Agenda item

To receive a report from the Cabinet Member for Specialist Children’s Services and the Corporate Director of Social Care, Health and Wellbeing on activity in relation to recruitment and retention of children’s social workers.

Ms K Ray, Business Partner, Social Care, Health and Wellbeing, and Ms K Watson, Business Partner, Education and Young People’s Services, were in attendance for this item.

1.            Ms Ray and Ms Watson introduced the report and responded to comments and questions from Members, as follows:

a)    to address the issue of social workers leaving Kent to work elsewhere, or taking up a job elsewhere instead of in Kent, work was ongoing to compare Kent’s top social work salary to that of neighbouring authorities.  This had found that only Essex County Council had a higher top salary than Kent.  A report on this issue would shortly be considered by the departmental management team.  Mr Segurola added that most social workers leaving the County Council did so to join agencies.  The County Council could simply not match agencies’ incentives but hoped to attract and keep its social work staff by enhancing other parts of the employment package;

b)    in response to a question about the relatively low proportion of applicants selected for interview, Ms Ray explained that some applicants simply did not have the required qualifications and were not suitable to progress to the interview stage. To compare the number interviewed with the number appointed would give a better indication of the quality of the candidates coming forward;

c)    the report listed the number of job offers made, but it would be useful to know also how many vacancies there were to be filled.  Ms Ray undertook to include this information in the next report to the Committee;

d)    a question was raised about the extent of Members’ involvement in the decision to discontinue exit interviews. Ms Ray undertook to look into how and where the decision had been taken but added that interviews were now undertaken with newly-arrived social workers, to identify why they had chosen to work for the County Council. She added that managers were encouraged to talk to staff handing in their notice but that it was left up to the individuals concerned to take up this opportunity;

2.            The Chairman proposed, and Mrs A D Allen seconded, that the Committee recommend the resumption of exit interviews, so the service and Members had a source of information about why social workers left the County Council.

Carried without a vote.

e)    it was important that, in undertaking interviews to seek honest feedback, at any stage of employment, these should not necessarily be conducted by the individual’s manager but should offer the employee the chance to nominate someone else to undertake the interview;

f)     the Memorandum of Co-operation was welcomed, but this would need to be monitored carefully.  Ms Ray explained that this was in its early days but would indeed be monitored.  Mr Segurola added that, under the Memorandum of Co-operation, any social worker leaving the County Council would not be employed by any other local authority in the south-east region;

g)    staff citing ‘lifestyle changes’ as their reason for leaving social work gave a variety of reasons, including travelling and moving to an area in which it was easier to buy property;

h)   where the reason cited was ‘work-life balance’, it was important to identify the problems behind this and explore what the County Council could do to alleviate them, for example, by encouraging flexible working or job-sharing;

i)     it was known that the first three years of a social work career was the period during which social workers were most likely to seek to change career, so if they could be encouraged to stay beyond this period they were more likely to stay for good;

j)      in response to a question about the age structure of social work recruits, and the value placed upon older recruits with life experience, Ms Ray explained that a candidate’s age was not included on their application form, and recruiters were not permitted to ask about or consider a candidate’s age as part of their consideration. However, the age range of social work applicants was broad – from new graduates to mature applicants.  What was more important was to recruit competent, experienced people. Kent was involved in the national ‘Return to Social Work’ campaign being run by the Local Government Association to encourage past social workers to return to the profession, for example, after raising a family;

k)    in response to a question about what measures the County Council took to retain those intending to leave, for example in an economical, temporary arrangement, Ms Ray explained that even a temporary arrangement would incur costs, such as pension contributions; and

l)     there was a ‘toolkit’ for managers which set out steps to seek to retain staff, including ‘career breaks’ and encouragement of those leaving to go travelling to return to employment afterwards.  This would allow the County Council to benefit once again from the training investment it had made in those staff.   

3.    RESOLVED that:-

a)     the activity in relation to recruitment and retention of children’s social workers, set out in the report and given in response to comments and questions, be noted; and

b)    a recommendation be made that the practice of undertaking exit interviews be resumed, so the service and Members had a source of information about why social workers left the County Council.