The Employment and Staffing Committee of Wokingham Council is scheduled to consider reports on workforce equalities, agency worker usage, and a proposed new Dignity, Respect and Inclusion Policy. The meeting will also include an update on agency worker expenditure for the first quarter of the 2026/27 financial year.

Workforce Equalities Monitoring Report 2026

The committee is scheduled to consider the Workforce Equalities Monitoring Report for 2026. This report provides an analysis of the council's workforce diversity as of 31 March 2026, aiming to ensure compliance with the Equality Act 2010 and the Public Sector Equality Duty. The report highlights improvements in the declaration rates of protected characteristics among employees, while also identifying ongoing challenges with data quality. It compares the council's workforce profile across various characteristics, such as ethnicity, gender, disability, sexual orientation, religion, and age, against the local community demographics.

Key findings from the report are expected to be presented, including:

• Ethnicity: The council's workforce is reported as 71% White British and 16% from ethnic minority groups, with 13% not declaring their ethnicity. Ethnic minority representation among new starters was 27%, which is higher than their representation in the borough population. The report also details the ethnicity breakdown by salary grouping, indicating that employees from ethnic minority groups are more represented in higher salary bands than in the previous year. The mean ethnicity pay gap is reported as 6.54%, and the median gap is 0.89%.
• Gender: The workforce remains predominantly female at 77%, compared to 51% of the borough population. While male new starters increased from 20% to 26% in the past year, the overall workforce gender profile remained unchanged due to the gender split of leavers. The report notes that more women than men work part-time, which is often prevalent at lower organisational levels. The mean gender pay gap is 12.97%, and the median gap is 15.51%.
• Disability: Five percent of employees have declared a disability, compared to 13% of borough residents. A significant challenge highlighted is the high rate of non-declaration of disability status, particularly among new starters (85.2%), which weakens the quality of available data. The council continues to participate in the Disability Confident Scheme.
• Age Profile: The workforce has a concentrated age profile, with 39% aged 35–49 and 37.1% aged 50–64. Only 3.2% of the workforce is under 25, which is a decrease from the previous year and compares to approximately 10.5% of the borough population in the 20-24 age bracket. The council is broadening its recruitment approach to attract a wider range of candidates, including through apprenticeships and work experience programmes.
• Recruitment Analysis: Between 1 April 2025 and 31 March 2026, the council received 8,869 applications. The report details the gender, ethnicity, and disability profiles of applicants, shortlisted candidates, and appointed individuals. It notes that while the proportion of White British applicants increased through each recruitment stage, the proportion of applicants from ethnic minority groups decreased.

The report identifies priorities to improve equality data quality, particularly at recruitment and onboarding stages, and to strengthen workforce and succession planning. A new recruitment system planned for 2027 is expected to support self-declaration and reduce information loss.

Agency Worker Report Q1 2026/27

The committee is scheduled to receive the Agency Worker Report for the first quarter of the 2026/27 financial year, covering April to June 2026. The report indicates that overall agency spend increased year-on-year by approximately £750,000 compared to the same period last year, reaching £2,539,567. However, the spend compared to the previous quarter reduced by around £100,000, though this is not yet seen as indicative of a longer-term reduction.

The report details agency spend by directorate, with Adult Social Care and Health accounting for the largest portion (£1,212,146) in Q1 2026/27. This increase is partly attributed to the transfer of Housing services to this directorate and investment in the Housing service to prepare for the Regulator of Social Housing inspection regime.

Key drivers for agency use include ensuring preparedness for the Children's Services Reforms (implemented in July 2026), investment in Housing, and corporate projects requiring specialist skills. The council states that direct employment of staff remains its preferred model, with agency engagement used for temporary project needs or to cover essential roles where recruitment is challenging.

The report highlights that while the overall headcount of agency workers has reduced from the previous quarter, it remains higher than the same period last year. This suggests that fewer agency workers are being engaged, but they are in more specialist or senior roles commanding higher rates. The council continues to manage agency engagement through a robust framework, aiming to limit long-term and high-cost placements.

Proposed New Dignity, Respect and Inclusion Policy

The committee is scheduled to consider a proposed new Dignity, Respect and Inclusion Policy. This policy is intended to replace the council's existing, now outdated, Dignity at Work policy. The new policy aims to create a respectful and inclusive workplace and promote the early resolution of concerns.

Key principles of the proposed policy include:

• Purpose: To foster a respectful and inclusive workplace and encourage early resolution of concerns.
• Scope: The policy applies to all employees, workers, apprentices, agency workers, contractors, consultants, and volunteers. It covers behaviour in council workplaces, digital interactions, work events, and conduct outside of work that has a material connection to employment.
• Expected Conduct: All individuals are expected to act respectfully, consider the impact of their actions, speak up safely, maintain confidentiality, and avoid retaliation.
• Managerial Responsibilities: Managers are expected to model inclusive behaviour, intervene early, assess risks, and support needs.
• Unacceptable Behaviour: This includes bullying, harassment, sexual harassment, racism, microaggressions, sexism, misogyny, victimisation, and retaliation. The policy explicitly states the council's commitment to being actively anti-racist and challenging racial discrimination.
• Resolution Routes: The policy outlines options for raising and resolving concerns, including self-resolution, facilitated discussion or mediation, and informal or formal routes. Concerns can be reported to a manager, HR, or a trade union representative.
• Formal Process: A formal route may involve an investigation, an opportunity for all parties to respond, a findings report, and a management outcome. Upheld allegations may lead to disciplinary action.
• Appeals: Partially upheld or rejected outcomes may be appealed on limited grounds.
• Protection and Support: Parties involved will be treated fairly, offered support, and protected from retaliation. Confidentiality is important but not absolute.

The policy has been expanded to include racism, violence against women and girls, and sexual harassment, which is now a legislative requirement. The council will monitor themes, timeliness, outcomes, and equality impacts to improve policy, training, and culture.