There should be a temporary halt to public sector job cuts to stimulate economic growth and combat rising unemployment. This call for the cuts to be halted for several years comes from the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development in a report published today.
Organisational change and re-structuring across the public sector has resulted in a 50 per cent increase in stress-related absence. Job insecurity is a major contributory cause of stress.
Rising stress levels is a major finding from the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development Simplyhealth Absence Management survey. The survey found that a combination of cuts to jobs, pension benefits and pay freezes bring pressures which staff are finding difficult to cope with.
Read more on PUBLIC SECTOR WORKPLACES ARE STRESSED SAYS SURVEY…
London councils are to share a ‘one stop shop’ service for procurment, a move that could potentially help save millions of pounds. Initially the shared service will be used by councils, but later it will allow all public sector organisations in the capital to share services.
The shared services online portal ‘Procure4London’ was launched today. It will allow councils in London to share procurement information, contracts and best practice more easily than ever before. Sharing information in this way will reduce the time and money spent on lengthy, individual tendering procedures.
The NHS has launched a range of online tools to help patients learn more about their condition and the options for tests and treatments on conditions such as cataracts and breast cancer.
Three councils aim to save £1m by combining top and senior management level posts. This is the first instalment of savings expected to come from a wider programme of sharing services.
The Audit Commission has launched a pilot scheme to help UK banks and credit providers identify fraudulent applications by immigration offenders.
The Commission and the UK Border Agency will share information in ‘real time’ with financial institutions. Each year the UK Border Agency processes around 3.5 million applications to visit, live, work or study in the UK. The aim is to prevent those with no right to stay or work in the UK from accessing financial services. In return, financial institutions will provide the Agency with information on where illegal working and employment is taking place, supporting the Agency’s work in tackling immigration crime.
Engagement with communities at the moment is only marginal to the organisation, funding, management and strategic control of universities. More should be done to promote engagement and make university knowledge readily accessible for the benefit of excluded communities. This is the main finding from research funded by the Economic and Social Research Council.
Current policy pressures on universities to focus on improving their research excellence and to widen participation make it hard for them to engage meaningfully with excluded communities. This reduces their benefits for excluded communities.
Read more on UNIVERSITIES URGED TO ENGAGE WITH THEIR COMMUNITIES…
The Government has revealed plans to turn Post Office Ltd into a mutual organisation. This would allow communities, subpostmasters and customers to have a say in how they are managed. There would be a major investment programme which would seek to make the Post Office the ‘Front Office for Government with a new commercial focus and a strong community purpose.
Read more on COMMUNTIES TO HAVE A SAY IN RUNNING POST OFFICES…
Liverpool City Council is to use a new design concept to halve the cost of building schools. They will be built under a structure similar to a modern airport terminal building. This will reduce the cost of a traditional build by about half. The concept also offers more flexibility as the internal layout and even the entire use of the site can be changed in the future.
Read more on AIRPORT TERMINMAL BUILDING TECHNIQUE TO CUT COST OF SCHOOLS…
PayByPhone has launched a new smartphone app for iPhone, BlackBerry and Android phones which could spell the end of digging around for the right parking change. The free PayByPhone app lets motorists parking their cars in PayByPhone parking areas pay via their phones, and find their way back to their car when it’s time to go home.
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