GWENT POLICE AUTHORITY Full Police Authority Meeting

							                         GWENT POLICE AUTHORITY
                         Full Police Authority Meeting
Date:                29 July 2010                                     Item No: 8e

Heading:             Strategic Director of Human Resources

Report Author:  Chief Constable
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SUMMARY

The purpose of this report is to make Members aware of discussions which are
currently taking place between respective Chief Constables about the development
of a Section 23 Agreement which would enable South Wales Police to provide Gwent
Police with access to the services of a Strategic Director of Human Resources.
___________________________________________________________________

RECOMMENDATION(S)

Members are invited to note the emerging proposals and to agree that a more
detailed report should be presented for formal consideration at the Equality and
Human Resources Committee on 13 September 2010.


1.      BACKGROUND

1.1     South Wales Police are currently preparing to recruit a Strategic Director of
        Human Resources (hereinafter referred to as the Director) to their Chief
        Officer team. During broader discussions about collaboration, the respective
        Chief Constables have been exploring the opportunities which this represent
        to develop collaborative arrangements and shared services between South
        Wales and Gwent on human resource issues.

1.2     A number of models have been considered. However, the concept which is
        emerging is of an arrangement similar to that which Gwent Police currently
        has with Torfaen County Borough Council on ICT. In simple terms, in return
        for a contribution of one fifth of the employment costs, the Director would
        provide Gwent Police with strategic consultancy on human resource issues.

1.3     The benefits of this approach would be two-fold. By combining funding to
        recruit an individual of high calibre, both forces would be able to acquire a
        degree of skill, expertise and strategic capability that neither could otherwise
        afford to ‘buy in’ acting alone. At the same time, working across the two
        organisations, the Director would create a degree of synergy which would not
        exist if the two organisations were acting independently. Members will be
        aware of the significant business benefits which have been derived from
        adopting this approach to the development of our strategic ICT capability.




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1.4    The decision to enter into an arrangement of this type is arguably an
       operational one for the Chief Constable to make. However it is not one which
       he would wish to make without proper reference to the Police Authority. More
       importantly, the most suitable vehicle on which to base an arrangement of this
       nature would be a collaboration agreement under Section 23 of the Police Act
       2006. In that respect the active support of the Police Authority would be a pre-
       requisite to the proposals being progressed.

2.     PROPOSAL        FOR      CONSIDERATION          BY    COMMITTEE/CURRENT
       POSITION

2.1.   Detailed proposals are currently being developed. However, in broad terms,
       the arrangements would work in the following way:-

       a) the Director would provide high level advice and guidance to the Chief
          Constables, Police Authorities and senior leaders of both forces;

       b) through the respective Chief Constables, the Director would work closely
          with the heads of people services (or human resources) in both
          organisations to design, develop and implement strategy, policy and
          working practices on human resource issues;

       c) most significantly, working across the two organisations, the Director would
          incrementally identify opportunities to converge the human resource
          functions of the two organisations as a means of providing an improved
          level of service at reduced costs;

       d) through active engagement in the broader all-Wales and national
          collaboration frameworks (for both policing and public services) the
          Director would identify and exploit opportunity for wider integration across
          forces and other public service agencies.

2.2    The most obvious areas for collaboration are in Learning and Development
       (both general and specialist training), Recruitment, Occupational Health,
       management advice and transactional processes (e.g. attendance
       management, annual leave, records management, etc.). Others could be
       developed in due course. Each of these opportunities would clearly need to
       be considered on their merits on a case by case basis.

2.3    In due course, it might be that sufficient ‘critical mass’ was established
       between the two forces to create a joint capability which served both forces
       under the direct control of the Joint Director of Human Resources answering
       to both Chief Constables and Police Authorities in a similar way to the model
       developed between the two forces for the provision of Legal Services. Again,
       these arrangements are working well and Members will be aware of the
       benefits which have already been achieved in this area of business.


2.4    However, this would be a longer term objective and not one which would be
       specifically built into an initial agreement. To use a colloquial phrase, what is


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       being proposed would allow both forces to ‘dip a toe in to explore the water
       before we dive in’.

2.5    Fundamental issues such as accountability mechanism, reporting lines
       governance arrangements, together with more practical issues like where the
       Director would be based and how they would operate are currently being
       discussed.
.
2.6    The role and job description for the post holder would include the requirement
       to make a significant contribution to the all-Wales collaboration programme
       and this might create the potential for broader collaboration in due course.
       Dyfed Powys and North Wales have been consulted. However, they would
       not wish to be involved in a joint arrangement at this stage.

2.7.   At this stage, Members are invited to note the discussions which are taking
       place and to offer any early observations which they might have about the
       broad principle. We are currently operating in a fast moving environment and
       it is important that any fundamental barriers or reservations are identified at an
       early stage.

2.8    The next steps are for a Section 23 Agreement to be drawn up setting out the
       high level principles of a collaborative venture, at the same time, more detailed
       working arrangements will be developed to support the high level agreement.
       This work is currently being taken forward by the two forces and it is
       anticipated that a draft document will be ready for consideration by the next
       Equality and HR Committee on 13 September 2010. Members are invited to
       remit the decision to progress the proposals to that Committee. Similar
       discussions are currently taking place between the Chief Constable of South
       Wales and the South Wales Police Authority.

2.9    Whilst there are no specific time constraints for Gwent, the post has been
       vacant for some time now, and South Wales will need to progress this issue at
       the earliest opportunity. Given the time which it takes to complete the full
       cycle of the recruitment process, the post will be advertised with the potential
       for collaboration built into the job specification.       However, no formal
       appointment would be made until a Section 23 Agreement has been properly
       discussed and formally approved by both Police Authorities.

2.10 If the agreement is progressed, the Chief Constable would participate in the
     selection process.

3.     STAFFING/PERSONNEL IMPLICATIONS

3.1.   There are no direct staffing implications as such since the appointment would
       be made by South Wales Police with input from Gwent Police and the
       postholder will be employed on South Wales pay and conditions of service.

3.2    The proposals would clearly impact on the role and responsibilities of the
       Head of People Services. However, managed appropriately, this would
       enhance, rather than detract from the role.


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4.     FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS

4.1.   The cost to Gwent Police would be one fifth of the salary costs. The salary is
       likely to be set at the level of an Assistant Chief Constable’s salary less 5%
       which would produce a salary scale of £84,000 to £98,000 per annum. The
       cost to Gwent Police would be between £16,800 and £19,600 per annum plus
       a proportion of the employment on costs. These costs would be factored into
       the overall cost of the back office support structure which is currently being
       finalised as part of the Staying Ahead review. The additional costs will be
       offset by reductions elsewhere within the structure.

4.2    All terms and conditions of this posting would be the sole responsibility of
       South Wales Police and South Wales Police Authority. Any section 23
       agreement would include provision for an annual review which would enable
       the financial contribution to be incrementally increased to reflect increasing
       levels of contribution.

5.     CONSULTATION

5.1.   The Chief Constables, Chairs and Chief Executives of the respective forces
       and police authorities have been made aware of these proposals as they have
       emerged. The proposals have also been discussed with the Head of People
       Services.

6.     PROJECT ASSESSMENT FOR EQUALITY AND DIVERSITY MATTERS

6.1.   This project/proposal has been considered against the general duty to
       promote equality, as stipulated under the Police Authority’s Equality Schemes,
       and has been assessed not to discriminate against any particular group on
       individual.

7.     IMPACT ASSESSMENT FOR HUMAN RIGHTS MATTERS

7.1    Consideration has been given to requirements of the Articles contained in the
       European Convention on Human Rights and the Human Rights Act 1998 in
       preparing this report.

8.     RISK ASSESSMENT

8.1    There would be no direct risk to the force if this matter was not progressed
       since the force already has a structure and posts in place for the provision of
       HR services. However, significant development opportunities and the
       opportunity to deliver cash releasing efficiencies might be missed.

9.     STAYING AHEAD

9.1.   The matters raised in this report have been considered in the context of the
       Staying Ahead Project and are not considered to have any direct
       consequences for the outcomes. Rather the proposals support the general



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       thrust for increased collaboration between forces and reflect the strategic drive
       to provide improved services at reduced costs.

10.    CONCLUSION

10.1   The purpose of this report is to make Members aware of discussions which
       are currently taking place between respective Chief Constables about the
       development of a Section 23 Agreement which would enable South Wales
       Police to provide Gwent Police with access to the services of a Strategic
       Director of Human Resources.

10.2   Members are invited to note the emerging proposals and to agree that a more
       detailed report should presented for formal consideration at the Equality and
       Human Resources Committee on 13 September 2010

11.    CONTACT OFFICER

11.1   Deputy Chief Constable Carmel Napier

12.    BACKGROUND PAPERS

12.1   None

13.    APPENDICIES

13.1. None




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