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The text you provided discusses the implementation and response to a four-day work week trial by South Cambridgeshire District Council, along with related issues about council housing and repair times.
### Summary:
– **Implementation of the Four-Day Week:**
– Began as an experiment in January 2023.
– Desk-based staff were expected to complete all their tasks in 80% of their usual hours but with no salary reduction.
– Staff now work about 85% of their contracted hours.
– The scheme was made permanent in July 2023 and extended to all workers, including bin collection teams.
– **Government and Political Responses:**
– In June 2023, Conservative Lee Rowley, then local government minister, demanded the council stop the trial, questioning its value for money.
– The government issued notices requiring data on performance, spending, and staffing.
– The incoming Labour administration dropped the government’s micromanagement approach.
– Local Government Secretary Steve Reed raised concerns about the impact on housing services, citing issues like the speed of re-letting council homes, tenant satisfaction with repairs, and rent collection rates.
– Reed warned councils in December 2023 that a four-day week could signal potential failure.
– **Council’s Response & Outcomes:**
– The council claimed it performed well compared to other authorities in re-letting homes.
– Repairs are handled by a contractor who does not work the four-day week.
– Rent arrears are below the national average despite cost-of-living pressures.
– **Community Impact:**
– Some local residents reported slow repair times for council homes.
– Specific instances include water damage and long delays in making repairs.
– Residents have criticized the four-day week, saying it’s “outrageous” because repairs don’t even get done in the normal five-day week.
If you’d like information on any specific aspect of this, such as the effects on council services, staff opinions, or comparisons with other regions, please let me know!
Read the full article from The BBC here: Read More
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