Training courses are available to book via the portal (login required).
The Training Bulletin is issued monthly, and courses are available to book via the portal. If there is any specific training which you feel would be valuable, and we don’t currently offer it, please let us know and we will investigate. The latest Training Bulletin can be found on the LALC website.
Clerks – when booking training for your councillors, please ensure that their email address is correct. If not, they will not receive the booking confirmation or any joining instructions.
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Position |
Closing date |
|
Clerk/RFO |
No closing date |
|
Clerk/RFO |
10th July |
|
Clerk/RFO |
Not specified |
|
Clerk/RFO |
No closing date |
|
Clerk/RFO |
10th July |
|
Clerk/RFO |
30th July |
|
Clerk/RFO |
31st July |
|
RFO |
25th August |
|
Village Handyperson |
25th August |
|
Clerk/RFO |
16th August |
|
Clerk/RFO |
18th August |
If we are advertising your vacancy in the eNews and on our website, please let us know when the vacancy has been filled, so that we can remove it. If your vacancy has not yet been filled and you are continuing to advertise, please let us know of any revised closing date. If you no longer specify a closing date, please let us know so that we can update the vacancy adverts.
If you need your vacancy advertising and do not have a pre-prepared advert to send us, please complete our Vacancy Template, which can be found in the Members Portal under Document Templates.
The NALC Recruitment Manual (developed as part of the Civility & Respect project) is now available via the portal. Go into Knowledgebase and click on the ‘Employment’ card and enter ‘recruitment’ in the search box.
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Interest in further Play Area Inspection training?
We have received enquiries asking when the next Play Inspection training will be held. This is usually held once a year, over the summer, (the last one being held in June) however if there is sufficient interest, we will investigate the possibility of arranging a further session this year (subject to trainer availability).
15 places must be filled for this event to be viable.
Please send any expressions of interest to enquiries@lalc.co.uk.
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COUNCIL NEWS
JULY 2023
Recruitment and Retention within Town and Parish Councils
Finding senior staff, and hanging on to them, has been an endemic problem for Town and Parish Councils for a number of years, and it isn’t getting any easier.
When considering what a Council can do to attract and keep staff, and what difference their HR policies and procedures can make, it might be helpful to consider what Employers outside of the sector are doing.
At the end of June Curry’s, the electrical retailer, introduced a raft of new policies including:
• Giving paid leave on top of holiday entitlement to Employees who are having IVF treatment or gender reassignment. This provides paid leave for up to six IVF appointments, or six weeks for gender reassignment surgery.
• Premature birth support, extending Maternity Leave by the number of days the baby was born prior to the 37th week of pregnancy.
• Two weeks paid leave for Employees who suffer pregnancy loss or their partner has had that experience.
Initiatives other Employers have introduced include:
• Full pay to top up Statutory Maternity Pay for 39 weeks of Maternity Leave.
• Similar top-up pay for all Paternity Leave.
• Allowing all home work requests, or request to work flexible hours.
• Up to 40 days annual paid leave, including Bank Holidays.
• Additional paid leave to Employees to enable them to care for family dependents.
For many Town and Parish Councils with limited resources and budgets, these ideas may seem a little fanciful and the preserve of bigger Employers. However, there are opportunities to make jobs more attractive, even on a budget.
For example many small Parish Councils have no meetings in August and December due to holidays. This makes life a little quieter for the Clerk, and could be an opportunity to increase their paid leave entitlement without damaging the performance of the Council.
Another example could be the opportunity for Employees to work from home, and work hours that fit in around their commitments outside of work. Employees already have a legal right to request these changes, but the Council has to approve them based on a number of criteria. Furthermore requests can only be made by Employees who have six months’ continuous employment. However, there are proposals to make this opportunity available from day one, and for it to be a right, not a request. That might seem a little excessive for some Councils who do need an office presence at some times. However, they can change their procedures from requiring staff to request the changes, to automatically granting them, but with adjustments to meet the business needs of the Council.
The question is, how creative can you be as an Employer, while meeting the needs of the Council? Town and Parish Councils do have very limited resources, but that doesn’t mean that they cannot explore opportunities to make jobs more attractive.
Benefits such as these can be targeted solely at difficult to fill positions, without worrying about allegations of discrimination. If a Council can demonstrate that it has difficulties in recruiting certain posts, or attracting people with essential skills and qualifications, it can justify treating those post holders more favourably, and giving them better terms and conditions of employment.
PROFILE
Chris Moses LLM Chartered FCIPD is Managing Director of Personnel Advice & Solutions Ltd. He is a Chartered Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development, and has a Master’s Degree in Employment Law. If you have any questions regarding these issues please feel free to contact him on (01529) 305056 or email p.d.solutions@zen.co.uk
www.personneladviceandsolutions.co.uk
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BBC News: Thornton-le-Dale parish council row 'worse than Jackie Weaver'
A recent news item claims that a row affecting Thornton-le-Dale parish council in North Yorkshire, which resulted in an ill-tempered meeting on 18th July, is worse than the infamous Handforth Parish Council ‘Jackie Weaver’ episode which went viral on social media.
Read the full article here: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-york-north-yorkshire-66323506
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NALC Blog: Visualising local Census 2021 data
Author: Jessica Bailey, deputy head of outreach and engagement, Office for National Statistics
Everyone benefits from the census. The data provided helps councils, charities and businesses plan and fund the local and national services we all rely on, wherever we live, across England and Wales.
In June 2022, just over a year after census day, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) published the first results from Census 2021. Since then, we have been steadily producing a wealth of census data, allowing users to access and make use of it quicker than ever before. We predict we’ll ultimately publish around 5 billion statistics from Census 2021.
We have published datasets and detailed analysis on a wide range of topics including demography and migration, nationality, ethnic group, language and religion, and much more. For the first time ever, we have also given users the ability to create and customise their own datasets, allowing them to fully explore the relationships between topics that matter to them through our ‘create a custom dataset’ tool.
We are aware that when it comes to census statistics, different users have different needs. We recognise that for yourselves in parish and town councils, while the information published so far may be of general interest, to make best use of census data you require it to be available at geographies that we have yet to publish. As part of phase 3 of our census release plans we will be publishing parish-level data, as well as detailed migration data, data on small populations, alternative population bases and more. We will be providing updates on this work in the coming weeks.
We also understand that for many users, the raw data can be challenging to make sense of and using it to answer the questions you have can be complicated and time consuming.
Luckily, the days when census statistics were only published in huge, printed volumes are long gone. The ONS is committed to making all of our data, including census statistics, as accessible as possible. To support with this, we are creating a range of products and tools to help users understand and visualise census data.
These tools are different to the raw data, and they do not necessarily provide as much detail and granularity that can be found by analysing the data itself. What they do is allow users to interact with and visualise census statistics in different ways and to see the story behind what the data shows for your local area.
One of these tools is our custom area profile builder. This allows users to select from pre-existing geographies such as parishes or wards, or to draw their own custom areas on map, and to view a range of census data about that area. We have published a blog on how to use the tool here.
Alongside this, our interactive census maps let you explore Census 2021 data down to a local neighbourhood level. The tool allows you to easily see differences between neighbourhoods, and to see how a particular area has changed between Census 2011 and Census 2021. Again, we have published a blog on how to use the tool here.
Alongside the various datasets, these tools are just one aspect of our Census 2021 outputs. We have also produced a range of interactive articles such as ‘How your area has changed in 10 years’, analysis on key census topics as well as blogs and podcasts which provide further context and commentary on ONS data, including Census 2021.
While the census programme is far from over, with lots more information still to be brought to life, we are already looking ahead to how we might produce population statistics in the future. We recognise that producing high-quality, timely population and migration statistics is essential to ensure people get the services and support they need, both within their communities and nationwide. On 29 June the ONS launched a public consultation on our proposals for a new approach to population and migration statistics. This blog explains more about what the consultation is and why it matters.
If you’d like to find out more about any of the above, get in contact via outreach.engagement.LA@ons.gov.uk.
NALC blog: https://tinyurl.com/2dyk47yz
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LCC need your help: “Let us know if you have some drains in your parish that are not on our records”
As you are aware, we are responsible for the maintenance of highway drains.
We clean all gullies and kerb drains at least once every two years. We also inspect all chambers and clean them when required.
But we need your help to find drains we are not aware of, to ensure they are maintained. We need the location of any drain – or drains - that aren't on our drainage map for Lincolnshire.
We have divided the maps into district council areas. To help us out with your vital local knowledge, please visit your district area using the district link below:
• www.letstalk.lincolnshire.gov.uk/highways-drainage-records-in-boston-borough
• www.letstalk.lincolnshire.gov.uk/highways-drainage-records-in-city-of-lincoln
• www.letstalk.lincolnshire.gov.uk/highways-drainage-records-in-east-lindsey
• www.letstalk.lincolnshire.gov.uk/highways-drainage-records-in-north-kesteven
• www.letstalk.lincolnshire.gov.uk/highways-drainage-records-in-south-holland
• www.letstalk.lincolnshire.gov.uk/highways-drainage-records-in-south-kesteven
• www.letstalk.lincolnshire.gov.uk/highways-drainage-records-in-west-lindsey
Add relevant pins to show any drains that are not on our records. You will also be able to upload a photo and tell us a bit about the drains.
The closing date for submissions is 15 October 2023.
If you would like any more information about the project or have any questions, please contact us by emailing Lcctownandparishnews@lincolnshire.gov.uk or by calling 01522 782070 between the hours of 8am and 6pm Monday to Friday.
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LCC Fire Safety advice for e-bikes and e-scooters
With an increased use of e-bikes and e-scooters, Lincolnshire Fire and Rescue are reminding people to be careful when charging them in the home. A recent fatal flat fire in Kings Hedges Cambridgeshire, is believed to have been started accidentally and the most probable cause was an e-bike.
E-bikes and e-scooters are becoming increasingly popular, but this increased use has raised fire safety concerns with their charging and storage. When left on charge and unattended they pose a safety risk. This is especially the case if they are left in communal areas such as hallways and stairwells, blocking emergency escape routes in multi-occupied buildings.
• if possible, avoid charging e-bikes and e-scooters indoors
• avoid storing or charging in communal areas or where exits may be blocked
• charge batteries whilst you are awake and alert
• always use the manufacturer approved charger for the product and carefully follow the instructions
• unplug the charger when you have finished using it
• do not overcharge your battery. Check the instructions for charge times
For more information and advice: https://lincolnshire.us8.list-manage.com/track/click?u=3cf59469d7c06d7f6c53d43c3&id=362a41192a&e=75ab902b81
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LCC: Going the extra mile with walking boost
Lincolnshire residents and visitors will benefit from two new walking initiatives. More than 200 walking routes, nature trails and pathways can now be accessed at http://www.visitlincolnshire.com/things-to-do/walking and offer visitors a more user-friendly experience.
Features include:
• printable routes
• walk search by location or preferred scenery (eg coast, countryside, nature reserves)
• information on route length, difficulty level, terrain and average completion time
• whether the route is dog-friendly, accessible via public transport and what other attractions are nearby
Lincolnshire County Council has also allocated £350,000 to be spent in the next two years on improving walking routes in the county – aimed at improving access to the countryside, encouraging sustainable travel and boosting tourism. Initial works being considered include path surfacing works, clearing vegetation and better signage.
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Latest NALC Events
Engaging with local communities through digital engagement
27 September 2023, 12.00 – 13.15
Learn about effective digital engagement strategies that can broaden community participation beyond the usual suspects. You will discover how digital tools and platforms can enable local councils to connect with residents more efficiently and effectively and make it easier for people to engage with the decision-making processes that affect their lives.
Buy ticket: https://tinyurl.com/mwnt3d5n
Empowering young voices in your community
25 October 2023 — 12.00 – 13.15
Practical tips and guidance on new ways to engage with young people in your community, understand their needs, and gather their views on crucial local topics. By listening to young people's voices, local councils can empower them to become leaders and spokespeople for change in their communities. Learn about strategies for engaging with young people that go beyond traditional methods and find out how to get the most out of the local leaders of tomorrow in your area.
Buy ticket: https://tinyurl.com/bdzex6nz
Making the planning system work for local councils
22 November 2023 — 12.00 – 13.15
Hear from a national policy stakeholder and relevant planning case studies from the local council sector on improving the planning system to meet local (parish and town) council needs. Our expert speakers will share their knowledge on the challenges and opportunities of planning in local councils and discuss approaches for improving community engagement, promoting sustainable development, and ensuring a fair and transparent planning process.
Buy ticket: https://tinyurl.com/3vm7sxvm
Winning strategies for the funding game
15 December 2023 — 12.00 – 13.15
Discover strategies for winning the funding game. You will learn about the types of funding available to local councils, the eligibility criteria, and the application process. You will also hear about successful case studies that have secured financing and how they have used the funds to benefit their communities.
Buy ticket: https://tinyurl.com/yc7yhh9z
How local councils can benefit from the levelling up agenda
31 January 2024 — 12.00 – 13.15
Understand better how local councils can benefit from the levelling up agenda and what steps they need to take to prepare for devolution. You will hear from speakers with experience in local government and councils successfully navigating the devolution process. They will share their understandings, best practices, and lessons learned, giving you a helpful perspective on succeeding in a devolved environment.
Buy ticket: https://tinyurl.com/usm8pcfe
The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly of social media in the local council sector
28 February 2024 — 12.00 – 13.15
Join us for a candid discussion on the dos and don’ts of social media in the local council sector. We'll explore case studies and best practices and provide actionable advice on creating a social media policy that promotes civility and respect. Whether you're a seasoned social media user or just getting started, this event is a must-attend for anyone who wants to use social media to build stronger communities.
Buy ticket: https://tinyurl.com/452nscf3
Reconnecting communities through community transport
27 March 2024 — 12.00 – 13.15
Join us at this event, where we will showcase successful community transport programmes that local councils have implemented. We will also provide details into the national stakeholder scene and how local councils can collaborate with other organisations to improve transport options in their area.
Buy ticket: https://tinyurl.com/4smxjhwd
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SLCC: Further Reforms to the Planning System in England
In a speech, the Rt Hon Michael Gove MP, Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, outlined further proposed amendments to the planning system in England.
These include a consultation aimed at making it easier for households to build upwards and outwards without the need for planning approval and convert shops and offices into housing without the need for planning approval. The plan would also make it easier to convert barns and “the repurposing [of] agricultural buildings and disused warehouses.”
Other measures include more support for planning departments (including financial) and community land trusts. Also, ones aimed at making local plans easier to produce and ensuring design quality and local support for new development as well as a focus on “inner city” development including a new “urban quarter” in Cambridge and 12 new development corporations in urban area,
It was also confirmed that the revised National Planning Policy Framework which was expected in the spring will now be published “a little bit later this year”.
Read the “Long-term plan for housing: Secretary of State’s speech”: https://tinyurl.com/4vr22b6d
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Martyn’s Law – Home Affairs Committee Report
The Home Affairs Committee has now finished its pre-scrutiny inquiry of the draft Terrorism (Protection of Premises) Bill – Martyn’s Law.
Whilst the Committee supports the intent of the bill and the proposed measures to improve the response to terror attacks in larger venues, it calls on the government to introduce the legislation in stages, beginning with larger venues, and review its implementation annually to assess its impact. It also calls for further research to better assess whether the threat to smaller venues is sufficient to require them to undertake anti-terrorism measures. The government is due to respond to the report by 27 September 2023.
SLCC and NALC submitted written evidence to the inquiry.
Read the Home Affairs Committee news release:
Read the full Committee report: https://committees.parliament.uk/publications/41090/documents/200072/default/
Read the report summary: https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm5803/cmselect/cmhaff/1359/summary.html
Read all written evidence:
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SLCC: Stress and Anxiety Questionnaire
The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) says that stress, anxiety and depression are the number one reasons for work-related illness in the UK and is on the rise.
Statistics published covering the 2021/22 period, show of the 1.8 million workers suffering from a work-related illness, 914,000 were stress, depression or anxiety. Over half of working days are lost due to work-related stress, depression or anxiety.
As a result, the HSE have introduced a “Working Minds Campaign” which helps drive culture change across Britain’s workplaces, where recognising and responding to the signs of stress become as routine as managing workplace safety.
To assist in their campaign, they would like as many people as possible complete a short survey. This should take approximately 5 minutes to complete and all responses will be anonymous.
The Working Minds Stress survey (involve.me) can be found here:
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Become a Working Minds Champion
https://workright.campaign.gov.uk/campaigns/working-minds-champions/
Work-related stress is now the number one cause of employee sickness absence, with major factors causing work-related stress including workload pressures – tight deadlines, too much responsibility and a lack of managerial support. Our insight also tells us that employers, particularly smaller ones, are not aware of their legal duties or how to spot the signs of stress.
We’re calling for a culture change across Britain’s workplaces where recognising and responding to the signs of stress becomes as routine as managing workplace safety and we can’t do it alone.
Key to the success of the Working Minds campaign is the support of you, our partners and champions. With your support, we can raise the profile and awareness of stress and the impact it has on mental health and business.
Can you help us to increase engagement and ensure that our messages reach the people who need advice and support?
There are lots of ways you can support and be involved from simply signing up, sharing social posts or doing something more proactive in your sector or own workplace. We welcome it all.
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D-DAY 80 - 6TH JUNE 2024