking £70k match from Social Housing Net Zero Fund. Heat Network / Heat Pump Feasibility Studies Funding to enable further development of heat network and heat pump opportunities across South Lanarkshire3. Potential feasibilities and pilots identified include: • study to further develop one of the nine potential heat network opportunities identified within LHEES. • heat pump accelerator pilot in partnership with Glasgow City Council to demonstrate effectiveness of heat pumps • heat network feasibility with Scottish Water Horizons exploring Bothwell Road based network. The study will assess the costs and benefits of a heat networks and heat pumps, including a consideration of impact on tenants and owners. Confirmed deliverable by March 2026 Housing Services 0.090 KEAR Campus Sustainability Measures Costs to carry out feasibility study and options analysis (£20k) on potential new low carbon heating and hot water systems, leading to future installation at KEAR Campus as part of any wider upgrade works to be undertaken. Installation of PV panels at KEAR Campus to increase renewable energy generation on-site (£50k). Confirmed deliverable by March 2026 Education Resources 0.070 School uniform recycling pilot Develop online system/app to allow families to access free reusable school uniforms which can then be delivered to, and collected from, local school. Aligns with Youth Forum’s three main priorities. Confirmed deliverable by March 2026 Start of new school year. Education Resources 0.020 Total cost 2.198 4.3. The proposed spend profile for the Climate Emergency Fund 2025/2026 allocation is equal to the allocated amount of £2.198 million. The budget will be managed throughout the year to ensure that the fund achieves full spend, and that there is no overspend. A flexible approach will be taken to the management of the Fund, ensuring that where risk of overspend or underspend is identified the spend profile can be adjusted accordingly to ensure full spend within budget and timescales, potentially bringing in replacement projects aligning with Fund criteria. Regular progress meetings will be scheduled with project lead officers to facilitate this. Individual projects will be managed by the project leads over the course of the delivery timeline. 5. Employee Implications 5.1. There are no employee implications as a result of this report. 3 Potential to carry out further studies if more Climate Emergency Fund becomes available. 30
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5.2. In terms of employee implications, lead officers will be asked to lead on project delivery and to communicate regular updates to Sustainability Team officers coordinating the Climate Emergency Fund 2025/2026 allocation. This would include any project changes or issues such as underspend and overspend concerns, and substitutions. 6. Financial Implications 6.1. Section 3.2. details the funding available in-year of £2.198 million with a breakdown of proposed spend included at 4.2. There are financial risks related to ability to procure contracts/materials within required timescales. This will be monitored and managed as part of the overall spend of the fund, as set out in 4.3. Council-wide, the risk of underspend/overspend of the full Capital Programme is managed through four weekly Investment management meetings. Regular updates on spend associated with the Climate Emergency Funding will be provided to Finance and Corporate Resources and reported as part of the overall Council capital programme to committee. 7. Climate Change, Sustainability and Environmental Implications 7.1. Projects noted at Section 4 have been all been proposed in alignment with the specified priorities of the Climate Emergency Fund, notably the ambition to accelerate and scale up action to address the climate emergency. 7.2. The proposed projects will make a significant contribution towards delivering the priorities identified within South Lanarkshire Council’s Sustainable Development and Climate Change Strategy. Further, the projects also align with the Council’s commitment to the three duties of the Climate Change (Scotland) Act 2009: to contribute to national emissions reduction targets; help deliver the national adaptation programme; and to act sustainably. 8. Other Implications 8.1. The main risk associated with the Council’s Capital Programme, which includes the Climate Emergency Funding, is an underspend/overspend. The risk has been assessed as low given the detailed project management plans prepared and monitored for each project. 9. Integrated Impact Assessment and Consultation Requirements 9.1. An Integrated Impact Assessment (IIA) has been undertaken as part of the full Capital Programme which includes the Climate Emergency Fund allocation. Project specific IIAs should be undertaken where determined to be appropriate and at the appropriate point in development for the agreed projects. 9.2. Consultation was undertaken with relevant services to identify project options for the 2025/26 Climate Emergency Fund allocation. David Booth Executive Director (Community and Enterprise Resources) 8 May 2025 31
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Link(s) to Council Values/Priorities/Outcomes Values Focused on people and their needs Ambitious, self-aware and improving Fair, open and sustainable Priorities We will work to put people first and reduce inequality We will work towards a sustainable future in sustainable places We will work to recover, progress and improve Outcomes Our children and young people thrive Good quality, suitable and sustainable places to live Caring, connected, sustainable communities People live the healthiest lives possible Inspiring learners, transforming learning, strengthening partnerships Previous References South Lanarkshire Council, 26 February 2025, 2025/2026 Capital Programme Update List of Background Papers None Contact for Further Information If you would like to inspect the background papers or want further information, please contact:- Adam Wallace – Sustainability Adviser E-mail: adam.wallace@southlanarkshire.gov.uk 32
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Report Agenda Item Report to: Executive Committee Date of Meeting: 28 May 2025 Report by: Executive Director (Community and Enterprise Resources) Subject: Delivering and Enabling Commercial Space - Programme of Activity 1. Purpose of Report 1.1. The purpose of the report is to:- [purpose] advise the Committee on the Glasgow City Region Delivering and Enabling Commercial Space Programme update the Committee on South Lanarkshire’s submissions to the Programme, amount awarded from the Programme and next steps [1purpose] 2. Recommendation(s) 2.1. The Committee is asked to approve the following recommendation(s):- [recs] (1) that the Council’s identified Priority Projects, as set out in Table 1, be taken forward, along with any actions required, to ensure the delivery of the investment within the timescales and other criteria set out in the Programme. [1recs] 3. Background 3.1. In February 2024, the Glasgow City Region (GCR) Cabinet agreed that an allocation of £64.57m from the City Deal Infrastructure Fund, previously allocated for improvements in connectivity to Glasgow Airport, should be allocated towards a new, regional project of significant scale, allowing the City Deal to support new opportunities and priorities which have emerged since the initial Programme was developed in 2013/2014. 3.2. The GCR Cabinet also agreed that, as required by the City Deal Assurance Framework, the Programme Prioritisation Framework (PPF) process be used to identify the new regional project, with the identification of projects coming through an Expression of Interest (EOI) process open to all Member Authorities (MAs). This process was to be carried out over a 12-week period from February to May 2024 but was subsequently extended to September 2024 due to the General Election. 6 33
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3.3. At the conclusion of the process, the “Enabling Commercial Space Programme” EOI had ranked highest based on: deliverability and financial risk being spread across eight local authorities, rather than concentrated on one Member Authority the proposal addressing a Region-wide, significant need for commercial space delivering Region-wide Inclusive Growth with all MAs benefiting from investment to deliver commercial space, thereby reducing potential displacement effects from concentrating investment in one area of the Region 4. The Enabling Commercial Space Programme 4.1. Throughout GCR, it has been identified that commercial and industrial stock is at or approaching obsolescence. This market failure requires intervention if the Regional Economic Strategy’s challenges are to be addressed. The delivery of new and refurbishment of existing commercial space will contribute towards meeting current demand for new industrial space within GCR, where there is a strong body of evidence of structural challenges and market failure within the commercial property market. Enterprise and Sustainable Development Services has reported this previously at a local level through the Employment Land and Property Market Analysis Report presented to Community and Enterprise Resources Committee in November 2024 and subsequently to all four Area Committees. 4.2. The main investment objectives of the Enabling Commercial Space Programme are: to address market failure in areas of GCR where there are particular barriers in the development of new or refurbished commercial and industrial floorspace to create flexible business space capable of meeting business requirements for a broad range of sectors to create serviced industrial land and capable of immediate development to create opportunities for employment and inclusive growth with particular emphasis on making connections to local communities, schools and colleges in preparation for employment, particularly in areas of deprivation and targeting people drawn from disadvantaged or Protected Characteristic groups including women and young people bringing sites on the Vacant and Derelict Land Register back into use to attract mobile and private sector investment both from abroad and from indigenous companies to create a sustainable, high quality business locations to support SMEs, supply chain businesses, start-ups 4.3. The proposal is to establish a programme of funding to support direct delivery of new, commercial space and through enabling land, new build construction, and the refurbishment of existing stock. The interventions will be targeted to address instances of market failure in the worst performing areas of GCR. 4.4. The programme will allow MAs to utilise funds to address market failure directly, create new commercial space for lease or enable development of commercial stock through remediating and/or servicing of sites. This programme seeks to address a gap in the currently available public sector funding and will focus on support for businesses more likely to be within the foundational economy. 34
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4.5. The programme will meet local demand, such as for general commercial space to relieve pressures on constrained local markets and may offer particular benefit to SME businesses and startups that will struggle to fund being sited in appropriate commercial space, and potentially businesses supporting wider supply chains and other high value commercial uses. 5. Progress to Date 5.1. The first steps undertaken by all MAs was to identify a long list of projects that meet the criteria of the Programme. Each of these projects was submitted to GCR as an expression of interest in September 2024. This long list allowed the Strategic Business Case to be developed and was approved by the GCR Cabinet in February 2025. 5.2. In South Lanarkshire’s case, an extensive piece of work was undertaken to identify appropriate projects that maximise the economic outputs within the area and have the potential to lever in further investment from partners. These projects support the findings of the Ryden Property Analysis Report previously reported to Community and Enterprise Resources Committee. The Council’s long list of projects as submitted in September 2024 is set out in Appendix 1. 5.3. Approval has now been given by the GCR Cabinet to move forward, and as a result of that process, the Council was allocated £11,075,919 from the overall programme. The allocation is to be supported by a further assessment process, as set out in section six below, and individual Full Business Cases (FBCs) to be approved in due course by both the Council and the GCR cabinet. 6. Next Steps 6.1. The allocation to the Council, although significant, is not sufficient to deliver all the projects listed in Appendix 1. The GCR PMO supplied a Shortlisting Framework to allow MAs to undertake a rigorous assessment for each project in order that each MA can identify a priority list of project(s). Each project has been assessed taking into consideration changes in circumstances, other commercial factors, leverage opportunities, deliverability and outputs. Executive Committee approval is sought for the priority-listed projects which will then become the project programme where delivery must be achieved by 2030. 6.2. Due to an external grant award, the Priority Projects now includes a new project, Industrial Unit Upgrade and Retrofit, not submitted at the time of the Long Listing process. This has been made possible due to a Regeneration Capital Grand Fund (RCGF) award received by the Council on 28 April 2025 of £963,000 to support Cathcart Road, thereby releasing monies for additional activity. The proposed Priority Projects are set out below, with further details provided in Section 7. Table 1 Location Est. Total Investment Proposed GCR Allocation Outputs Additionality Delivery and Ownership Cathcart Road, Rutherglen £2,075,919 £1,112,919 620 sq.m new commercial space. 17 jobs Existing South Lanarkshire Council (SLC) site brought back into commercial activity. Leverage of £963,000 RCGF to deliver project Delivery will be via the Council and will become part of the commercial property portfolio. Red Tree Labs, Shawfield £17,400,000 £9,000,000 3,700 sq.m offices, lab space, Leverage of £7,600,000 Clyde Gateway URC 35
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Innovation Campus (MBP) incubator and serviced production areas. 244 jobs dependent on final occupiers to deliver development. Funding package (subject to relevant formal approvals by each partner)- Clyde Gateway- £2.4m SE - £6.0m GCR - £9.0m Industrial Unit Upgrade and Retofit £963,000 £963,000 South Lanarkshire Council owned industrial unit(s) upgraded and brought back into economic use. Existing SLC property brought back into commercial use supporting the South Lanarkshire economy. Properties invested in will have previously been vacant or not contributing to the commercial vitality of the area. Delivery will be via the Council and properties will become part of commercial property portfolio 6.3. The Industrial Unit Upgrade and Retrofit Project will require to be approved by GCR via the standard change control process. Officers understand that the project is eligible and the steps to identify the specific property(ies) to invest in and the formal GCR processes will commence immediately, subject to Executive Committees approval. 6.4. Projects which have met the minimum scoring criteria will continue to be developed as far as possible to ensure they are ‘shovel ready’ for any additional GCR funding or external funding opportunities. We will also look at further new opportunities that satisfy the requirements of this funding programme. 7. Priority Projects 7.1. The Cathcart Road Net Zero Industrial Units will create two units totalling 620 sqm and providing the opportunity to support 13 jobs on completion. This project responds directly to the Employment Land and Property Market Analysis undertaken by Ryden which stated that to address the shortage of good quality industrial stock, the Council should look to intervene in the market to ensure new supply. A design team has been appointed with designs developing towards RIBA Stage 4. A planning application was submitted on 28 March 2025 with an anticipated site start in September 2025 and completion in the spring of 2026. 7.2. Full funding for the project was requested from the GCR programme during the Long Listing process, however, as detailed at paragraph 6.2 this project has been successful in receiving a RCGF award which has enabled officers to bring forward the new eligible project detailed at paragraph 7.5. 7.3. The Red Tree Labs project would be the second building on the Shawfield Phase 1/Magenta site and would be highly impactful as a visibly new four storey building acting as a further catalyst for the regeneration of Shawfield. A full design team is in place which has recently concluded the design to RIBA Stage 3. Planning consent has already been approved. RIBA Stage 4 design will be progressed during summer 2025, followed by a contractor tender exercise with a site start targeted by end 2025. A 60-week construction programme from December 2025 would allow completion late Q1 2027. Clyde Gateway is well placed to deliver the building and has the governance and procedures to do so as can be demonstrated on the adjacent site where the four storey £9.2m commercial office Red Tree Magenta has been delivered in addition to numerous other projects in recent years. 36
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7.4. The £17.4m project is subject to a funding package from several partners, all of which requires formal approvals by each partner. The indicative funding proposed is Clyde Gateway £2.4m, Scottish Enterprise £6.0m, GCR (via SLC) £9.0m. Funding will be confirmed by partners prior to the submission of the Full Business Case (FBC) for approval. 7.5 The Industrial Unit Upgrade and Retrofit project will address the shortage of good quality industrial stock available to the market. Council owned commercial stock that is unattractive to prospective tenants, vacant and not contributing fully to its economic potential will be the focus of this intervention. Improvements will include upgraded cladding, efficient heating and ventilation systems and net zero interventions. An energy efficiency grading of B will be aspired to. The core funding package is GCR (SLC) £0.963m. Further funding sources will continue to be investigated to support, enhance and expand this project. 7.6. Due to the ability to deliver the projects by 2030 and the leverage of additional funding, it is therefore recommended that Cathcart Road, Red Tree Labs and the Industrial Unit Upgrade and Retrofit projects be identified as the Council’s Priority Projects and be submitted to GCR for approval. The projects will then move to FBC and be subject to future Council and GCR approvals. It is intended that projects shortlisted to proceed to FBC will be developed with the award of grant funds to the local authority (or ALEO) to build and retain the capital assets developed in public sector ownership, with property leased on completion to private sector operators to ensure state subsidy compliance. 8. Employee Implications 8.1. The Cathcart Road and Industrial Unit Upgrade and Retrofit projects will be delivered by officers from the Enterprise and Sustainable Development Service within Community and Enterprise Resources. The Red Tree Labs project will be delivered by Clyde Gateway supported and monitored by Council officers. 9. Financial Implications 9.1. The costs for the Council in developing its projects will be met by the GCR programme, and up to 6% of the project costs are available for further project development and FBC preparation. Other external funding sources will continue to be investigated to further support and enhance the programme. 10. Climate Change, Sustainability and Environmental Implications 10.1. The Report was prepared having regard to the existing and emerging best practice around climate change and sustainability. It is intended to complement and comply with the Council’s and wider communities’ aspirations in the area. 11. Other Implications 11.1. Not identifying priority projects that can be delivered by 2030 risks the loss of this additional GCR investment. The performance of this sector has a significant impact on the local economy and employment opportunities. 12. Integrated Impact Assessment and Consultation Requirements 12.1. This report does not introduce a new policy, function or strategy or recommend a change to an existing policy, function or strategy and, therefore, no Integrated Impact Assessment is required. 37
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12.2. Consultations have been co-ordinated by Enterprise and Sustainable Development Services with a range of other Council Services who have an ongoing role in employment land and property within South Lanarkshire. This consultation and co- operation will continue throughout the duration of the initiative. David Booth Executive Director (Community and Enterprise Resources) 8 May 2025 Link(s) to Council Values/Priorities/Outcomes Accountable, effective, efficient and transparent Ambitious, self-aware and improving Fair, open and sustainable We will work towards a sustainable future in sustainable places We will work to recover, progress and improve Thriving business, fair jobs and vibrant town centres Caring, connected, sustainable communities Previous References 2025/2026 Capital programme Update - South Lanarkshire Council, 26th February 2025 Employment Land and Property Market Analysis Report – Community and Enterprise Committee, 26 November 2024 List of Background Papers None Contact for Further Information If you would like to inspect the background papers or want further information, please contact:- John Archibald, Project Development Officer Enterprise and Sustainable Development Services E-mail: john.archibald@southlanarkshire.gov.uk 38
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Appendix 1 – Long List of Projects Location Total Investment Bid to GCR Deliverables Potential GCR Outputs Langlands £5,903,080 £5,836,000 1,700sq.m commercial space New commercial space 47 jobs 35,000sq.m serviced development sites Once sites created potential for a future 9,000 sq.m business space Cathcart Road £2,075,919 £1,911,752 620 sq.m commercial space New commercial space 17 jobs Caldwellside £4,323,140 £4,323,140 1,200 sq.m Commercial space New commercial space 33 jobs 5,400 sq.m Site Servicing Potential for future business space Technology hub Magenta business park £5,500,000 £4,235,000 1,900 sq.m high value manufacturing industrial space Mixed use small business 46 jobs Red tree labs, Shawfield Innovation campus (mbp) £17,400,000 £13,398,000 3,700 sq.m offices, lab space, incubator and serviced production areas Research & dev space 244 jobs Shawfield innovation #2.0 £10,000,000 £7,700,000 4,645 sq.m advanced manufacturing unit for innovative production technologies Business space 96 jobs Canderside £24,158,000 £24,158,000 10,000 sq.m phase 1 of 30,000 sq.m. Distribution space Distribution space 105 jobs Clydebridge £35,125,000 £4,150,000 Site investigations and site studies Site investigations and site studies 0 jobs National distribution space 158 jobs if construction delivered 39
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Report Agenda Item Report to: Executive Committee Date of Meeting: 28 May 2025 Report by: Executive Director (Finance and Corporate Resources) Subject: Council Workforce Strategy and Plan 2025 to 2027 1. Purpose of Report 1.1. The purpose of the report is to:- provide the Executive Committee with an update on the Council Workforce Strategy and the Council and Resource Workforce Plans 2. Recommendation(s) 2.1 The Committee is asked to approve the following recommendation(s):- (1) that the contents of the report be noted; (2) that the Council Workforce Strategy and Workforce Plan be approved; and (3) that the update on Resource Workforce Plans be noted. 3. Background 3.1 The Council Workforce Strategy and Planning process provides the framework for workforce planning in the Council. The Strategy and Plans are aligned to current and future Council service needs and details the approach by the Council to ensure that the workforce required is in place to meet those needs. 3.2. In June 2024, Audit Scotland published the Best Value Thematic work in South Lanarkshire and the key actions identified were:- to produce an updated Workforce Strategy with accompanying workforce plans by March 2025 that the revisions should reflect alignments to the Council Plan and links to key Council initiatives and strategies, including Digital Transformation and Inclusion 3.3. Work has been ongoing since October 2024 and HR Business Managers have worked with Resources and the output has been:- production and analysis of comprehensive workforce data reports for Resources and the Council to understand the current workforce information 7 41
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use of the workforce planning toolkit to assess supply and demand against what is in place, identify any gaps. Key challenges, objectives, and actions are then developed to address the workforce gaps. Any risks that emerged were also considered the Resource actions have been collated to produce a Council Workforce Plan and related Resource plans 4. Council Workforce Strategy 4.1 The Council Workforce Strategy (attached at Appendix 1) outlines the workforce planning arrangements to enable the Council to have the required workforce in place to deliver the Council vision over the lifecycle of the plan. 4.2 The Workforce Strategy has been created to reflect the recommendations from the Audit Scotland - Best Value thematic work in February 2024 and is now aligned to the Council planning process in terms of a revised lifecycle of 2025 to 2027. The Strategy also has direct links with other key Council strategies to ensure these are considered as part of the workforce planning process. 4.3 The Strategy provides the national context in terms of key drivers of local government workforce challenges, in addition to local challenges and gaps in terms of workforce. The Strategy objectives and outcomes enable the delivery of effective workforce planning to ensure the right workforce is in place to support the delivery of the Council vision. 4.4. Across the Council, recruitment challenges and absence levels continue to impact on workforce availability and service delivery. The workforce planning process will identify specific actions in relation to this covering the following:- strategic approach to the Council’s overall vison for Maximising Attendance a Recruitment Strategy to ensure the tools are available to provide suitable candidates and enhance workforce supply 4.5. The Recruitment Strategy will ensure that the tools are made available to enhance candidate experience, as well as setting challenging performance targets and standards. This will make sure that the Council can attract the required workforce supply to enhance service delivery. 4.6. The strategic review of Maximising Attendance will clarify the vison for the Council’s approach to reducing absence, supporting employees and underpins to the Council. 4.7. The Council Workforce Strategy details the key workforce planning themes that the Council will progress during 2025 to 2027, and which are reflected in the Council Workforce Plan. (attached at Appendix 2). 42
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5. Resource Workforce Plans 5.1 Engagement and consultation to produce workforce plans has been primarily through HR Business Managers and Resource Management Teams. Resources undertook a horizon scanning exercise as part of the Resource planning process to identify key areas of focus. This, along with workforce data was used to complete workforce planning toolkit templates. In addition, there was review of previous actions (2022 to 2025) to identify any ongoing activity to be reflected in the 2025 to 2027 plans. 5.2 Resource workforce plans detail the key areas of focus for Resources for 2025 to 2027, the current resource workforce profiles, the key workforce challenges and actions identified to address challenges. 5.3 Key actions from Resource workforce plans are provided below:- Community and Enterprise – the challenges faced by the Resource are that there are difficulties in attracting and retaining employees. This is addressed through recruitment initiatives as well as internal development opportunities. For example, work is ongoing with the further education sector on course availability for professional posts to improve future workforce availability. Education - workforce planning consideration needs to take account of the needs of a changing education landscape, including education reform, the national improvement framework and national reviews. In addition, should class contact time reduction be introduced, the number of teachers will have to increase significantly. There is also a requirement to upskill the workforce and support digital transformation. Finance and Corporate – in the Resource there are continued service improvements relating to Digital Transformation, for example, the implementation of Oracle Fusion. There are challenges relating to the age profile of the workforce and recruitment and retention in professional posts – finance, procurement, legal and IT means potential for loss of skills and experience and difficulty with replacement. These challenges are addressed through succession planning and progression of existing staff and wider advertising strategies. Housing and Technical Resources – the recruitment and retention of employees in a competitive market and maintaining operations during a homelessness crisis is difficult. Action to promote good practice and the Council forward. Social Work – Within Social Work, the main challenges relate to recruitment and retention of professionally qualified staff and maintaining safe staffing levels. The actions include further development and promotion of career pathways into social care through initiatives such as the Care Academy. Recruitment to more rural areas within the South Lanarkshire area is difficult. 5.4 Resource Plans will be remitted to Resource Committees for approval in August and September 2025. 43
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6. The Council Workforce Plan The output from Resource Workforce Plans has been used to produce the overall Council Workforce plan, which includes the Council workforce profile, high level challenges and actions to address these challenges. A number of common challenges have emerged from Resource workforce plans, and these require to be reflected in the Council wide workforce plan. That plan provides an overview of key challenges which are detailed below:- recruitment attraction and retention transformation activity skills gaps delivery of key Council strategies such as Digital Transformation/Inclusion and climate change employee health and wellbeing The associated actions to address these areas include: revised recruitment practices a new Recruitment Strategy is being developed for the Council which will embed revised practices, for example looking at different ways of attracting staff such as recruitment fairs, alternative places to advertise, and using social media where appropriate, to address workforce supply issues development of ‘grow our own’ approach to attract and retain employees – this will increase retention with internal career pathways across the Council and will be supported by the new Learning and Development Strategy being developed robust succession planning practices – introduction of a process to develop future leaders and mitigate the loss of skills and experience across senior leadership teams. The management and leadership development programme is being refreshed manage employee impact of ongoing requirements for efficiency savings and service redesign and transformation – progress actions from transformational reviews and support change management across the Council support and development for delivery of key Council strategies – development of teams and individuals to deliver the Digital Strategy and Climate and Sustainability Strategy, this is in addition to activities to support delivery of resource plans maintain employee health and well-being – continued review and improvement of Maximising Attendance Policy to ensure sufficient and appropriate supports are available to employees to help them maintain their well-being and resilience The full Council Workforce Plan is attached as Appendix 2. 6.2. Plans will be monitored through Resource Management teams and updates provided to committee on an annual basis. 44
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7. Employee Implications 7.1. Having a Workforce Strategy and proactive workforce planning process in place ensures an effective workforce is in place to deliver Council services. 8. Financial Implications 8.1. There are no costs associated with undertaking the workforce planning process. 8.2. Planning for appropriate workforce arrangements demonstrates effective and efficient use of resources. 9. Climate Change, Sustainability and Environmental Implications 9.1. There are no implications for climate change, sustainability or for the environment on this report. 10. Other Implications 10.1. There are risks to the Council in not ensuring that there are clear links between the workforce planning process and the overall Council planning process. 11. Integrated Impact Assessment and Consultation Arrangements 11.1. This report does not introduce a new policy or strategy, and no impact assessments are required at this time. When the Workforce Strategy has been finalised consideration of impact assessment requirements will take place at that time. 11.2. Trade Unions have been involved in the draft of the plan and updated through updates to JTUC Executive. Resource workforce planning activity will be reported through Joint Consultative Committees. Jackie Taylor Executive Director (Finance and Corporate Resources) 2 May 2025 Links to Council Values/Priorities/Outcomes Values Focused on people and their needs Working with and respecting others Accountable, effective, efficient, and transparent Ambitious, self-aware, and improving Fair, open, and sustainable Excellent employer Priorities We will work to put people first and reduce inequality We will work towards a sustainable future in sustainable places We will work to recover, progress, and improve 45
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Outcomes Thriving business, fair jobs and vibrant town centres Caring, connected, sustainable communities Inspiring learners, transforming learning, strengthening partnerships Previous References None List of Background Papers Scotland’s Local Government Workforce Report 2024 Audit Scotland – Best Value thematic work in South Lanarkshire Council 2023-24 Contact for Further Information If you would like further information, please contact: - Michelle Milne, Head of Personnel Services Ext: 4330 (Tel: 01698 454330) E-mail: michelle.milne@southlanarkshire.gov.uk 46
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1 Appendix 1 47
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Contents 1. Introduction Page 3 2. Council Overview Page 4 3. Council Strategic and Operational Context page 6 4. National and Legislative Drivers Page 6 5. Council Workforce Challenges Page 7 6. Engagement and Consultation Page 9 7. Workforce Data Page 9 8. Workforce Strategy Objectives Page 9 9. Key Workforce Planning Themes Page 10 10. Key Responsibilities Page 15 11. Monitoring the Strategy and Workforce Plans Page 16 12. References Page 16 48
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1. Introduction The previous Workforce Strategy from 2016 provided the framework for the workforce planning process across the Council. This has been reviewed and updated to align the current and future Council service needs with the workforce needed to meet those needs. The updated Strategy also incorporates the recommendations from Workforce Innovation – How Councils are Responding to Challenges, Best Value Thematic Work in South Lanarkshire Council, Audit Scotland June 2024. Steps have also been taken to better align the workforce planning process with the Council Plan and other key Council strategies and activities. The Workforce Strategy will ensure the Council has effective workforce planning arrangements to achieve the right number of people, with the right skills, in the right place, at the right time to support, maintain and develop the provision of high quality, responsive services. The purpose of the Strategy is to clearly set out the Councils Strategic Workforce position and the steps that will be taken to enable the production of comprehensive Resource Workforce Plans and an overarching Council Workforce Plan to cover the period 2025 – 27. South Lanarkshire Council along with other Scottish Councils is operating in a very difficult economic, financial and labour market context, with a range of ongoing organisational pressures. One key area of challenge is how local government is managing its known and emerging workforce planning and capacity issues, given the significant range of services it has to deliver, many of which are statutory and critical to supporting local communities every day. There are also other workforce challenges, which are known through the Councils own experience and its involvement in national discussions and working groups on workforce planning. These challenges include: • Shifts in labour market workforce availability • Recruitment difficulties due to skills and talent shortages • Wage inflation and associated pay erosion in professional roles across a range of services • Roles that are difficult or slower to fill or that can remain unfilled for periods of time These workforce challenges are happening at a time when demands on the Council are increasing across many services. These additional workforce capacity issues have compounded and increased the scale of challenges which need to be monitored more closely and addressed to ensure the longer-term sustainability of the council service provision and meeting community needs. Digital transformation has been happening in local government for some time and covers a broad spectrum of activity. However, the agenda for digital transformation inclusion, whilst expanding and offering opportunities to enhance service delivery, boost efficiency and engage with the community and service users more effectively, also brings challenges. There are changing 49
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expectations around when and how customers and service users access services, therefore, more flexibility is required around how the Council delivers services. The Council Workforce Planning process will ensure Workforce Plans are aligned to the Council Digital Transformation and Inclusion approach to implement technology where it is beneficial, improve processes and productivity and ensure capability and capacity is maximised. South Lanarkshire Council is working to anticipate future digital trends, service user and community needs, the skills, expertise, and experiences required in the workforce and new ways of working that will impact on the workforce and service delivery. The Workforce Strategy provides the framework to identify the actions and activity to address workforce challenges. The Strategy builds on the work carried out through the previous workforce plans and supports the workforce to deliver services to the community now and in the future. The key themes of the workforce strategy will ensure the Council have the right people in the right place at the right time to deliver the Council plan. The Workforce Strategy is strategically aligned to the Council Plan timelines and sets out how the Council will take action to ensure the workforce is available to support the delivery of the Councils vision within the available financial resources. 2. Council Overview – Who we are and what we do The Council delivers a wide range of services that touch all communities and every household in South Lanarkshire. South Lanarkshire is a diverse and dynamic area covering 1,772 square kilometres of varied geographical territory, 80% of which is in agricultural use, they are made up of rural and urban areas, with 3 out of 4 people in South Lanarkshire living in an urban area. South Lanarkshire is the fifth largest council area in Scotland with a population of 320,000 a working age population of 203,000 and around 145,000 households who live in the suburban towns, rural towns, and villages. The council employ in the region of 17,086 employees (14,046 FTE) across 5 Resources. Each of the following 5 resources is tasked with delivering the key priority objectives of the Council: • Community and Enterprise Resources • Education Resources • Finance and Corporate Resources • Housing and Technical Services Resources • Social Work Resources At the heart of the council’s vision are our values based on fairness, empathy, and commitment to make a difference to the lives of all our citizens and 50
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communities. Our values express our determination to be ambitious for South Lanarkshire and to be a high performing and high achieving council who is fully committed to building a strong future workforce to support the delivery of service to our communities who need them most. South Lanarkshire Council’s Plan, Connect, explains how the council will achieve this across all five resources. In terms of service provision, the Council Resource plans include key areas of focus, Resource outcomes, measures, actions, and details how the plan will be resourced. The Council Connect Plan sets out the vision, key priorities, and objectives for the council. The individual resources and service plans reflect these key priorities and demonstrate the Council’s continuous commitment to improving and developing its performance and measuring outcomes. 51
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3. The Council Strategic and Operational Context The Council and Resource Plans provide the context to determining what affects the future shape of the workforce, the skills set of the current workforce and what skills set will be needed in the future. Connect – The Council Plan Connect, the Council Plan 2022-2027 was approved at the full Council meeting on 15 June 2022 and details the council vision, values and priorities and expresses its determination to be ambitious for South Lanarkshire and to be a high-achieving and high-performing council. These are summarised below: Council Vision Our shared vision is to improve the lives and prospects of everyone in South Lanarkshire Council Values • Focused on people and their needs • Working with and respecting others • Accountable, effective, efficient, and transparent • Ambitious, self-aware, and improving • Fair, open and sustainable • Excellent employer Council Priorities People – we need to put people first and reduce inequality Progress – we need to recover, progress and improve Planet – we need to work towards a sustainable future in sustainable places 4. National Issues and Legislative Drivers As part of the workforce planning process, external pressures have been considered in terms of national policy and legislative changes in the context of how they will impact on the workforce. A horizon scanning exercise has taken place to understand the challenges that could influence the direction of the Council. This has highlighted the following areas for consideration. There are workforce issues for Local Government that require national actions. A number of key drivers of local government workforce challenges (from Scotland’s Local Government Workforce Report 2024) have been identified: 52
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⬧ Skills Shortages – there is a shortage of skilled and qualified professionals across a range of disciplines ⬧ Budgetary Pressures – ring fenced budgets and flat cash grant awards and continued pressure to make savings directly impacts on workforce capacity ⬧ Ageing Workforce Profile – the council has an ageing workforce profile in key service areas ⬧ Skills Funding – there are not enough workforce skills funding sources and supports to enable capacity building. ⬧ Next Generation Workforce – there is a need to attract a new generation of employees to local government ⬧ Recruitment Challenges – pay competitiveness and workforce availability in rural areas as well as having the right skills and experiences present significant challenges The Council, through national networks such as, Solace, Society of Personnel and Development (SPDS), Association of Directors of Education Scotland (ADES), the Improvement Service and CoSLA, will keep abreast of national initiatives and developments and reflect these in our workforce plan. 5. Council Workforce Challenges The key drivers for workforce challenges detailed in section 4 of the Strategy, from Scotland’s Local Government Workforce Report 2024 will be considered alongside the key challenges emerging from the Council Workforce Planning Process and will be detailed in the Council and Resource Plans. Across the Council recruitment challenges and absence levels continue to impact on workforce availability and service delivery. The workforce planning process will identify specific actions in relation to this covering the following: 53
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• Strategic approach to the Council’s overall vison for Maximising Attendance • A Recruitment Strategy to ensure the tools are available to provide suitable candidates and enhance workforce supply. In addition, consideration will be given to other related key council strategies and activities that will impact on the workforce planning process, the key areas have been detailed below: Financial Resources The Council continues to deliver services with reduced financial resources. There is a program of transformational reviews that support the Councils Financial Strategy. Workforce implications will be managed through the Council’s policy of engagement and redeployment. Digital Transformation and Inclusion The Council’s Digital Strategy is targeted at improving the effectiveness and efficiency of South Lanarkshire Council services through its use of digital and ICT services and going forward the benefits of artificial intelligence. This strategy requires a digitally skilled workforce aligned to Council needs, is also aiming to increase digital inclusion and this also includes the council workforce to enable them to be equipped to operate in a digital age. Mainstreaming Equalities The Council is committed to reducing inequality in its communities and this will be reflected in its workforce activities. This is evidenced by the Council’s Mainstreaming Equalities Reports 2019-2021 and 2021-2025, which highlights the Councils progress against the Equality Outcomes set in 2017 and includes details of the diversity of our workforce, the gender pay analysis and also outlines the equality outcomes that have been set for 2021-2025. Sustainable Development and Climate Change The Sustainable Development and Climate Change strategy aims to build a sustainable, climate resilient South Lanarkshire and it has themes on People, Place, Planet and progress which are aligned to the Council plan. To deliver the plan the workforce requires to be climate aware and equipped with green skills. Succession Planning, Leadership and the Councils approach to Learning and Development The Council is committed to continuous development of the workforce through leadership development, succession planning and learning opportunities for all employees. Employee Health and Wellbeing The Council is an advocate for employee health and wellbeing and continues to ensure employees feel supported at work and can maximise their wellbeing through the range of activities provided through employee assistance (EAP) program and beyond. 54
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Workforce Monitoring The Council regularly monitors and reports on key workforce matters to Committees, the Corporate and Resource Management Teams, trade union and other council forums, this will include key workforce data, absence and recruitment information, equalities data, health and safety statistics and overtime. Workforce data is used to monitor the progress of workforce planning actions. 6. Engagement and Consultation In developing the Council’s Workforce Strategy 2025–27, engagement and consultation have taken place through the Corporate and Resource Management Teams and Trade Unions. 7. Workforce Data Workforce data provides a baseline profile of the workforce. This details a position on the make-up of the workforce and informs the development of the workforce plans. This data has been used to consider: • Demographic range across occupational groups • Occupational gaps • Diversity • Reasons for leaving • Absence trends • Vacancy levels and turnover Consideration of data allows gaps and workforce projections to be identified and allows the development of workforce action plans. 8. Workforce Strategy Objectives The strategy will deliver the following objectives: • Improve and mature the workforce planning process for the Council • Deliver an efficient workforce that is diverse and resilient with a broader range of skills capable of delivering the Council Connect Plan and the priorities People, Progress, Planet. • Enable the Council to deliver key strategies, services and activities • Protect and maintain the physical and mental health of employees 55
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9. Key Workforce Planning Themes Key activities across themes will ensure the delivery of the strategy objectives through the production of robust workforce plans. These themes and associated activities are focussed on the following areas: • Build workforce capacity through the council and resource planning process and workforce data analysis (stage 1 and 2 of the workforce toolkit) • Attract, Recruit and Retain a Council Workforce • Provide an Inclusive and Diverse Workforce • Delivery of key council strategies such as Digital and Sustainable Development and Climate Change • Support employee Health and Wellbeing policy and initiatives How these key themes will be progressed to deliver the strategy objectives are detailed in Table 1. 56
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Table 1 - Key Workforce Planning Themes Key Theme Current Position Improvement Action Who Timescales Building workforce capacity The Workforce planning toolkit is used to assess what future changes will impact on the workforce, what the current workforce data is reflecting in terms of supply and demand against what is in place. This identifies any gaps. Objectives and Actions are then developed, risks are considered, and Workforce Plans are created. Resources produced these on a 3 yearly basis, covering 2022 - 25. Provide a Workforce Strategy with clearer links to the Connect Council Plan 2022-27. Build on the workforce planning activity to date. Implement a more strategic, data driven, approach to workforce planning, with smarter action plans, setting out how the Council level and service level actions are being progressed. Head of Personnel Complete Standard workforce data, used as part of the workforce monitoring reports to produce workforce plans Incorporate the analysis of more comprehensive workforce data into the workforce planning process HR Business Managers Complete Attraction, Recruitment, and Retention The Recruitment Charter outlines the Council’s commitment to applicants that we will provide the best possible recruitment service Produce an Attraction, Recruitment and Retention strategy which will provide a workforce able to deliver the Council vision, support the Head of Personnel December 2025 57
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and will remove any barriers to equality of opportunity at all stages of the recruitment process. supply, and demand challenges faced by the Council. The Strategic Learning & Development Plan is linked to the Council Connect plan and ensures that all key learning and development activities undertaken by employees help us as a council to achieve our objectives. This process also allows learning, and development needs to be established to support our employees to carrying out their duties. Produce a Strategic Learning and Development Plan that supports current and future service requirements and workforce planning. Head of Personnel December 2025 Performance appraisal is a structured process for our employees and their manager to discuss and agree key work objectives relevant to service delivery. This is also used for succession planning Develop and implement a specific and robust succession planning processes. Head of Personnel December 2025 58
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purposes through career development discussion. Inclusive and diverse workforce The Equality and Diversity policy supports the Council's commitment to deliver services that meet the needs of everyone who lives and works in South Lanarkshire. Review mainstreaming equalities recommendations and outcomes to make improvements in recruitment practices to be more inclusive Head of Personnel December 2025 Recruitment equalities monitoring is part of the Council’s workforce monitoring. Develop with digital improved reporting and data capture to enable better monitoring of recruitment processes for minority groups and how this will impact on workforce planning actions Head of Personnel December 2025 Delivery of key Council Strategies Digital Transformation and Inclusion Use the workforce planning process to ensure there is a skilled and available workforce to deliver Services and is aligned to the Digital Strategy Head of IT / Head of Personnel March 2025 59
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Sustainable Development and Climate change strategy sets out the vison to build a sustainable, climate resilient and net zero South Lanarkshire Use the workforce planning process to identify how to ensure there is a skilled and available workforce to deliver the Sustainable Development and Climate Strategy Head of IT / Head of Personnel March 2025 Health and Wellbeing The Council’s Employee Wellbeing Plan helps achieve the Service, Resource and Council Plans by supporting employees to be at their best, be energised, motivated and resilient. Strategic review of Maximising Attendance Policy and supporting procedures to ensure that the Council continues to develop good practice to support and engage the workforce Head of Personnel December 2025 Annual review of employee wellbeing initiatives and campaigns to provide to improved supports and increase resilience of employees 60
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10. Key Responsibilities to Produce Workforce Plans Corporate Management Team • Provide leadership and vison to support the workforce planning process Executive Directors and Heads of Service • To participate in the workforce planning process working collaboratively with HR Business managers, service managers and employees • Using the workforce planning framework produce Resource Workforce Plans • Monitor action plans through Resource Management Teams and reports to Resource Committees • Respond to any significant changes within the lifecycle of the plan and adjust actions as required Personnel Services • Provide workforce data and analysis to support the workforce planning process • Facilitate the workforce planning process, supporting Resources to access workforce planning toolkits and produce workforce action plans. • Keepers of documentation related to workforce planning process • Review Workforce Strategy in line with the Council planning process • Provide support and guidance to Executive Directors, Managers and employees on al aspects of workforce planning. 11. Monitoring the Strategy and Workforce Plans The strategy is aligned to the Council Planning cycle and will be reviewed in line with any revisions to the Council Plan. The current Council Plan is due to be refreshed in 2027. Workforce Plans will be produced for the period 2025 – 27. When plans are initially produced, they are reported to Committee for approval. Workforce plan updates will be provided to Committee on an annual basis to monitor the progress of actions and report any adjustments to the plans if required. 61
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12. References Council Strategies Connect Council Plan 2022 – 27 Connect Council Plan 2022-27 (PDF) Plans and policies - South Lanarkshire Council Budget Strategy Budget Strategy 2025/26 and 2026/27 Digital Strategy Digital Strategy 2022-2027 Plans and policies - South Lanarkshire Council Sustainable Development and Climate Change Strategy Introduction - South Lanarkshire Council Resource Plans f you require this information in another format, please email equalities@southlanarkshire.gov.uk. 62
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South Lanarkshire Council Workforce Plan 2025 – 27 Appendix 2 63
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South Lanarkshire Council Workforce Plan 2025 – 27 South Lanarkshire Council Workforce Plan 2025 – 27 1. Introduction 2. Key Workforce Planning Activity 3. Workforce Profile 4. Workforce Challenges and Actions 5. Risk Implications 6. Monitoring the Plan Appendix 1 – Review of 2022-25 Actions Appendix 2 – Summary of Resource Challenges and Actions Appendix 3 – Council Workforce Profile Appendix 4 – 2025 – 27 Council Workforce Planning Actions 64
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South Lanarkshire Council Workforce Plan 2025 – 27 1. Introduction South Lanarkshire Council delivers a wide range of services across the community that improve the lives of everyone living in South Lanarkshire. At the heart of the Council vision are values based on fairness, empathy, and a commitment to make a difference for the people of South Lanarkshire. The Council strives to be high achieving and high performing and to achieve this requires an available, capable, and resilient workforce. The Council Plan 2022 – 2027 sets out the Council priorities and how these will be delivered. The foundations of the Council plan are based on People, Planet and Progress. To deliver the Council priorities the Council has a Workforce Strategy which sets out the workforce planning framework used to identify the key strategic drivers, service demands and the actions to ensure that the Council has the right people in the right place at the right time to deliver our vision. This framework has been used to produce Resource and Council workforce plans, which outline the workforce challenges and actions for South Lanarkshire Council. The previous workforce plans covered 2022 – 2025 and this Council Workforce Plan covers the period 2025 – 27, to align with the lifecycle of the current Council Plan. 2. Key Workforce Planning Activity Resource Workforce plans were produced covering the period 2022 – 25. These plans have been reviewed to provide an update on actions to date and to identify any ongoing activity to be reflected in the 2025 – 27 plans. A summary of the review is included in Appendix 1. Resources undertook a horizon scanning exercise as part of the Resource planning process to identify key areas of focus. Workforce data for the Council and each Resource was used as a baseline for the current workforce and covered, age profile, absence, turnover, vacancies, and employment categories. Key areas of focus for resources and services were identified as part of the resource planning process, as they considered their requirements as part of the national and legislative context. These areas of focus were reviewed alongside the workforce data to complete the workforce planning toolkit templates which were then used by Resources to identify key priorities and the workforce required to support this. Thereafter any gaps in terms of skills, employee capacity and challenges were considered and actions required to address these gaps are included in Resource workforce action plans. The output from workforce planning activity for each Resource is summarised in the Key Challenges and actions for each Resources, in Appendix 2. 3. Council Workforce Profile The full workforce profile is attached in Appendix 3. The data reviewed covers the period April 2023 – March 2024. Resources used this data to complete their workforce plans for 2025 – 27. The key highlights from the workforce profile are detailed below. Employee Numbers For April 2023 – March 2024, South Lanarkshire Council (SLC) employed an average of 17,086 employees, equating to 14,046 Full Time Equivalent (FTE). This is detailed in table 1. 65
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South Lanarkshire Council Workforce Plan 2025 – 27 The workforce is split across five resources, the split of each Resource is shown below in Table 1 by headcount (number of employees) and total FTE. Table 1 Employee numbers Resource Headcount FTE SLC 17,086 14,046.3 Community and Enterprise 3452 2626.6 Education 8363 6780.4 Finance and Corporate 906 808.3 Housing and Technical 1445 1340.6 Social Work 2921 2490.4 Employment Status As of 31 March 2024, SLC employed 16,740 employees. There are 594 employees who are in a temporary position,15,377 employees in a permanent position and 769 casual employees. This is detailed in table 2. The majority of the Council’s workforce is employed on a full-time basis, the highest proportion of part time employees is within Community and Enterprise Resources. Table 2 Employment Status Resource Permanent Employees Temporary Employees Casual Employees Total Employees SLC 15377 594 769 16740 Community and Enterprise 3229 86 2 3317 Education 7106 362 719 8187 Finance and Corporate 847 30 4 881 Housing and Technical 1362 79 1 1442 Social Work 2833 37 43 2913 Gender Split The gender split across Resources* is detailed in Table 3. The Council workforce consists of 25.8% male and 74.2% female. Table 3 Gender Split Resource Female Male Total Employees SLC 11846 4125 15971 Community and Enterprise 1794 1521 3315 Education 6442 1026 7468 Finance and Corporate 657 220 877 Housing and Technical 508 933 1441 Social Work 2445 425 2870 *As at 31 March 2024 and excluding casual employees 66
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South Lanarkshire Council Workforce Plan 2025 – 27 Age Range The age range across Resources* is detailed in Table 4. Sixty-five percent of the workforce are age 40 or over. Community and Enterprise Resources has the highest employee numbers aged 65 and above, with Education Resources having the highest number of employees aged 50 and above. Housing and Technical Resources has the highest number of employees aged 16-19 years. Table 4 Age Range Age Range Resource 16-19 Years 20-29 Years 30-39 Years 40-49 Years 50-59 Years 60-64 Years 65+ Years No. Employees SLC 61 1862 3536 3749 4475 1670 618 15971 Community and Enterprise 15 187 532 678 1075 562 266 3315 Education 12 1127 2044 2021 1705 445 114 7468 Finance and Corporate 8 62 135 208 352 89 23 877 Housing and Technical 17 200 276 273 402 186 87 1441 Social Work 9 286 549 569 941 388 128 2870 * As at 31 March 2024, excluding casual employees. Absence The absence rate for the Council for 2023/24 was 5.4%. Social Work Resources has the highest absence rate. The details are in table 5. Table 5 – Absence rates Resource Absence 23 /24 SLC 5.38% Community and Enterprise 6.23% Education 4.48% Finance and Corporate 3.48% Housing and Technical 5.79% Social Work 7.23% Leavers and Turnover From 1st April 2023 to 31st March 2024, 1,709 employees left the council, equating to 1239.55 FTE. The turnover rate for the Council for 2023/24 was 10.46%*, this turnover rate is calculated using all leavers. Recruitment During 2023/24 1,931 posts were advertised attracting 15,592 applications. Candidates were appointed to 1453 posts. The difference can be attributed to the notional number of vacancies applied to rolling campaigns. This is not a reflection of non-filling of posts. Full details of the workforce profile are attached in Appendix 1. 67
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South Lanarkshire Council Workforce Plan 2025 – 27 4. Council Workforce Plan When considering the key challenges and actions identified by Resources (Appendix 2) common workforce challenge and actions have emerged. Common challenges: • Recruitment attraction and retention • Transformation • Skills gaps • Delivery of key Council activities such as climate impact and digital transformation • Maintaining employee health and wellbeing To address the challenges, common Council workforce actions are: • Revised recruitment practices • Development of ‘grow our own’ approach to attract and retain employees • Robust succession planning practices • Manage employee impact of ongoing requirement for efficiency savings and service redesign • Support and development for delivery of key Council strategies • Maintain employee health and well being The Council Workforce Action Plan is attached in Appendix 4. This provides the detail on the actions to deliver the plan, how they will be achieved, who is responsible for the delivery, the expected outcomes, and the timescales to be achieved by. Engagement and consultation to produce workforce plans has been primarily through HR Business Managers and Resource Management Teams, Trade Unions have been updated on activity through JTUC Executive updates and Trade Unions were also asked to provide details of workforce challenges from TU perspective via a survey. 5. Risk Implications The actions identified to assist the Council to achieve the right people with the right skills to deliver services. However, there are risks if these actions cannot be delivered. These are: • Reduced workforce supply is a risk to meeting the Councils requirements • Ability to train and develop staff to create our own talent into specialist roles within required timescales and maintain service delivery • Competing recruitment drives across services and sectors The risks identified with workforce planning will be included in the Resource risk registers. 6. Monitoring the Plan The action plan will be monitored through Resource Management Teams. As the arrangements on national initiatives emerge any significant changes will be reflected in updated action plans. Resource workforce plans will be formally reported through annual updates on actions to Resource Committees. The Council workforce plan will be reported to Executive Committee on an annual basis. 68
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South Lanarkshire Council Workforce Plan 2025 – 27 Appendix 1 Review Workforce Plan Actions 2022 – 25 An update on the key actions from the 2022 – 25 plan is provided below: Priority / identified need Actions Achievements Next steps 1a Increased demand and Revised Revised This will be reduced workforce pool recruitment recruitment addressed practices, utilise practices are now through the employability embedded, use of Recruitment routes. social media, Strategy and employability, and the promotion of career Learning and pathways. This is Development evidence by Strategy continued support for the Council Modern Apprentice program, links to employability programs, continued development of the Lanarkshire Care Academy. 1b Succession Succession This will be Planning planning is addressed discussed as part through the of appraisal Recruitment process and Strategy and potential leaders the are nominated to Learning and join the Leadership Development Development Strategy program, there are currently 25 delegates enrolled. 2a Service Design and Managing The Council The revision of Efficiency savings employee impact continues to SWITCH2 of savings manage the arrangements employee impact of in relation to saving requirement managing through SWITCH2, employee turnover and impact of vacancies. savings activity will ensure that employee skills are maximised. 69
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South Lanarkshire Council Workforce Plan 2025 – 27 2b Service Redesign The Council has a The program of transformational transformational review reviews to enable programme is services to be ongoing and delivered in a current reviews different way to are within achieve services areas, efficiencies. as well as reviews of overtime reduction and organisational structures. 3a IT / Digital Implementation of The new system The workforce Fusion (HR, was implemented planning finance, and in August 2024 and process has procurement) processes have matured to been improved to provide a reflect the specific focus to capability of the consider the new system. workforce supports for the delivery of a Digital Council 3b Implementation of Work is ongoing in As the Council Resource IT Housing and moves towards systems Technical more digital Resource to solutions the implement the workforce plans integrated housing will reflect management actions to system. ensure that our Within Social Work workforce is the implementation digitally aware of Liquid Logic is and included. planned for June 2025. 4 Employee support and wellbeing Enhance employee support Revised occupational health provision has enhanced the support available to employees Employee supports will continue to be reviewed to ensure the supports are accessible to all employees. There is a strategic review of 70
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South Lanarkshire Council Workforce Plan 2025 – 27 Maximising Attendance Policy and supporting procedures to ensure that the Council continues to develop good practice to support and engage the workforce 71
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South Lanarkshire Council Workforce Plan 2025 – 27 Appendix 2 - Summary of Resource Workforce Planning Actions Resource Key Challenges Actions identified Community and Enterprise • Difficult to attract new recruits and retain employees across front line and professional services. • Recruitment challenges around timescales and checks required to maintain safe recruitment practices. • Move from manual to digital platforms for managers and employees. • Continued professional development for employees to keep abreast and trained on new/specialist legislation/knowledge – lack of in- house experience to train/develop. • Management development in key areas such as finance and procurement • Aging workforce, risk of losing knowledge, experience, and skills. • Maintaining customer expectations in current financial climate • The impacts of Climate change on the transportation network • Town centre regeneration programmes, lack of internal skills to support • Continue to invest in ‘grow your own’ approach across all service areas. • Promote the benefits of working for the Council in recruitment adverts. • Invest in succession planning, mentoring programmes, management development and leadership programmes. • Invest and increase apprenticeship opportunities and programmes in difficult to recruit areas. • Invest in training and upskilling current workforce to meet service demands, including specialist training to meet legislation changes. • Climate change and climate emergency training to be delivered. • Invest in project management training. • Bespoke training package for senior managers • Focus work with employability and employability programmes. • Invest in IT packages and skills training for front line employees. Education • Skills and competencies required due to the demands of a changing educational landscape for all employees in an education setting. • National reviews such as the Morgan review and the Hayward review will place increased focus on inclusive education. • Need for leadership skills and competencies in areas such as change management, strategic • Implement robust succession planning. • Enhanced leadership training in areas such as change management, strategic planning, collaboration, innovation, ethical decision making and cultural competence. • Invest in IT and digital training. • Promote health and wellbeing initiatives for all employees. 72
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South Lanarkshire Council Workforce Plan 2025 – 27 planning, collaboration, innovation, ethical decision making and cultural competence. • Skills gaps in digital literacy • Skills gaps for challenging environments, culture competence including human rights training. • Wellbeing supports for employees. • Budget constraints and impact on teacher numbers • Level of demand in schools relating to dysregulated behaviour, support for employees in dealing with these issues. • Increase in violent incidents in schools and impact on all employees in an education setting. • Recrutiment and retention of employees both teacher and local government. • Succession planning • Invest in training and upskilling current workforce to meet service demands, including specialist training to meet legislation changes. • Climate change and climate emergency training to be delivered. Finance and Corporate Resources • Financial strategy and cost of living crisis • Community involvement • Continuing service improvement from Oracle Fusion • Age profile of workforce • Loss of knowledge, skills, and experience • Professional and specialist posts are hard to recruit and retain. • Strategic Digital development and how this is supported. • Impact of providing cross council support for transformation and ability to contribute to financial savings • Continue to expand use of ‘grow your own’ approach. • Implement robust succession planning. • Leadership development • Develop skills for existing employees to enable progression and increase retention. • Skills development to support strategic IT. • Transformational skills development Housing and Technical Resources • Recruitment challenges as other provider have more generous reward packages. • Age profile of existing staff • Promote flexible working and benefits of the Council development of green skills as an employer of choice. 73
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South Lanarkshire Council Workforce Plan 2025 – 27 • Homelessness emergency • Green energy requirements and skills to support this. • Continuing legislative requirements around MAPPA and supporting asylum • Implementation of integrated housing management system • Training and development to support green energy and statutory requirements. • Succession planning • Development of green skills • Skills development to support service delivery. Social Work Resources • Recruitment and retention of qualified social workers and social work assistants • Staff demographic • Provision of service across a large geographic area • Regulation and inspection of services • Maintenance of safe staffing levels • Service demand pressures. • Ongoing financial pressure • Progression of digital and AI enhancements, e.g. technology enabled care. • National social care reform • Further develop career pathways within social work • Leadership development • Service redesign • Focus on delivery of statutory work. • Digital skill development 74
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Appendix 3 - Council wide Workforce Profile 2023 /2024 Section 1: Headcount and Full Time Equivalent Over the year 2023/24, South Lanarkshire Council (SLC) employed an average of 17,086 employees, equating to 14,046 Full Time Equivalent (FTE)*. *Average over the year Across the Council, there are five Resources, Community and Enterprise, Education, Finance and Corporate, Housing and Technical and Social Work. The split of each Resource is shown below in Table 1 by Headcount (number of employees) and Total FTE: Table 1 – SLC Headcount and FTE 75
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Education sits as the largest Resource, employing 49% of the workforce and comprising 48% FTE. Education has the highest number of Casual Employees (mainly supply teachers) in the workforce, as shown in Table 3 - Employment Category. The second largest Resource by headcount is Community and Enterprise (20%), then Social Work (17%), Housing and Technical (9%) and Finance and Corporate (5%). When measured by FTE, we see the same structure, with Community and Enterprise the second largest Resource (19%), followed by Social Work (18%), Housing and Technical (9%) and Finance and Corporate (6%). Table 2 – Resource Makeup and Headcount Each Resource is, comprised of Services detailed in Table 2. Casual Employees have been excluded from the headcount: 7616 76
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Temporary Although Education is the largest Resource overall, the single largest Service within the Council is Facilities, Waste and Grounds (FWG). This is due to two main factors: • ‘Facilities, Waste and Grounds is made up of three sub services. • Due to the nature of the work conducted by Facilities (such as Cleaning and Janitorial), the Service employs a high proportion of part- time and term-time employees (as shown in Table 4), resulting in an increased headcount. Facilities makes up 53% of all Community and Enterprise employees. Section 2: Employment Categories and Hours Worked As of 31st March 2024, SLC employed 16,740 employees, with a combined total of 17,666 assignments. 769 employees were categorised as Casual, and of these, 775 employees were employed in their main post as a casual employee. 56 employees with a primary Permanent or Temporary post, also held a secondary casual post. Table 3 details the Employment Category of SLC employees, by Resource: Table 3: Employment Category Split Resource Permanent Employees Temporary Employees Casual Employees Total Employees SLC 15377 594 769 16740 Community and Enterprise 3229 86 2 3317 Education 7106 362 719 8187 Finance and Corporate 847 30 4 881 Housing and Technical 1362 79 1 1442 Social Work 2833 37 43 2913 Casual Permanent 92% 77
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As noted in Section 1, Education employs the largest number of Casual Employees within SLC, accounting for 93% of all Casual Employees, as shown below in Table 4. These employees are predominantly Temporary Teachers (Supply Teachers), which account for 80% of Casual Employees within the Resource, followed by Music Instructors (7%) and Early Years Practitioners (5%). Social Work Resources employs the second highest number of Casual Employees at 6%. These are mainly comprised of Residential Supply Staff within the Adults and Older Peoples Service, which account for 88% of all Casual Employees within Social Work. The full split of Causal Employees by Resource is shown below: Top 3 Casual Positions per Resource (if applicable) Table 4: Casual Employee Split by Resource Education 93% Finance and Corporate 1% Housing and Technical 0% Social Work 6% Community and Enterprise 0% 1) Education: 1. Temporary Teachers (80%) 2. Music Instructors (7%) 3. Early Years Practitioners (5%) 2) Social Work 1. Social Care Assistant - Residential Supply (88%) 2. Placement Supervisor (5%) 3. Social Care Worker – Residential Supply (2%) 3) Finance and Corporate 1. Call Services Assistant (75%) 2. Business Change Officer (25%) 4) Community and Enterprise 1. Cleaner (50%) 2. Catering Assistant (50%) 5) Housing and Technical 1. Clerical Assistant (100%) 78
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*Please note that for all further data sets, casual employee figures have been removed. The total number of employees as of 31st March 2024 is therefore 15,971. The majority of the Council’s workforce is employed on Full Time permanent contracts, which for the purposes of this report, has been taken to mean employees working 35 hours or greater per week at a Full Time Equivalent greater than or equal to 0.90. Term – Time employees who meet this criteria over 39 weeks have also been included in the Full – Time count. As shown below, 56% of SLC’s workforce were employed Full Time, with the remaining 44% categorised as Part Time employees as of 31st March 2024: Table 5: Part Time / Full Time Split SLC Split as Percentage Full Time Split of Each Resource Part Time 42% Full Social Work 65% Housing and Technical 79% Community and Enterprise 44% Education 56% Finance and Corporate 68% Community and Enterprise Resources does not have a majority of its workforce employed in full–time positions, this is due to the nature of the Facilities Service, which employs 86% of its headcount, or 1547 employees, on part–time contracts (from a total of 1803 employees). Five roles comprise the majority of these part – time positions and are shown below as a percentage of total part – time employees, alongside the total number of employees in each position. Resource Total FT Total PT No. Employee s South Lanarkshire Council 9267 6704 15971 Community and Enterprise 1464 1851 3315 Education 4207 3261 7468 Finance and Corporate 593 284 877 Housing and Technical 1139 302 1441 Social Work 1864 1006 2870 79
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Table 6: Facilities – Top 5 Part – Time Positions Catering Assistant 33% Facilities Asst (SXP) 6% Cleaner 46% Primary Cook in Charge 4% Janitor/Cleaner 3% Due to this unique makeup, Facilities has a higher proportion of employees with more than one assignment relative to the rest of the Council, with employees holding 1.4 assignments on average and 555 employees having at least 2 assignments. Of those who work more than one assignment, the highest number worked was 5 (2 employees, all positions as Cleaner) and the average was 2.24. Service PT Employees Total FTE FACILITIES 1547 602 Cleaner 717 267 Catering Assistant 506 185 Facilities Asst (SXP) 90 26 Primary Cook in Charge 67 44 Janitor / Cleaner 39 22 80
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Section 3: Leavers and Turnover Leavers From 1st April 2023 to 31st March 2024, 1709, employees left the council, equating to 1239.55 FTE. Table 7 shows the total leavers by Resource and displays the headcount as a percentage of total leavers across SLC. Table 7: Leavers by Resource Resource Contribution to Total Leavers Social Work 19% Housing and Technical 7% Finance and Corporate 5% Community and Enterprise 31% Education 38% This is broadly aligned with what we would expect from the Resource sizes shown in Section 1, with two exceptions; Education sees a comparatively lower share of leavers relative to its size, while Community and Enterprise sees a much larger share. Table 8 details all leavers and the reason for leaving and Table 9 shows a breakdown of leavers by Resource, provide context to the higher number of leavers found within Community and Enterprise. Resource No. of Leavers Total FTE South Lanarkshire Council 1709 1239.55 Community and Enterprise 526 329.99 Education 661 531.37 Finance and Corporate 86 66.48 Housing and Technical 115 92.10 Social Work 321 219.61 81
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Table 8: Reasons for Leaving South Lanarkshire Council 400 350 300 250 200 150 100 50 0 No. of Leavers Total FTE As shown above, the five most common reason for leaving the Council are Retirement (22%), followed by Personal Reasons (19%), Career Development (14%), Termination of a Fixed Term Contract (12%) and Other Teaching Employment Elsewhere (8%). In total, these five reasons account for three – quarters of all leavers in the year 2023/24. 82
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The top five reasons for leaving by FTE are shown below for each Resource, as a percentage of their total leavers: Table 9 Community and Enterprise Education Retirement 16% Career Development 12% Resignation - No Notice Given 5% Personal Reasons 10% Termination Of Temporary/Fixed Term/Contract Staff 10% Other Teaching Employment Elsewhere 26% Personal Reasons 17% Termination Of Temporary/Fixed Term/Contract Staff 30% Opted Out/Leaving Teaching 10% Retirement 19% Finance and Corporate Dismissal Due To Ill Health 4% Moving Outwith Area 4% Personal Reasons 12% Retirement 45% Career Development 22% 83
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Housing and Technical Social Work Retirement Due To Ill Health 7% Offered Permanent Post 8% Personal Reasons 17% Retirement 28% Career Development 22% Dismissal Due To Ill Health 5% Retirement Due To Ill Health 10% Personal Reasons 19% Retirement 20% Career Development 20% From the Community and Enterprise chart, we see Termination of Temporary Contracts accounts for 30% of Leavers. This is due to the nature of the work undertaken by the Grounds service, which due to seasonal requirements, recruits a high number of seasonal posts and accounts for 95% of employees leaving the Resource due to this reason. Turnover Turnover for the year 2023/24 was calculated as the total number of employees who left the Council between 1st April 2023 and 31st March 2024 (1709), divided by the average number of employees in post during the year (16,339 exc. Casual). The Turnover Rate for the Council for 2023/24 was 10.46% and is broken down by Resource below: 84
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Table 10: Resource Turnover Community and Enterprise 15% 0% 2% 4% 6% 8% 10% 12% 14% 16% 18% As highlighted in Leavers, Community and Enterprise employs a higher number of seasonal employees relative to the other Resources, and therefore we would expect the higher turnover percentage shown in Table 10. Education 85
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Section 4: Gender As shown in Table 11, the gender of the Council’s workforce is predominantly female, at 74% of the total workforce. Four Resources have a female majority workforce, with only Housing and Technical Resources being comprised of predominantly male employees. Table 11: Gender Split – Employee Numbers Resource Female Male Total Employees SLC 11846 4125 15971 Community and Enterprise 1794 1521 3315 Education 6442 1026 7468 Finance and Corporate 657 220 877 Housing and Technical 508 933 1441 Social Work 2445 425 2870 Table 12: Gender Split – Percentage of Workforce SLC Community and Enterprise Education Finance and Corporate Housing and Technical Social Work 0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100% The largest variations are seen within Education and Social Work, with over 85% of the workforce being female. 86
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Section 5: Age Profile Table 13: Age Profile 65+ Years 60-64 Years 10% 4% 16-19 Years 0% 20-29 Years 12% 30-39 Years 22% As shown by Table 13, South Lanarkshire Council has an older workforce, with 66% of employees being aged 40 or over and the largest age demographic being 50-59, with 28% of the Council’s total employees. Almost every Resource see the highest proportion of their workforce within the 50-59 bracket, with only Education peaking earlier at 30-39 Years. 50-59 Years 28% 40-49 Years 24% Resource 16-19 Years 20-29 Years 30-39 Years 40-49 Years 50-59 Years 60-64 Years 65+ Years No. Employees South Lanarkshire Council 61 1862 3536 3749 4475 1670 618 15971 Community and Enterprise 15 187 532 678 1075 562 266 3315 Education 12 1127 2044 2021 1705 445 114 7468 Finance and Corporate 8 62 135 208 352 89 23 877 Housing and Technical 17 200 276 273 402 186 87 1441 Social Work 9 286 549 569 941 388 128 2870 87
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Table 14 shows the makeup of each age range by Resource. Here we see the lower age brackets dominated by Education, due to newly qualified Teachers, while Social Work and Community and Enterprise gradually make up higher proportions as we move past 50-59. Table 14: Proportion of Age Band by Resource 16-19 Years 20-29 Years 30-39 Years 40-49 Years 50-59 Years 60-64 Years 65+ Years Community and Enterprise Resources Education Resources Finance and Corporate Resources Housing and Technical Resources Social Work Resources 25% 10% 15% 18% 24% 34% 43% 27% 38% 54% 58% 3% 61% 28% 13% 20% 21% 14% 4% 18% 23% 11% 5% 21% 9% 8% 15% 7% 6% 16% 8% 4% 15% 11% 15% 88
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Section 6: Absence Rate Absence rates for the Council are calculated each calendar month by dividing the total number of workdays lost due to absence by the total number of workdays available for that period. The absence rate for South Lanarkshire Council for the year 2023/24 was 5.38%, which exceeds the target of 5% and is down 0.34 points on the previous year, 5.72%. 7.00% 6.00% 5.00% 4.00% 3.00% 2.00% 1.00% 0.00% Apr May June July Aug Sept Oct Nov Dec Jan Feb Mar 89
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Table 15, below, details the absence level of each Resource. A Green arrow indicates that the absence level has reduced vs the previous year and a red arrow indicates an increase. Table 15: Resource Absence Levels 2022/23 Absence Social Work: 7.58% Community and Enterprise: 6.88% Housing and Technical: 5.91% Education: 4.60% Finance and Corporate: 3.75% While absence levels have decreased year on year, the rate still remain above the Council targets and are above national averages*. Social Work have the highest absence rate, sitting above the average Council level, followed by Community and Enterprise. Both Resources deliver a number of frontline services and as noted in Section 4, these Resources make up the greatest proportions of the Council’s higher age ranges and also have a greater level of physical role requirements relative to other areas of the Council, with employees required to carry out tasks involving manual handling and moving and assisting. This provides some additional context to the higher levels of Turnover seen in Section 3, particularly Table 9, where we see Social Work with a higher proportion of employees leaving due to ill health. The data for absence is for 2023/24, for the period April – October 2024/25 absence levels are rising, 5.5% for Council and 3 of the five Resources have higher absence rates than the same period last year. There continues to be a focus on reducing absence. *research from the Chartered Institute of Personnel & Development (CIPD) shows that employee sickness absence is at the highest level for 15 years, with an average of 3.4% which equates to 7.8 days per employee, for the workforce across the whole of UK (note – it was previously 5.8 days in 2019). 90
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Tables 16 and 17 show the absence level for each Service within Social Work and Community and Enterprise, respectively. Here, we see that the largest Services in each Resource - Adults and Older People, and Facilities, Waste and Grounds – also have the highest absence rates and are therefore a key contributor to the Resources overall higher levels. Table 16: Social Work Absence Rate by Service Table 17: Community and Enterprise Absence Rate by Service 91
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Section 6.1: Absence Categories The total number of working days lost due to absence in the year 2023/24 was 208,401. Table 18 shows the number of working days lost due to specific categories of absence for the year 2023/24. Table 18: Days Lost Due to Absence Reason 80000 70000 60000 50000 40000 30000 20000 10000 0 Psychological Musculoskeletal Respiratory Stomach, Bowel, Blood / Metabolic Disorders Gynaelogical / Urological Cancer Ear / Nose / Throat / Mouth & Eye Neurological, Endocrine Cardiovascular Skin Infectious Diseases Psychological absences are the main cause of absence, accounting for 35% of absences throughout the year, followed by Musculoskeletal (21%), Respiratory (13%) and Stomach, Bowel, Blood / Metabolic Disorders (9%). Skin (1%) and Infectious Diseases (1%) are the least common types of absence. Due to the year-to-year fluctuation of total numbers of absence, absence proportions will be compared below. Each absence reason has been calculated as a percentage of ‘working days lost due to absence reason’ divided by ‘total working days lost in year’ to illustrate changes in absence across the years 2021/22 – 2023/24. The top four reasons for absence in 2023/24 are shown in Table 19 and the remainder in Table 20. (Please note, where the information is available, COVID-19 related absences have been excluded from Respiratory). 92
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Table 19: Most Common Reason for Absence – Year to Year Comparison Psychological Musculoskeletal Stomach, Bowel, Blood / Metabolic Disorders Respiratory 0% 5% 10% 15% 20% 25% 30% 35% 40% 2023/24 2022/23 2021/22 The Council Wide level of absence has decreased each year since 2021/22, however still remain above the target and higher absence rates have been seen in 2024/25. the proportion of Psychological, Musculoskeletal and Stomach absences have risen to a three – year high in 2023/24, accounting for 68% of all absences. Of the most common reasons for absence, only Respiratory absences have decreased, reducing to 8% - the lowest level vs. the previous two years. The changing landscape and impact of COVID-19, alongside changes to the protocol for how these have been reported on / recorded across the years is a key contributing factor to the variances seen across the years. 93
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Table 20: Other Absence Reasons – Year to Year Comparison Neurological, Endocrine Gynaelogical / Urological Ear / Nose / Throat / Mouth & Eye Cancer Cardiovascular Skin Infectious Diseases 0.0% 0.5% 1.0% 1.5% 2.0% 2.5% 3.0% 3.5% 4.0% 4.5% 5.0% 2023/24 2022/23 2021/22 Four out of the remaining seven absence categories sit at a three-year high. Due to the prevalence of, and increase in psychological absences, these are shown in further detail below as an aggregate across the years 2021/22 – 2023/24: 94
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Table 21: Psychological Absences by Month (3-year aggregate) 25000 20000 15000 10000 5000 0 April May June July August September October November December January February March Psychological absences are most prevalent in Autumn / Winter months, peaking in December, with other notable high points in November and March. Spring / Summer sees reduced levels, with a minimum in July. This follows the general trend of absences seen in Section 5.1 and if plotted in the same manner, both Musculoskeletal and Stomach absences follow this pattern as well. Table 22 uses the data across 2021/22 – 2023/24 to show the average proportion of Psychological absences each month, as a percentage of total absences during that month: 95
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Table 22: Proportion of Psychological Absences per Month 40% 39% 38% 37% 36% 35% 34% 33% 32% 31% 30% Although there remains a general trend of Psychological absences increasing into the Winter months, the peaks shift to show a higher proportion of Psychological absences in May and April relative to the rest of the year. Psychological absences were the main reason for absence across nearly all Resources, excepting Community and Enterprise Resources where Musculoskeletal absences was the leading reason for days lost. Psychological absences have risen across all Resources from 2022/23 to 2023/24, with the greatest increase seen within Finance and Corporate Resources; Psychological absences accounted for 39% of absences within Finance and Corporate Resources in the year 2022/23, rising to 47% in 2023/24. Proportions of Psychological absences for each Service are shown in Table 23 for the years 2022/23 and 2023/24. Month Average % May 35.5% April 35.4% February 35.1% January 34.7% March 34.6% November 34.0% December 34.0% June 33.7% October 33.6% September 33.0% August 32.8% July 32.6% 96
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Table 23: Proportion of Psychological Absences per Service 50 45 40 35 30 25 20 15 10 5 0 CER EDR FCR HTR SWR Proportion of Absences (2023/24) Proportion of Absences (2022/23) This concludes the Section on Absence Analysis and the Report. 97
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Appendix 4 – Council Workforce Action Plan 2025 – 27 Priority/Identified Needs What are the future workforce priorities based upon your supply and demand analysis? Actions What specific actions that are needed to deliver each priority? Anticipated Outcomes Lead Officer Who is responsible for delivery? Support What support do we need? Who else needs to be involved? Timescale What are the timeframes for delivery? Financial Implications Recruitment, attraction, and retention Approve Recruitment Strategy Robust recruitment practices to address the council Head of Personnel HR Business Managers December 2025 Delivered within existing resources workforce supply issues HR Adviser Implement for Robust succession Executive Directors Learning and April 2026 Delivered within succession plans in place / Head of Personnel Organisational existing planning across Resources Development resources process for all to mitigate risks of Manager managers loss of skills and Grade 5 and experience across above the senior leadership teams HR Business Managers Continue to Increased Executive Directors HR Business December 2025 Delivered within develop ‘grow workforce supply Managers existing your own’ and reduction in resources approach to skills shortage 98
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Appendix 4 – Council Workforce Action Plan 2025 – 27 Priority/Identified Needs What are the future workforce priorities based upon your supply and demand analysis? Actions What specific actions that are needed to deliver each priority? Anticipated Outcomes Lead Officer Who is responsible for delivery? Support What support do we need? Who else needs to be involved? Timescale What are the timeframes for delivery? Financial Implications address skills gaps Expansion of initiatives such as Care Academy Improve reporting of council characteristics An improved suite of HR reports is created within the Council Head of Personnel Executive Directors March 2026 Delivered within existing resources Improve reporting on equality in recruitment and leavers Widen and improve the suits of reporting on equality in recruitment and leavers Head of Personnel Executive Directors March 2026 Delivered within existing resources 99
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Appendix 4 – Council Workforce Action Plan 2025 – 27 Priority/Identified Needs What are the future workforce priorities based upon your supply and demand analysis? Actions What specific actions that are needed to deliver each priority? Anticipated Outcomes Lead Officer Who is responsible for delivery? Support What support do we need? Who else needs to be involved? Timescale What are the timeframes for delivery? Financial Implications Use all available mechanisms to better promote local government as an employer Create a campaign of activity to promote local government employment, in advertising posts. Head of Personnel Executive Directors March 2026 Delivered within existing resources Transformation Progress actions associated with Overtime Reduction Review Delivery of services within core staffing without the reliance on overtime Head of Personnel / Head of Finance (strategy) HR Business Managers / Finance Managers / Resource Management Teams 2025 / 26 and 2026/27 Achievement of savings identified as part of the review Progress outcomes of Organisational Management structures reviewed in line with current preferred operating Head of Personnel/Executive Directors HR Business Managers / Resource 2025 / 26 and 2026/27 Achievement of savings identified 100
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Appendix 4 – Council Workforce Action Plan 2025 – 27 Priority/Identified Needs What are the future workforce priorities based upon your supply and demand analysis? Actions What specific actions that are needed to deliver each priority? Anticipated Outcomes Lead Officer Who is responsible for delivery? Support What support do we need? Who else needs to be involved? Timescale What are the timeframes for delivery? Financial Implications Structure Review model and revisions implemented Management Teams as part of the review Support change management across the Council Improved resilience and organisational effectiveness Organisational Development Manager HR Business Manager / Resource Management Teams December 2025 Delivered within existing resources Review SWITCH 2 arrangements Management of savings implementation through effective redeployment process. HR Business Managers HR Adviser Service Managers April 2026 Achievement of savings 101
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Appendix 4 – Council Workforce Action Plan 2025 – 27 Priority/Identified Needs What are the future workforce priorities based upon your supply and demand analysis? Actions What specific actions that are needed to deliver each priority? Anticipated Outcomes Lead Officer Who is responsible for delivery? Support What support do we need? Who else needs to be involved? Timescale What are the timeframes for delivery? Financial Implications Resource specific training to support implementation of new IT systems (SW and HAT) Capable workforce ready for implementation of new system IT leads/ Resource Management Teams IT Support / Change Management and Learning and Development Support March 2027 Within project plan Skills Gaps Resource specific initiatives to equip workforce for legislative changes Workforce able to adapt to deliver any legislative changes Executive Directors HR Business Managers / Heads of Service 2025 - 27 Delivered within existing resources Enable managers to support transformational change Workforce can adapt to organisational change. Executive Directors HR Business Managers / Heads of Service 2025 - 27 Delivered within existing resources 102
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Appendix 4 – Council Workforce Action Plan 2025 – 27 Priority/Identified Needs What are the future workforce priorities based upon your supply and demand analysis? Actions What specific actions that are needed to deliver each priority? Anticipated Outcomes Lead Officer Who is responsible for delivery? Support What support do we need? Who else needs to be involved? Timescale What are the timeframes for delivery? Financial Implications Delivery of key Council activity such as climate impact and digital transformation Awareness of climate impact across all employees Workforce aware of the impact of on climate and actions to reduce impact Head of Enterprise and Sustainable Development Learning and Organisational Development Manager 2025 - 27 Delivered within existing resources Develop workforce to deliver across Resources to support climate action. E.g. green skills Resource and service specific skills development to support reduction of climate impact Head of Sustainable Development Executive Directors March 2026 Delivered within existing resources Undertake a skills audit of current workforce to Provide a baseline on digital skills and awareness Head of IT / Learning and Development Manager Resource Management Teams / HR Business Managers December 2025 Delivered within existing resources 103
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Appendix 4 – Council Workforce Action Plan 2025 – 27 Priority/Identified Needs What are the future workforce priorities based upon your supply and demand analysis? Actions What specific actions that are needed to deliver each priority? Anticipated Outcomes Lead Officer Who is responsible for delivery? Support What support do we need? Who else needs to be involved? Timescale What are the timeframes for delivery? Financial Implications assess digital inclusion Ensure the workforce is equipped to support development of Artificial Intelligence and Digital service delivery Skilled workforce able to maximise the use of artificial intelligence. Skilled workforce to support delivery of digital services. Head of IT / Learning and Development Manager Resource Management Teams / HR Business Managers 2025 - 2027 Within existing provision for delivering a digital Council Resource specific training to support implementation of new IT systems (SW and HAT) Capable workforce ready for implementation of new system IT leads/ Resource Management Teams IT Support / Change Management and Learning and Development Support March 2027 Within project plan 104
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Appendix 4 – Council Workforce Action Plan 2025 – 27 Priority/Identified Needs What are the future workforce priorities based upon your supply and demand analysis? Actions What specific actions that are needed to deliver each priority? Anticipated Outcomes Lead Officer Who is responsible for delivery? Support What support do we need? Who else needs to be involved? Timescale What are the timeframes for delivery? Financial Implications Maintaining employee health and well being Implement the actions identified as an outcome of the review of Maximising Attendance Policy and supporting procedures Ensure that the Council continues to develop good practice to support and engage the workforce Head of Personnel HR / Line Managers December 2025 Delivered within existing resources Annual review of employee wellbeing initiatives and campaigns to provide to improved supports and increase Supported, engaged, and motivated workforce Head of Personnel HR / Line Managers March 2026 Delivered within existing resources 105
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Appendix 4 – Council Workforce Action Plan 2025 – 27 Priority/Identified Needs What are the future workforce priorities based upon your supply and demand analysis? Actions What specific actions that are needed to deliver each priority? Anticipated Outcomes Lead Officer Who is responsible for delivery? Support What support do we need? Who else needs to be involved? Timescale What are the timeframes for delivery? Financial Implications resilience of employees Employee appraisal Continued employee development, to ensure the skills to deliver services Head of Personnel HR / Line Managers March 2026 Delivered within existing resources Leadership Development Effective support and development for current and future leaders across the Council Head of Personnel Executive Directors December 2025 Delivered within existing resources 106
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Report Agenda Item Report to: Executive Committee Date of Meeting: 28 May 2025 Report by: Executive Director (Finance and Corporate Resources) Subject: Council’s Youth Champion and Representative on Regen:fx Youth Trust 1. Purpose of Report 1.1. The purpose of the report is to:- [purpose] request approval of the appointment of Councillor Mathew Buchanan to replace Councillor Gavin Keatt as the Council’s Youth Champion and representative on the Board of Regen:fx Youth Trust 2. Recommendation(s) 2.1. The Committee is asked to approve the following recommendation(s):- [recs] (1) that Councillor Mathew Buchanan replace Councillor Gavin Keatt as the Council’s Youth Champion and representative on the Board of Regen:fx Youth Trust. [1recs] 3. Background 3.1. Councillor Gavin Keatt was appointed as the Council’s Youth Champion at the statutory meeting of the Council in May 2022 and, as such, has been the Council’s representative on the Board of Regen:fx Youth Trust. 3.2. Following a request from the Labour Group Business Manager, it is proposed that Councillor Matthew Buchanan replace Councillor Gavin Keatt as the Council’s Youth Champion and representative on the Board of Regen:fx Youth Trust. 4. Employee Implications 4.1. None. 5. Financial Implications 5.1 None. 6. Climate Change, Sustainability and Environmental Implications 6.1. There are no implications for climate change, sustainability or the environment in terms of the information contained in this report. 7. Other Implications 7.1 There are no risks or sustainability issues in terms of the information contained in this report. 8 107
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8. Integrated Impact Assessment and Consultation Requirements 8.1. There was no requirement for an integrated impact assessment or formal consultation in terms of the information contained in this report. Jackie Taylor Executive Director (Finance and Corporate Resources) 7 May 2025 Link(s) to Council Values/Priorities/Outcomes Fair, open and sustainable Accountable, effective, efficient and transparent Previous References South Lanarkshire Council of 18 May 2022 List of Background Papers None Contact for Further Information If you would like to inspect the background papers or want further information, please contact:- Susan Somerville, Administration Manager Ext: 4197 (Tel: 01698 454197) E-mail: susan.somerville@southlanarkshire.gov.uk 108
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Report Agenda Item Report to: Executive Committee Date of Meeting: 28 May 2025 Report by: Chief Executive Subject: Community Wealth Building Legislation – Call for Views 1. Purpose of Report 1.1. The purpose of the report is to:- [purpose] provide the committee with a draft of the Council’s response to the Scottish Parliament’s call for views on the Community Wealth Building (Scotland) Bill [1purpose] 2. Recommendation(s) 2.1. The committee is asked to approve the following recommendation(s):- [] (1) that the contents of the report be noted; and (2) that the draft response be approved and submitted to the Scottish Parliament. 3. Background 3.1. In the Programme for Government 2024, the Scottish Government signalled its intention to bring forward a Community Wealth Building (CWB) Bill in 2025 to address economic and wealth inequality. 3.2. The Community Wealth Building (Scotland) Bill was introduced on 20 March 2025 and is described as a Bill to create jobs and drive economic growth across Scotland by promoting investment in communities. 3.3. The Scottish Parliament’s Economy and Fair Work Committee is conducting stage 1 scrutiny of the Bill and has issued a call for views to inform their deliberations. This report presents a draft response from South Lanarkshire Council to the call for views. 4. The CWB Bill 4.1. The Bill seeks to advance the implementation of the CWB model of economic development in Scotland. It aims to “ensure consistent implementation of the model across Scotland’s local areas and regions…by facilitating and supporting the generation, circulation, and retention of more wealth in local and regional economies.” 4.2. The Bill makes provision for CWB in three ways:- it places a duty on Scottish Ministers to produce and publish a CWB statement setting out measures to be taken by the Scottish Government in relation to CWB it requires local authorities, acting with certain public bodies within the local; authority area, to produce CWB action plans setting out the measures to be taken within the local authority area in relation to CWB and to implement those plans so far as reasonably practicable; and 9 109
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it places a duty on the Scottish Ministers to produce guidance in relation to both the production of action plans and the inclusion of CWB measures in strategic planning by public bodies. 5. The Call for Views 5.1. The call for views was issued by the Scottish Parliament’s Economy and Fair Work Committee on 4 April 2025, with a deadline for submissions of 23 May 2025. 5.2. The Economy and Fair Work Committee has asked for views around the following questions:- The Scottish Government’s objective is to ensure consistent implementation of Community Wealth Building across Scotland. (a) Do you think the proposed Bill will achieve this object? (b) Does the Scottish Government need to change the law to achieve this objective? (c) Are there other ways in which the Scottish Government could achieve this objective? The Bill would place extra duties on some public sector organisations. Are these duties proportionate? Do these organisations have the capacity and resources to meet the duties placed on them? Do you agree with the list of relevant public bodies proposed in the Bill? If not, how should these be changed? Do you agree with the list of specified public bodies proposed in the Bill? If not, how should these be changed? Are there any ways the law in devolved areas could be changed to facilitate Community Wealth Building that are currently not proposed in the Bill? Are there any potential unintended consequences to the proposed Bill? To what extent will small businesses benefit from this Bill? To what extent will small businesses benefit from this Bill? 5.3. The Council’s draft response is attached at Appendix 1. The response draws on the Council’s experience of delivering a CWB strategy over the last four years, and reiterates some of the points the Council previously made in response to the consultation by the Scottish Government about the nature and scope of CWB legislation. 6. Next Steps and Recommendations 6.1. The deadline for the call for views was 23 May 2025. However, in order to allow for approval by the Executive Committee, the Council has obtained agreement to submit its written response on 28 May. 7. Employee Implications 7.1. There are no direct employee implications. 8. Financial Implications 8.1. There are no direct financial implications. 9. Other Implications 9.1. None. 10. Integrated Impact Assessments and Consultation Requirements 10.1. This report does not introduce a new policy, function or strategy or recommend a change to an existing policy, function or strategy and, therefore, no impact assessment is required. 110
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Paul Manning Chief Executive 25 April 2025 Link(s) to Council Objectives/Priorities/Outcomes Accountable, effective, efficient and transparent Previous References • None List of Background Papers • None Contact for Further Information If you would like to inspect the background papers or want further information, please contact:- Tom Little, Head of Communications and Strategy Ext: 4904 (Tel: 01698.454904) E-mail: Tom.Little@southlanarkshire.gov.uk 111
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Appendix 1: draft response to call for views Scottish Parliament’s Economy and Fair Work Committee Stage 1 scrutiny on CWB (Scotland) Bill The Scottish Government’s objective is to ensure consistent implementation of Community Wealth Building across Scotland. (a) Do you think the proposed Bill will achieve this object? SLC welcomes the CWB Bill and with it the opportunity to comment as part of the scrutiny process. In 2021, the council agreed a CWB strategy, one of the first in Scotland. Since then, the council has been working with local partners to deliver the strategy, working to an action plan spanning the five pillars of CWB. We believe the proposed Bill has the potential to greatly improve CWB activity across Scotland. It will ensure all council areas develop CWB action plans, and that those plans have regard to the pillars/themes as set out in the Bill and subsequent guidance. It will require the public bodies specified in the Bill to publish and implement a CWB action plan. This will provide a welcome stimulus to the partnership element of CWB, by motivating specified public sector agencies to work together on CWB goals. There is potential for more co-ordinated support to be made available through the involvement of regional public bodies such as Skills Development Scotland and the enterprise agencies, and the Bill will encourage progress on this front. The proposed Bill will require Scottish Ministers to publish a statement on CWB as well as guidance and direction to aid implementation of the duties. This should bring clarity and focus to the CWB agenda and help ensure a whole-government approach and a joined-up policy landscape to support CWB. All of these measures will increase the visibility and importance of CWB. In the original consultation on the proposed legislation, we were of the view that a duty requiring Scottish Ministers and prescribed public sector bodies to embed the CWB model of economic development into their corporate plans and wider strategies was the best approach to adopt. We believe this provides for individual accountability and also avoids the creation of additional plans and potential complexity. We would advocate that the legislation and associated guidance should seek to stimulate and support agency within anchor organisations to develop strategies and plans, with associated actions, which are locally appropriate to build community wealth. A duty needs to be enabling, rather than creating an additional layer of bureaucracy. Legislation should therefore be about helping those who want to deliver change to be empowered and feel that Scottish law is supportive. We believe it is important that CWB is developed in ways which are sensitive to local circumstances and conditions. What works for an urban council area may not work for a rural area. Local and regional economies have many points of 112
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similarity but also many differences across Scotland, and CWB must be flexible enough to be deployed effectively across these different geographies. (b) Does the Scottish Government need to change the law to achieve this objective? Yes Please explain your answer: To achieve the active engagement and participation of the full range of public sector bodies – yes, a requirement in law is necessary. This ensures that all relevant public service agencies recognise they have a role to play and give due regard to CWB in their planning and delivery. In the current climate, with increasing demands on services and rising costs, councils and other public sector bodies are faced with difficult choices about the services they deliver and activities they engage in. When funding is squeezed, statutory services tend to be protected at the expense of non-statutory services. For this reason, we believe CWB needs to be put on a statutory footing to ensure it is given appropriate weight by all relevant agencies. Having said that, however, we make a number of points elsewhere in this submission: • CWB brings a range of demands on limited resources, and it is imperative that any additional duties in this space are properly funded. • Legislation can work alongside a range of other measures to support the implementation of CWB in Scotland and should avoid adding complexity and layers. • Flexibility at the local level is needed to ensure CWB implementation is appropriate to local circumstances and needs. (c) Are there other ways in which the Scottish Government could achieve this objective? There are non-legislative measures which could be taken to advance the objective, but we would see these as working in tandem with the legislation. We would highlight the potential role of the Supplier Development Programme (SDP), which is a well-established service with considerable and evidenced reach at local, national, and regional levels. The reach of the SDP is ensured by the membership of all 32 Scottish local authorities, 17 other public bodies, and further corporate memberships. Over 20,000 Scottish SMEs are registered with the programme, including 655 social enterprises. Governance structures ensure appropriate local and regional adaptations in service delivery. It would be helpful if other public sector bodies (e.g. NHS boards) could obtain free access to SDP services or if membership of SDP could be on an area wide basis (and cover all public sector bodies in an area). In relation to the SDP in particular, we would propose that: 113
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• SDP is further resourced and invested in by Scottish Government as a Scotland-wide service; promoted as a key source of Community Wealth Building information, advice, guidance and engagement events for Scotland’s public and private sectors in relation to the spend pillar; and provided free of charge to all SMEs and social enterprises; • SDP is embedded and engaged in any Community Wealth Building strategy development work across all relevant Scottish Government functions; • Scottish Government investment is expanded from limited annual grant support to more secure year on year budgetary support for SDP’s existing remit and to adequately resource spend-pillar related services to Scotland’s public sector and private sector primary/larger contractors. Other measures which could support the implementation of CWB include: • Support for more joined up working between partners, particularly in terms of procurement and employment. This is necessary at a national and a local level. Variations in staffing resource, policies, procedures and systems across agencies can make having a consistent approach difficult. More effective sharing of knowledge and resources would build capacity, reduce duplication and enhance resilience and flexibility. • A national social marketing campaign and communications toolkit for local use to raise awareness of the principles of a wellbeing economy with accessible language/concepts which highlights the benefits and contributions of all stakeholders. • Influence external funding providers, such as Big Lottery, to align their interests and funding criteria to the Community Wealth Building effort. • Skills development and training to enable SMEs to be involved the delivery of large scale retrofit projects to achieve net zero by 2045, for example, energy efficiency measures and decarbonisation projects. • Guidance / policy is required on the development of local supply chains with SMEs and particularly amongst social enterprises in localities where the sector is not as strong or well developed as in other localities. A better understanding within anchor organisations of what the realistic requirements are to make SMEs / SEs ‘tender ready’ to allow them to access supply chains cannot occur without significant and ongoing capacity building. This is currently supported by the Supplier Development Programme across local authorities. (See comments on SDP above.) The Bill would place extra duties on some public sector organisations. (The Bill would require local authorities and 'relevant public bodies' to publish and implement a CWB plan for their area.) Are these duties proportionate? Do these organisations have the capacity and resources to meet the duties placed on them? 114
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The Financial Memorandum accompanying the proposed Bill provides an estimate of costs, which for local authorities are focused on the requirement to work with local anchors to develop and implement a CWB action plan; to consult on and publish the CWB action plan; and to review and update CWB action plans taking account of any associated guidance produced as part of the legislation. These are additional duties for local authorities and if the burden of developing and co-ordinating the CWB plan and implementation falls on local authorities, it is imperative that resources are made available to enable the discharge of these new duties. While some aspects of the duty may be met within existing resources – such as the governance and reporting requirements (though they are not without cost) – our experience shows that significant limitations exist due to the capacity of other organisations (e.g., SMEs) and communities to engage with CWB initiatives. CWB is a relatively new field, and the key ideas are unfamiliar to many partners and stakeholders. There is therefore a need to explain, promote, educate, and advocate to generate interest in and support for CWB in local areas. Over and above this, some of the processes which are integral to CWB (for example, asset transfer or public sector procurement) are potentially complex and technical in some respects. This presents a barrier to effective engagement and there is a resource implication on local authorities in terms of helping individuals, businesses and communities to engage with the opportunities available to them through CWB. In short, successful implementation of CWB is an ongoing and active process, which requires resourcing across a number of fronts in order to help stakeholders navigate and make best use of what is available – and we have found this to be resource-intensive, at least in the initial stages. Do you agree with the list of relevant public bodies proposed in the Bill? If not, how should these be changed? Alongside local authorities, 'relevant public bodies' would be required to publish and implement a CWB action plan. The proposed relevant public bodies are: • colleges • health boards • Scottish Enterprise • South of Scotland Enterprise • Highlands and Islands Enterprise • Skills Development Scotland • regional transport partnerships 115
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We agree with this list. Public bodies which work to larger geographies than local authorities are often limited in how much they can develop a local perspective due to a requirement to operate equitably across the geography. CPP experience also highlights that agencies which cover several local authorities can find themselves spread thinly as each authority seeks their input to specific strategies and plans. Guidance will need to ensure that these public bodies can contribute effectively. Do you agree with the list of specified public bodies proposed in the Bill? If not, how should these be changed? ‘Specified public bodies’ must have due regard to CWB guidance from the Scottish Government when developing their corporate plans and associated delivery strategies. The proposed specified public bodies are: • Creative Scotland • Crown Estate Scotland • Highlands and Islands Airports Ltd • Historic Environment Scotland • Integration Joint Boards • National Park Authority • NatureScot • Scottish Police Service • Scottish Canals • Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service • Scottish Environment Protection Agency • Scottish Fire and Rescue Service • Scottish Forestry • Scottish Funding Council • Scottish Futures Trust Ltd • Scottish Land Commission • Scottish National Investment Bank • Special Health Boards • Sportscotland • Scottish Water • VisitScotland We agree with this list. Are there any ways the law in devolved areas could be changed to facilitate Community Wealth Building that are currently not proposed in the Bill? 116
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Our response is organised across the different pillars recognised within CWB. Spending Pillar The procurement rules would need to be amended to allow for CWB. Legislating for the inclusion of local and sustainable supply chains in public contract documentation would encourage development of local businesses and suppliers. The weighting in any price/quality split for evaluation of tenders could include a higher scoring where local contractors or suppliers are utilised. There could be statutory targets for the number of apprentices employed each year. While sustainable procurement duty does support CWB, it does not allow for procurement limited to local suppliers, as regulated procurements are still subject to underlying general principles of equality, non-discrimination and openness. It would be helpful to see a change in focus of procurement rules for regulated procurements from collaboration/use of Scotland Excel or other external frameworks to maximise use of lots to focus on local areas/local business. This focus is long established. The Scottish Government and Scotland Excel need to consider how to attract local suppliers to join national frameworks and maximise advertising of sub-contracting opportunities. In addition, there is a need to promote cultural change in approach to procurement - financial constraints in public sector result in a focus in the use of frameworks and larger contracts. As noted elsewhere in this response, increased levels of local procurement could come at cost to the public sector. An increase in local procurement activity would be expected to have a resourcing impact from a procurement and service perspective. Procurement resources are typically stretched across most local authorities and adding further demands on the service risks those demands being impossible to meet without additional funding and staffing being provided. Simplification of the procurement rules for regulated procurement would minimise barriers to bidding for contracts while still allowing public bodies to have assurance in those bidders awarded contracts. A review of the threshold for seeking community benefits should be considered. This is currently set at £4m although South Lanarkshire Council have set it at £50k. It should be noted that not all local authorities will have the local suppliers capable of fulfilling their service requirements or are willing to undertake the required steps to procure from the public sector. Land and property pillar • The new National Planning Framework (NPF4) will require planning applications to be health impact assessed as well as local Development Plans to incorporate consideration of a range of health and wellbeing issues. It would be helpful if the tools/plans developed in support of this have the CWB principles threaded through. • • Consideration should be given as to how statutory requirements for local authorities set within the new Local Heat and Energy Efficiency Strategies can be supported through Community Wealth Building. For example, 117
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incentivising those building owners making the transition to decarbonised heat sources to use local SMEs to do so. • • Consideration should also be given to mechanisms which strongly incentivise private property owners, particularly remote institutions, to invest in their property assets and evidence commitment to pro-active asset management. Failure to do so should trigger an option for communities to take over vacant, underutilised property. • • A Community Wealth Building approach to retrofitting energy efficiency measures to our housing stock and non-domestic buildings could bring significant benefits. Using our influence to develop the retrofit supply chain, we could create millions in direct Gross Value Added (GVA) for the local economy and also create thousands of jobs for local people in the local community. It would be helpful to see measures which would strengthen the role of social housing providers to employ local supply chains in their business. More generally, there is an opportunity in the move to net-zero to provide social enterprise capacity at scale to meet future needs in the green economy. Employment Pillar In relation to the employment pillar of CWB, legislation could be a lever to ensure Fair Work practices are embedded in all projects which are being funded from the public purse. More progressive recruitment should be looked at for public sector agencies, unlocking more flexible ways to recruit. National policies and systems can restrict this, e.g,. within the NHS. More outreach work is needed and a requirement for agencies to report on what they are doing across this pillar. Focus on anchor organisations having an employability strategy and getting support from Scottish Government to prioritise this. Finance Pillar • The aim of the Finance pillar is to increase flow of investment within local communities, harnessing wealth that exists locally. Examples include credit unions, community development finance institutions (CDFIs), social investment and responsible investment. However, as financial regulation is a reserved matter, there is limited scope for legislative proposals in this area. • • Any changes to laws or guidance to further advance CWB needs to consider risks, and who would bear these. Inherent in any funding or investment opportunity is risk of loss, and protections need to be considered for those who bear the risks (most likely through Financial Conduct Authority’s work). In the current climate, some credit unions are finding times tough, some are failing, and there would be significant limitations (both legally and financially) on the level of support that local authorities could provide. With the cost of living crisis squeezing finances across the board, risks will be higher. • More generally, ensuring the CWB principles are built into funding criteria wherever possible would be a positive measure. For example, ensuring that national investment funds are more locally and evenly targeted and awarded 118
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through local partnerships, as opposed to a national competitive process which leads to a lack of parity across localities. Are there any potential unintended consequences to the proposed Bill? There is a risk that the proposed Bill will introduce “clutter” by requiring another plan which sits separately from local and regional economic strategies or other partnership plans. For public sector organisations, this can add complexity and demand additional resources due to separate governance structures and reporting arrangements. For stakeholders and members of the public, an additional plan might be a barrier to getting a clear view of a council’s priorities and performance. It is important to consider the financial implications of more local spend and the balance between procurement regulation and delivery of a CWB strategy. The procurement rules and guidance could be amended to allow for greater flexibility in delivering local targeted procurement. However, how would this align with Scottish Procurement collaborative approach with the emphasis on securing economies of scale and value for money? It is vital that appropriate funding is in place for public sector bodies to discharge their many functions. There is a risk that more local procurement comes at additional cost to the public sector. To what extent will small businesses benefit from this Bill? There is potential for small businesses to benefit, however our research into barriers for small businesses has highlighted the complexity of council procurement processes, the steep learning curve it presents to SMEs, and the scale of effort and resource required for a small business to bid for council contracts. SMEs need help to engage with council procurement frameworks and this is a resource-intensive undertaking. One of the issues for small businesses in relation to CWB is that, by definition, they are small businesses, which means they have limited capacity and are not set up to deliver at scale. This means that they may not be able to provide a service across the whole of a council area, and they may be more affected by supply- chain issues or adverse events such as staff illness, which may impact on their service. These factors mean that SMEs struggle to match councils’ needs in key high-value areas, e.g., school meals, transport, etc. These challenges are well-known and can be mitigated or managed only with focused support – which, again, requires expertise and resources. Our comments in respect of the role of the Supplier Development Programme (see Q1(c) above) are relevant here. The experience and expertise of the SDP is a key component of the support available to small businesses when looking to engage with public sector procurement and contracts. 119
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To what extent will local community organisations benefit from this Bill? As with small businesses, there is considerable potential for community organisations to benefit from this Bill, particularly in relation to initiatives such as asset transfer, community wish lists, participatory budgeting and the like. However, as with SMEs, community organisations need support to make the most of the opportunities available, which means that CWB need to be seen in a broader context of community empowerment, community capacity building and local democracy. The main benefits as recipients of CWB would be increased income to fund community-led activities, improved relationships with local and regional businesses for support, a valued asset and focal point for growing community empowerment. However, community organisations also have the potential to become actors and generators of community wealth, albeit this will rarely be their main motivation. A small and local community organisation would need to both aspire to and have the skills to become economic as well as social actors in their communities. To do so the type of capacity building would be high quality organisational management responsibilities and skill such as becoming employers, understanding legal structures and reporting, managing finances, managing risk and liability. An ability to generate income and employ staff and offer local, fair work, is unlikely to be the main motivation of a community organisations but could be a by-product if encouraged and supported and we create the right conditions. We have seen the quick development of organisational management skills and capacity that can happen through asset transfer processes. 120
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Report Agenda Item Report to: Executive Committee Date of Meeting: 28 May 2025 Report by: Executive Director (Community and Enterprise Resources) Subject: Strategic Environmental Assessment Progress 2024/2025 1. Purpose of Report 1.1. The purpose of the report is to:- [purpose] inform the Committee of the progress in carrying out Strategic Environmental Assessments (SEA) on the Council’s policies, plans, programmes and strategies [1purpose] 2. Recommendations 2.1. The Committee is asked to approve the following recommendations:- [re] (1) that the statutory requirement for SEA to inform the development of Council led policies, plans, programmes and strategies be noted; and (2) that progress in conducting SEAs be noted. [1recs] 3. Background 3.1. The Environmental Assessment (Scotland) Act 2005 requires the Council, as a ‘Responsible Authority’, to carry out a Strategic Environmental Assessment of all its policies, plans, programmes and strategies. 3.2. The SEA process helps to integrate environmental considerations into the preparation and adoption of plans. The SEA is carried out in a staged process alongside the preparation of the proposed plan. Throughout the process, the plan can be adjusted to mitigate negative, or enhance beneficial, environmental effects. 3.3. SEAs help to promote the Council’s commitment to sustainability and is a key priority within the Sustainable Development and Climate Change Strategy. SEAs are a valuable resource in raising the profile of environmental considerations and for facilitating holistic approaches to address the climate and nature emergencies. 3.4. The Corporate SEA Working Group continues to meet regularly to oversee the progression of SEAs across the Council. Its remit also includes development and mainstreaming of employee knowledge and understanding of the SEA process and development of the skills needed to undertake assessments. The Group is chaired by the Planning Officer (SEA). 3.5. The SEA process is further supported by the publication of the biennial South Lanarkshire State of the Environment Report which provides the baseline environmental data. Work on the 2025 edition is currently in progress. 10 121
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3.6. As part of the SEA process, the Council is required to formally consult with the statutory Consultation Authorities (Historic Environment Scotland, NatureScot and the Scottish Environment Protection Agency). This is facilitated by the Scottish Government’s SEA Gateway. 3.7. In March 2009, the Executive Committee delegated authority to the Chief Executive to make determinations on whether a Council led plan is exempt from SEA or if a full SEA would be carried out. In January 2020, the Chief Executive delegated this authority to the Executive Director (Community and Enterprise Resources). These determinations are collated by the SEA Gateway and issued to the statutory Consultation Authorities for consultation and agreement. This process is facilitated within the Council by the Planning Officer (SEA). 3.8. Although it is not a legal requirement to report on SEA progress to committee, it is considered good practice to keep members informed. 4. Progress in Carrying Out SEAs 4.1. The Council has a statutory duty to consider and carry out an SEA for all its policies, plans, programmes and strategies as they are being developed or refreshed. During 2024/2025, a number of Council led plans were subject to SEA. 4.2. The SEA Act requires the Council to assess whether plans are within the scope of the legislation and whether SEA is required. This can be considered through either Pre-screening or Screening. 4.3. Four assessments of plans were completed at the Pre-screening stage. At this stage, the Council informed the Scottish Government’s SEA Gateway of their opinion that these plans were exempt from SEA as their implementation would have no or minimal effect on the environment. These are detailed in Table 1. Table 1: Pre-screening completions 2023/2024 Lead Resource Plan Social Work Community Justice Partnership Outcome Improvement Plan Housing and Technical Kitchen Replacement Programme Social Work Integrated Joint Board Strategic Plan Social Work Carers Strategy 4.4. Three plans were finalised at Screening stage. A formal determination was made and agreed by the Consultation Authorities that further SEA work was not required for them. These are detailed in Table 2. Table 2: Screening completions 2023/2024 Lead Resource Plan Community and Enterprise Placemaking Guide Community and Enterprise Air Quality Action Plan Community and Enterprise Air Quality Strategy 122
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4.5. In March 2025, a Screening Report was prepared and submitted to the SEA Gateway for the Hamilton and East Kilbride Town Centre Masterplans. The Consultation Authorities agreed that a full SEA was not required. A Screening Determination has been issued to that effect. 4.6. During 2024/2025, a draft Scoping Report, which sets out how the environmental assessment is to be conducted, was prepared for the forthcoming Local Development Plan 3. This Scoping Report will be finalised following a workshop to be held on 22 May 2025 and submitted to the SEA Gateway for consideration by the Consultation Authorities in June 2025. 4.7. Two plans, the forthcoming Local Transport Strategy and the New Lanark World Heritage Site Management Plan, have undergone strategic environmental assessment during 2024/2025. This work will be finalised in May 2025 and the findings will be set out in an Environmental Report. The Environmental Reports will be submitted to the SEA Gateway and will be subject to public consultation alongside both the Local Transport Strategy and New Lanark World Heritage Site Management Plan in summer 2025. 4.8. The final stage of the SEA process is the preparation and submission of a Post Adoption Statement to the SEA Gateway. The Post Adoption Statement sets out the key findings from the SEA and how these have been taken account of in the final adopted plan. In 2024/2025, no Council led plans required to undergo this stage of the SEA process. 4.9. In 2025/2026, SEA work will focus on a range of Council led plans, including the forthcoming Local Development Plan 3. 4.10. The Strategic Environmental Assessment work continues to promote the protection and enhancement of the South Lanarkshire environment for our people and communities. 5. Employee Implications 5.1. SEAs are resourced by existing staff. 6. Financial Implications 6.1. SEAs are resourced within existing budgets. 7. Other Implications 7.1. Failure to make a formal determination in relation to a plan could result in the SEA process having to be restarted leading to a delay in the development of the plan. Council actions in relation to SEA are also open to legal challenge and it is, therefore, important to ensure compliance with the legislation. 8. Climate Change, Sustainability and Environmental Implications 8.1. Strategic Environmental Assessment is a valuable tool for the Council and partners in strategic planning. It safeguards South Lanarkshire’s natural and built environment and is a useful tool to help address both the climate and nature emergencies. 123
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9. Equality Impact Assessment and Consultation Arrangements 9.1. This report does not introduce a new policy, function or strategy or recommend a significant change to an existing policy, function or strategy and, therefore, no impact assessment is required. 9.2. The report is for information only and consultation on its contents is not required. David Booth Executive Director (Community and Enterprise Resources) 8 May 2025 Link(s) to Council Values/Priorities/Outcomes Good quality, suitable and sustainable places to live Caring, connected, sustainable communities People live the healthiest lives possible Thriving business, fair jobs and vibrant town centres Previous References Executive Committee, 25 March 2009 List of Background Papers South Lanarkshire State of the Environment Report 2023 (approved by the Executive Committee 26 June 2024) South Lanarkshire Council Sustainable Development and Climate Change Strategy 2022 - 2027 Contact for Further Information If you would like to inspect the background papers or want further information, please contact:- Jennifer Murphy Advanced Planning Officer (Strategic Environmental Assessment) Email: jennifer.murphy@southlanarkshire.gov.uk 124