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Gateshead Council has taken the lead in adopting smarter working practices within the local government sector by becoming the first local authority in the country to sign the Work Wise Concordat. With a workforce of some 10,000 people spanning 1,200 types of job, in addition to being the first local authority to pledge its support for smarter working, it is also the largest local authority in the country to become part of the Work Wise campaign to date. In signing the Concordat, it means that Gateshead Council is committed to working towards achieving the Work Wise Standard, a Mark of Excellence, which requires an organisation to demonstrate: understanding and use of smarter working techniques as a strategic planning tool; staff involvement in defining future strategies, and; vision in planning for the future. The decision to sign the Concordat follows on from Gateshead Council winning the Work Wise sponsored Smarter Working Practices Award for employers with over 50 staff at the recent Equality North East Awards. Sarah Stewart, project director for Work Wise North East, was delighted to discover that Gateshead Council was keen to take its existing commitment to smarter working one step further by working towards the Standard. This will provide a structured framework for the further development of its smarter working policies in the future. She said: “The Council’s entry for the Equality North East Awards demonstrated an outstanding commitment to innovation in its implementation of a wide range of policies and procedures in pursuit of achieving a better work~life balance for its staff. “We are extremely pleased to welcome Gateshead Council as an active member of the campaign at a time when the benefits of smarter working are really starting to add up. “More and more companies are looking at cost reduction strategies and those who do work smarter notice a number of cost savings in areas such as reduced accommodation costs, enhanced workforce productivity, improved customer service and in developing their reputation as an employer of choice. “The carbon agenda is also another important consideration. The reduction of our collective carbon footprint as a nation is going to be one of the major drivers for change in the way we live and work in the years ahead and smarter working has a major role to play here too. Jeff Dean, Director of Corporate Services, from Gateshead Council, said: “The adoption of smarter working practices within the Council has already led to a greater focus on output instead of just the number of hours worked in a week. This shift in working practice has helped to attract and retain a more diverse workforce, reflected by a greater number of women being employed, more people from black and minority ethnic backgrounds and more employees with disabilities. “In deciding to sign the Concordat we believe it will bring even greater clarity to the way in which we are shaping our HR and operational policies. In line with all public sector bodies we have a mandate from central government to reduce our expenditure year on year by adopting more efficient ways of working and I would encourage all local authorities to embrace the thinking behind the Work Wise campaign.” << back to news