Caithness Map :: Links to Site Map Great value Unlimited Broadband from an award winning provider SUN 6TH JUL 2025    5:54:23 AM BST
This site uses cookies, by continuing to use this site you accept the terms of our privacy policy
Back To Top
Caithness.Org Quick Links
Home
Construction
Leisure
Manufacturing
Misc.
Primary
Professional
Public
Retail
Tourism
Transport
Site Map
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Feed 2.0 Loading...

Redundancies Avoided In Council Grounds Maintenance

29th March 2011

Through working closely with the trade unions and following effective vacancy monitoring and redeployment policies, The Highland Council has been able to avoid making any grounds maintenance staff redundant following the outsourcing of routine grass cutting work to a private contractor.

When the Council decided to invite the private sector to compete for grass cutting contracts last year, it was estimated that 22 staff would transfer to the successful bidder under the TUPE Regulations, and that a further 33 posts would be at risk of redundancy.

The outcome - reported to a joint meeting of the Council and the trade unions - is that only one member of staff will transfer to the new contractor, and there will be no compulsory redundancies, with the vast majority of staff being redeployed to other posts in the Council.

In anticipation of the likely impacts on staffing, from this and other savings measures, the Council introduced a recruitment freeze last year to hold posts which can be used for the redeployment of staff at risk from redundancy.

Following a procurement exercise, the Council took the decision to award the contract for routine grass cutting to an external contractor (ISS) at its meeting on 16 December 2010.

This decision to award the contract to ISS provided a saving of �1.36 million over the life of the 3 year contract, and the areas affected are Mid and West Ross; Inverness; Nairn; Badenoch & Strathspey; Lochaber and Skye.

Councillor John Laing, Chairman of Transport Environmental and Community Services, said: "I am delighted that the staffing issues have been resolved and that we have still achieved a significant saving with no reduction in service to the public."

Councillor Carolyn Wilson, Chairman of the Council's Resources Committee, said that the decision to introduce a recruitment freeze has been very effective and has provided opportunities to redeploy staff at risk of redundancy.

She said: "This demonstrates that planning ahead and working with the trade unions is the best way to minimise the impact on our staff. I thank the staff and the trade unions for the working so closely throughout this process, and I can give a commitment that the Council will continue to use this approach to minimise the impact on other Council staff who may find themselves at risk of redundancy."

Bruce Crabtree of the GMB Trade Union said: "Everyone has worked very hard to come to this successful conclusion. The sentiments expressed by Council Elected Members bode well for the future and we look forward to working productively to meet future challenges."

 

Related Businesses

 

Related Articles

3/7/2025
Bringing more empty homes back into use
Additional empty homes officers are being recruited to bring more privately owned houses back into use.   The new posts are being supported as part of a £2 million investment through the Scottish Empty Homes Partnership in 2025-26 which will see staff take a more proactive and targeted approach to tackling local housing issues.  
2/7/2025
Community-Led Local Development Fund distributes over £900k to support projects in Highland
The Highland Strategic Local Action Group (LAG) met in June 2025 and considered and agreed funding for 28 projects submitted to the Community-Led Local Development fund (CLLD), which makes up part of The Highland Council Community Regeneration Fund (CRF) programme.   CRF is an umbrella term used to cover multiple external funding programmes administered by The Highland Council.  
2/7/2025
Community benefits funding delivers educational resources to Highland schoolsThumbnail for article : Community benefits funding delivers educational resources to Highland schools
Highland Council has provided 12 ‘Talking Tub' resources for use in primary schools across the Highlands, in partnership with Union Technical who deliver community benefits as part of the Energy Efficient Scotland: Area Based Scheme programme.   Chair of Highland Council's Education Committee, Councillor John Finlayson, said: "This is a fantastic initiative being rolled out across Highland primary schools which brings innovation and inspiration to early years children.  
1/7/2025
Additional bins will help keep popular visitor spots tidy
Visitors will find it easier to dispose of their litter at several popular spots across Highland after the rollout of additional bins.  The rollout has been planned to support the tourism season as part of the Council's ongoing commitment to improve and support sustainable tourism in the area.  
27/6/2025
Accounts Commission commends Highland Council's culture of transformation
Members of the meeting of The Highland Council (26 June 2025) have considered and agreed the Accounts Commission's Best Value report, which was published in April 2025 and highlights organisational improvements across leadership, performance management and community engagement.   In April’s report, the Accounts Commission recognised and welcomed significant progress within the organisation since the 2020 Best Value Assurance Report (BVAR) and commended the embedded culture of transformation.  
27/6/2025
Thurso masterplan and community POD progress update
A new generation of community facilities is being planned for the Highlands.   At a meeting of The Highland Council (Thursday 26 June), elected members approved the work to date in progressing the Highland Investment Plan workstreams - masterplan for Thurso and agreed to nominate the current Thurso High School site as the preferred location for the new Thurso Community Point of Delivery (POD).  
27/6/2025
Highland Housing Challenge partnership makes positive strides
At a meeting of The Highland Council (Thursday 26 June 2025), Members received a progress report on the partnership approach and important successes since declaring a Highland Housing Challenge in November 2023.   Since establishing the ambitious Highland Housing Challenge, important successes included: A call for sites delivered 250 sites, with a potential 25,000 housing units which will support delivery against the target of an additional 12,000 houses over the next 10 years.  
25/6/2025
Highland Council to deliver housing energy efficiency upgrades with ECO funding
The Highland Council will deliver a transformative programme of energy efficiency upgrades across Council housing supported by a £9.2 million Energy Company Obligation (ECO) funding proposal secured by Union Technical.   The funding proposal will deliver approximately 1,000 individual energy efficiency measures to Council owned properties across the Highlands.  
18/6/2025
Look to See - a Refugee Week exhibition by young people
As part of the Highland Council's celebration of Refugee Week - 16 to 22 June - we are delighted to announce that a sharing of photographs, taken by separated young people seeking asylum living within the Highlands, is to be shown at Eden Court Arts Centre, Inverness.   Look to See, which ties in with the theme for this year’s Refugee Week - Community as a Superpower - emerges out of a collaboration between multiple agencies working alongside separated young people seeking asylum, embodying the importance of community and connection, when looking to support all young people in the Highlands.  
12/6/2025
Highland Youth Parliament Future Youth Voice Conference
The annual Highland Youth Parliament (HYP) conference will take place at Inverness Leisure and Canal Park, Inverness on Friday (13th June 2025).   Highland young people are focusing on future youth voices and what they would like a future Highland to look like.