Agenda and minutes

To elect a Chair for the duration of the meeting.

RESOLVED – That Councillor J Lewis be elected as Chair for the duration of the meeting.

To consider any appeals in accordance with Procedure Rule 15.2 of the Access to Information Procedure Rules (in the event of an Appeal the press and public will be excluded)

(*In accordance with Procedure Rule 15.2, written notice of an appeal must be received by the Head of Governance Services at least 24 hours before the meeting)

There were no appeals against refusal of inspection of documents received.

RESOLVED – That Appendix 2 to the report entitled ‘Appointment of the Director of Children and Families (Temporary)’ referred to in Minute No.7 be designated as exempt from publication under the provisions of Access to Information Procedure Rule 10.4(1) and (2) and on the grounds that, in all the circumstances of the case, the public interest in maintaining the exemption outweighs the public interest in disclosing the information by reason of the need to maintain the competitive nature of the interview process and to retain information submitted by individual applicants in confidence, as disclosure could undermine the process, future appointment processes, or the outcome on this occasion to the detriment of the Council’s and public interest.

To disclose or draw attention to any disclosable pecuniary interests for the purposes of Section 31 of the Localism Act 2011 and paragraphs 13-16 of the Members’ Code of Conduct.

No declaration of disclosable pecuniary interests were made.

To receive any apologies for absence from the meeting.

No apologies for absence had been received.

To receive a report of the City Solicitor which provides an overview of the governance arrangements and format for this specific Employment Committee which will have responsibility for the recruitment to the position of Director of Children and Families on a temporary basis.

(Report & Appendix attached)

The City Solicitor submitted a report which provided Members with an overview of the governance arrangements and format for this specific Employment Committee which had responsibility for recruitment to the post of Director of Children and Families, on a temporary basis.

The report noted that following the shortlisting process being undertaken today, the interview process for any shortlisted candidates was scheduled to take place on 16th January 2020 by a reconstituted Employment Committee.

RESOLVED –

(a)  That the governance arrangements and format relating to the Employment Committee, as detailed within the submitted report, be noted;

(b)  That the Council’s requirements regarding the consideration and disclosure of confidential and ‘exempt’ information, be noted.

To receive a report of the Chief Officer (HR) which presents a proposal to the Employment Committee to appoint to the position of Director of Children and Families on a temporary basis.

(Cover report and Appendix 1 attached)

(Please note that Appendix 2 to the report, designated as exempt from publication under the provisions of Access to Information Procedure Rule 10.4 (1) and (2) will be circulated to Committee Members in due course)  

The Chief Officer Human Resources submitted a report which outlined the process for the recruitment to the position of Director of Children and Families on a 12 month temporary basis.

The Chief Executive and the Chief Officer Human Resources were in attendance at the meeting in an advisory capacity.

The Committee met to undertake an exercise to shortlist any appropriate candidates for the purposes of formal interview.

Having considered all of the submitted information, with the details of exempt appendix 2 being considered in private, the Committee undertook the formal recruitment process (shortlisting) for the position of Director of Children and Families, on a temporary basis.

RESOLVED - That 2 candidates be shortlisted for formal interview in line with the processes as outlined within the submitted report, with it being noted that any future offer of appointment will be subject to the associated notification process, as set out within the Officer Employment Procedure Rules.