Recruitment Practices

Waiting for an internal review by Hackney Learning Trust of their handling of this request.

Dear The Learning Trust,

Can you please answer the following questions:

1. Since January 2006 how many compromise agreements have been issued?
How many staff have been dismissed?
Year by year breakdown needed and the number of those issued since the Trust went back to the council.

2. Since January 2006 how many staff at the Trust have been on temporary contracts?
Year by year breakdown needed and the number of those on temporary contracts since the Trust went back to the council.
How many were full-time and part-time? How many temps were in the IT department? How long has the longest serving temp (regardless of how many positions they have covered) in the HR department been there? How long has/was the longest serving temp been/was at the Trust?

3. Since the Trust started to operate their apprenticeship scheme, how many apprentices have worked at the Trust? How many of those have worked in the IT department?

4. How many of the temporary staff, since 1/10/2011, (excluding ad-hoc staff) been recruited through an internal recruitment procedure and subsequently been employed by the Trust? How many temporary staff have worked in a position/similar position that has then been advertised as an internal vacancy and been subsequently recruited e.g. The temp works at the Trust as Assistant Head of HR, there is then an internal recruitment campaign and the temp is now employed on a Trust contract as Assistant/Deputy Head of HR?

5. When the Trust reverted back to Council control how many staff earning over 50k a year left? Since that date, how many staff earning over 50k a year have been employed? How have the new staff been recruited e.g. external campaign, internal campaign, from temp to perm etc.

6. How many staff who have taken voluntary redundancy at the Trust come back to work at the Trust in any capacity e.g. reemployed, a Consultant

7. How many staff, since 1st January 2006, were not recruited through an external recruitment campaign? This list should also include those staff who have moved to a higher position and earned a higher salary without a external recruitment campaign.

8. What is the Learning Trust policy on temporary staff - regarding how long someone works in a position before a recruitment campaign needs to be run?

Yours faithfully,

Frank Franks

Dear The Learning Trust,

I would also like to add the question:

Since 1st January 2006 how many of the top 5 earning members of staff have had relatives work at the Trust in any capacity including those who are on temporary contracts.

Yours faithfully,

Frank Franks

Sean O'Regan,

I am out of the office today and will return on Tuesday 5 November.

If your email is urgent please send to [email address].

Regards,

Sean O’Regan

________________________________
Hackney Learning Trust (HLT) is the name used by Hackney Council for the part of the Council that provides education services. HLT is not a separate legal entity and is part of the Children and Young People’s Directorate of Hackney Council. All references to HLT means Hackney Council.

Dear The Learning Trust,

Please pass this on to the person who conducts Freedom of Information reviews.

I am writing to request an internal review of The Learning Trust's handling of my FOI request 'Recruitment Practices'.

My request for information about recruitment procedures hasn't been answered.

A full history of my FOI request and all correspondence is available on the Internet at this address: https://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/r...

Yours faithfully,

Frank Franks

Sean O'Regan,

1 Attachment

Dear Mr Franks,

Re: Your Freedom of Information Request.

Thank you for your email of 4 November, in which you requested the following information:

1. Since January 2006 how many compromise agreements have been issued?
How many staff have been dismissed?
Year by year breakdown needed and the number of those issued since the Trust went back to the council.

2. Since January 2006 how many staff at the Trust have been on temporary contracts?
Year by year breakdown needed and the number of those on temporary contracts since the Trust went back to the council.
How many were full-time and part-time? How many temps were in the IT department? How long has the longest serving temp (regardless of how many positions they have covered) in the HR department been there? How long has/was the longest serving temp been/was at the Trust?

3. Since the Trust started to operate their apprenticeship scheme, how many apprentices have worked at the Trust? How many of those have worked in the IT department?

4. How many of the temporary staff, since 1/10/2011, (excluding ad-hoc staff) been recruited through an internal recruitment procedure and subsequently been employed by the Trust? How many temporary staff have worked in a position/similar position that has then been advertised as an internal vacancy and been subsequently recruited e.g. The temp works at the Trust as Assistant Head of HR, there is then an internal recruitment campaign and the temp is now employed on a Trust contract as Assistant/Deputy Head of HR?

5. When the Trust reverted back to Council control how many staff earning over 50k a year left? Since that date, how many staff earning over 50k a year have been employed? How have the new staff been recruited e.g. external campaign, internal campaign, from temp to perm etc.

6. How many staff who have taken voluntary redundancy at the Trust come back to work at the Trust in any capacity e.g. reemployed, a Consultant

7. How many staff, since 1st January 2006, were not recruited through an external recruitment campaign? This list should also include those staff who have moved to a higher position and earned a higher salary without a external recruitment campaign.

8. What is the Learning Trust policy on temporary staff - regarding how long someone works in a position before a recruitment campaign needs to be run?
You request has been considered and the answer to your question is listed below.

9. Since 1st January 2006 how many of the top 5 earning members of staff have had relatives work at the Trust in any capacity including those who are on temporary contracts.

You request has been considered and the answers to your questions are listed in the attached document.

Please note the information is still covered by copyright legislation. You are not authorised to re-use this information for commercial or research purposes as defined by the Re-Use of Public Sector Information Regulations 2005. If you do wish to re-use this information please contact the Information Governance Team, 3rd Floor, Maurice Bishop House, Reading Lane, London, E8 1HH.

If you are dissatisfied with this response and wish to appeal, please write to the Information Governance Team, Appeals, 3rd Floor Maurice Bishop House Reading Lane London E8 1HH and your complaint will be dealt with through our Internal Review procedure.

If you are still not satisfied following the Internal Review, you have a right to appeal to the Information Commissioner. He can be contacted at:
Information Commissioner's Office
Wycliffe House
Water Lane
Wilmslow
Cheshire
SK9 5AF
Telephone: 01625 545 700
www.ico.gov.uk

Yours sincerely,
.......................................................
Sean O’Regan
Paralegal,
Information (FOI & DPA) Officer
Hackney Learning Trust
London Borough of Hackney
1 Reading Lane, London, E8 1GQ
1020 8820 7382
0 sean.o'[email address]
.......................................................

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Dear Sean O'Regan,

Thanks for your reply.
Firstly can you tell me why it took so long?
Secondly, there is an attachment (regarding the Trust policy on recruiting temporary staff) that doesn't open. Please send one that does.

I wish to point your way towards some inaccuracies. Question 7 is incorrect - are you seriously telling me that less than 5 people have moved to better jobs at the Trust without an external recruitment campaign. I know that to be inaccurate.

5c is also inaccurate. There have been more than 0 people who earn over 50k who have not been recruited through an external campaign.

Yours sincerely,

Frank Franks

Sean O'Regan,

1 Attachment

Dear Mr Franks,

1. My apologies for the delayed response to your request, which was three working days overdue. This information took some time to collate.

2. Please find attached a PDF of the policy document I provided a link to in my initial response.

3. The number of people who have moved to higher positions within the organisation and who have received an increased salary (as specified in your question) is equal to or less than five.

There are other people who were recruited during this extensive period through the internal recruitment process operated by the London Borough of Hackney. This is a robust process where vacancies are advertised internally and to Hackney Learning Trust's managed recruitment service provider. However, none of the people recruited through this process moved to higher positions within the organisation or earned a higher salary.

4. I am not sure that I understand this query. The response to question 5c does not state that 0 people who earn over 50k were recruited without an external recruitment campaign since 1st August 2012.

I hope this information is helpful.

Kind regards
.......................................................
Sean O’Regan
Paralegal,
Information (FOI & DPA) Officer
Hackney Learning Trust
London Borough of Hackney
1 Reading Lane, London, E8 1GQ
1020 8820 7382
0 sean.o'[email address]
.......................................................

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Dear Sean O'Regan,

I have read your temp staff policy. In this it states:

Agency staff must not be used to cover:
maternity leave, as this should be advertised in the usual way

The use of agency staff should be used to cover:
a permanent vacant post where a recruitment campaign has been unsuccessful and is ongoing
where there is an identified skills shortage where the service will fail to meet minimum statutory service requirements a short-term absence where a business case has been submitted and approved.

An extension beyond 13 weeks must be authorised by a Head of Department or Director. At this point, managers should look at the option of offering the candidate a temporary contract with The Learning Trust as in most cases this would be a more cost effective option. Again a budget needs to be agreed and allocated for the post.

Can you please identify how the HR Temp who has been there for 3 years and the other temp who has been there for 4 years and all the other long-term temps that have/had been in IT for over 1 year or more complied with this policy?
Aslo, why so many temps in IT?

I wish to clear up a couple of points regarding question 7 and 5c:

Question 7 should read: How many members of staff since 2006 have been promoted to a higher salaried position, without there being an external recruitment campaign. e.g. there was an internal recruitment campaign, their job role/title changed, they were assimilated to a new position when someone else left.

Question 5c) You have stated that all new staff that have been recruited to HLT since the switch back to the council, who earn over 50k per year, have been recruited externally.
I know this to be incorrect - there have been internal recruitments of staff earning over 50k a year - please re-check your figures.

Yours sincerely,

Frank Franks

Sean O'Regan,

Dear Mr Franks,

I write in response to your email of 12 December in which you asked some additional questions further to your Freedom of Information request dated 3 November 2013.

With regard to your first question, I can confirm Hackney Learning Trust is compliant with Council's policies regarding the use of agency and temporary staff. Any temporary or agency workers who have worked for longer than 13 weeks are not covering permanent or vacant posts, but are/were providing additional bespoke services.

With regard to your second question about numbers of staff who, since 2006, who were promoted to a higher salaried position without there being an external recruitment campaign, unfortunately Hackney Learning Trust does not hold this information. I can confirm, however, that it is often the case that members of staff are asked to take on new duties and areas of responsibility without there being any change to their salary.

Kind regards
.......................................................
Sean O’Regan
Paralegal,
Information (FOI & DPA) Officer
Hackney Learning Trust
London Borough of Hackney
1 Reading Lane, London, E8 1GQ
1020 8820 7382
0 sean.o'[email address]
.......................................................

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Dear Shane,

Thanksyou very much.

You have not answered question 5c:

Question 5c) You have stated that all new staff that have been
recruited to HLT since the switch back to the council, who earn
over 50k per year, have been recruited externally.
I know this to be incorrect - there have been internal recruitments
of staff earning over 50k a year - please re-check your figures.

You havent answered this either:

Aslo, why so many temps in IT?

I disagree with some of the answers you have given. I think you can provide answers about people moving into a new role. Look up the people who have moved into a new role and then check to see if there was a recruitment campaign. Simples.

As anyone out of the long term agency staff been covering maternity leave? Have the long term temps in IT and HR been offering bespoke services all the time they have been there and are currently doing so?

Yours sincerely,

Frank Franks

Sean O'Regan,

Dear Frank,

I am sorry that you are unhappy with some of the information you have been provided with, however, I can confirm you have been provided with accurate answers in relation to information held by the council. I should add that some of the points you have raised are matters of personal opinion, and some of the questions you ask are subjective and therefore unlikely to be covered by the Freedom of Information Act. Hackney Learning Trust is of the view that your request has now been responded to in full in accordance with the Freedom of Information Act.

Kind regards
.......................................................
Sean O’Regan
Paralegal,
Information (FOI & DPA) Officer
Hackney Learning Trust
London Borough of Hackney
1 Reading Lane, London, E8 1GQ
1020 8820 7382
0 sean.o'[email address]
.......................................................

show quoted sections

Dear Sean O'Regan,

Thanks. Throughout this exchange it has been difficult to pin you down on answering all the questions I ask - you have only answered some questions and haave also been late.
I will pass this information on.

Yours

Frank Franks