Agenda and minutes

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Items
No. Item

1.

Declarations of Interest

Members are asked to declare any personal or prejudicial interest, and the nature of that interest, in respect of any matter to be considered at this meeting.

Minutes:

There were no declarations of personal or prejudicial interest at the commencement of the meeting.

2.

Minutes pdf icon PDF 17 KB

To receive the note of an inquorate informal meeting of the Committee held on 18 July 2006.

Minutes:

The note of the inquorate meeting of the Sub-Committee held on 18 July 2006 were agreed as a correct record.

3.

Review of the Council's Early Retirement and Severance Policies for Teachers pdf icon PDF 36 KB

(Director of Education, Children’s Services and Libraries – Human Resources)

Minutes:

The Human Resources Manager (Education, Children’s Services and Libraries) presented the report updating the Sub-Committee on the arrangements for access to unreduced pension for teachers prior to the normal retirement date, as a result of the Age Discrimination Legislation introduced on 1 October 2006.

 

The Sub-Committee noted that the recommendations in the report fell in line with the Council’s Pensions and Severance Policy which was agreed at the Employment Committee on 4 October 2006.  The Human Resources Manager highlighted that the Early Retirement Policy allowing teachers to apply to be released under efficiency grounds from age 58 would cease to operate.  This change had been discussed through teacher associations where there had been no objections.

 

RESOLVED that, with immediate effect

 

(i)                  teachers who were made redundant and had unreduced access to their pension would have the redundancy calculated at the statutory (30 week maximum) redundancy calculator;

 

(ii)                teachers who were made redundant who did not have unreduced access to their pension would have the redundancy severance calculated at x2.5 statutory redundancy calculator up to a maximum of 104 weeks payment;

 

(iii)               actual weekly pay be used for all redundancy payments; and

 

(iv)              the Early Retirement Policy allowing teachers to apply to be released under efficiency grounds from age 58 ceased to operate.

4.

Update on Recruitment and Retention in Schools pdf icon PDF 29 KB

(Report to Follow)

(Director of Education, Children’s Services and Libraries – Human Resources)

Minutes:

The Human Resources Manager (Education, Children’s Services and Libraries) presented the report from the Director of Education, Children’s Services and Libraries updating the Sub-Committee on the initiatives underway and plans for the future to aid the recruitment and retention of teachers in the Borough.

 

Bracknell Forest was running its third Return to Teaching Course in the summer of 2007.  The course required 15 attendees before the Training and Development Agency for schools would fund the course, with 12 applications already received it was expected that the course would be running in 2007.  It was also being investigated with Oxford Brookes University whether the course could count towards an MA should teachers wish to study for this qualification at a later date.

 

Newly qualified teachers were invited to apply to Bracknell Forest’s Primary Pool online and would be considered by all primary schools for suitable vacancies.  In 2006, 18 teachers were appointed to positions in Bracknell Forest.  In 2007 centralised applications would also be accepted for secondary newly qualified teachers.

 

The Chairman thanked Jo Rayner, Recruitment Strategy Manager for her hard work and the success achieved in the recruitment of teachers in Bracknell Forest.

 

RESOLVED that the actions being taken to assist with the recruitment and retention of teaching and other school staff in the Borough be noted.

 

Contact Information

Democratic services

Email: committee@bracknell-forest.gov.uk