Page 1 - Graduate Trainees and Securing of Permanent Funding 
 
 
Agenda Item:
Cabinet / 
 
 
 
 
6 
Staffing 
 
Committee 
 
 
 
Cabinet – 5 November 2008 
Date of Meeting 
Staffing Committee – 10 November 2008 
Officer Chief 
Executive 
Subject of Report 
Graduate Trainees and Securing of Permanent Funding 
Executive Summary 
The National Graduate Development Programme (ngdp) is for high 
calibre graduates wishing to pursue a management career in local 
government. 
 
Run by the IDeA graduates are recruited through a nationally 
managed assessment process and start the placement programme 
with local authorities in October each year. 
 
Participating authorities provide a 2 year programme of work 
placements, projects and development opportunities within a 3 way 
partnership agreement with the IDeA.   
 
The employing authority pay the salaries of the graduates plus a 
small additional charge, and the IDeA, supported by the Graduate 
Leadership Academy, deliver the training requirements. 
 
During the 2 year contract trainees complete at least 3 placements, 
1 with a frontline service, 1 in a support service and 1 in policy 
development.  They also undertake a Masters Degree in Public 
Administration at Warwick University. 
 
The programme is highly regarded, nationally, as not only 
contributing to succession planning on a local basis, but also 
supporting the achievement of improved performance and 
standards in local government through the employment of new 
talent. 
 

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Page 2 - Graduate Trainees and Securing of Permanent Funding 
This year the County Council participated in the programme for the 
first time, and is providing placements for 2 graduate members of 
the national programme.  The 2 trainees will remain with the 
County Council for 2 years with pump priming money from an 
underspend in the Chief Executive’s Office together with the use of 
a vacant post in the Fit for the Future Project Office. 
 
This is a scheme which has major potential value for the County 
Council and will be continued with 2 trainees per year being 
provided for, so that at any one time when the programme is fully 
operational we shall have 4 trainees on placement (2 on Year 1 
and 2 on Year 2). 
 
The first 2 trainees have been appointed on a fixed term contract 
basis until 28 September 2010.  The expectation is that on or 
before the expiry of the contract they will be appointed to 
substantive posts in the County Council. 
Budget/Risk 
NGDP trainees are paid a nationally agreed salary of SCP27, the 
Implications 
annual cost in total is £58,000 per annum which includes 
employers on costs and a £2k per student contribution to their 
training. 
 
If 2 students per annum are appointed (the second 2 commencing 
in late September 2009) the 2009/10 cost will be £86,000. 
 
There may be the opportunity to offset the salary costs if during the 
placements the graduate could be held against a vacant post within 
the Service. 
Recommendation 
It is recommended that the Staffing Committee recommend that the 
Cabinet consider making available, as part of the MTFS process, 
the funding for 4 graduate trainees. 
Reason for 
To secure, as part of succession planning, the employment of high 
Recommendation 
calibre management appointments for the County Council within 
the context of achieving higher performance targets and meeting 
service demands. 
Appendices 
Nil 
 
Background Papers 
IDeA National Graduate Development Programme 
 
Report Originator and  Name: Rowland Hartle, Head of HR & Exchequer Services 
Contact 
Tel: 01305 
224090 
Email: [email address] 
 

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