Our culture

Culture is the heart and soul of the Council. It impacts our engagement, motivation, satisfaction, and performance and will directly impact the success of the Council.

By supporting you as individuals to contribute to the Council and celebrating the great work we do, we will not only continue to create an amazing employee experience but create a culture where our people feel connected and have the right environment to thrive.

Best performing Council in Wales for consectutive years (Source: Local Data Unit)

Our values

We want to employ people who share and embrace our core values:

• Open

  Open to different ideas and being accountable for the decisions we take.

   

  Open is about how we are transparent in our actions, decisions and communications ensuring openness and honesty with our colleagues, customers, and communities.

• Ambitious 

  Forward thinking, embracing new ways of working and investing in our future.

   

  Ambitious is about challenging ourselves as individuals and as an organisation to do better and to change when required.

• Together 

  Working together as a team that engages with our customers and partners, respects diversity and is committed to quality services.

   

  Together is about the ability of an individual to embrace teamwork, to share a common goal with colleagues and to work in collaboration with others.

• Proud 

  Proud to serve our communities and to be part of the Vale of Glamorgan Council.

   

  Proud is about recognising the importance of highly valued and essential public services we provide to communities and individuals and the satisfaction someone gains in carrying out their role to the best of their ability.

Our Culture Book  

The Culture Book encompasses and builds on the Staff Charter and highlights the diversity of our organisation, the exceptional work our staff do and showcases us delivering our Values in action. 

Employee benefits and support

We offer a range of benefits to support a healthy work life balance:

• Flexible working arrangements

   We recognise the importance of a work and home life balance and offer a range of family friendly policies.
  
  We provide IT equipment that supports agile working and enables working from home, subject to agreement from your line manager and the needs of the service.

• Generous pension scheme and annual leave

  We offer membership to the Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS) or Teachers Pension Scheme. 

   

  Local Government Pension Scheme

  The Local Government Pension Scheme is a valuable part of the reward package for employees as its benefits are defined and guaranteed in law.  Your pension is worked out every year and added to your pension account.  Each year 1/49th of your pensionable pay is put into your pension account.  You also receive tax relief on the contributions that you pay plus you have the option when you draw your pension to exchange part of it for tax-free lump sum.

   

  Local Government Pension Scheme 

   

  Teachers' Pension Scheme

  The Teachers’ Pension Scheme provides you with an income for your retirement which you can even take part of your pension as a tax free lump sum when you retire.  Both you and the Council pay contributions towards the cost of your pension.  Teachers’ Pensions also have an online portal where you can register and keep track of your pension and view and download your Benefit Statements.

   

  Teachers' Pensions

   

  Annual Leave Purchase Scheme

  Employees can choose to purchase either 5 or 10 days annual leave (pro rata for those who work part-time).

   

  As part of a continued commitment to help employees to balance their work commitments with their home life, the Vale of Glamorgan operates a scheme allowing employees to purchase additional annual leave. 

• Generous relocation scheme 

  We offer relocation assistance of up to £8,000, to help you move nearer to your new place of work (subject to eligibility).

   

  This covers specific removal and relocation costs, which can include removals; lodging or travelling allowance; disconnecting and reconnecting utilities; and certain professional fees e.g. estate agents and solicitors.

   

  Relocation Scheme

• Car loan scheme 

  If you need to purchase a car, a competitive car loan scheme is available to all staff. 

   

  Free parking: Our office location benefits from a large car park with free parking and access to the local train station.

• Staff recognition schemes 

  Annual Staff Awards

  A brand new and exciting Annual Employee Awards Event has been launched in 2018, one that celebrates and recognises the commitment and dedication of staff in the Vale of Glamorgan.

   

  Six awards categories were considered: Innovation and Bright Idea Award, Customer Service/Contribution Award, Team of the Year Award, Worklife Achievement Award, Manager of the Year Award and Employee of the Year Award.

   

  This event was a big success and going forward, the Awards team will be looking to continue this recognition initiative.

• Staff engagement activities 

  Culture Book (previously Staff Charter) and Staff Survey

  The annual staff survey helps us understand how staff feel the 20 expectations in the Staff Charter are being met and helps shape future staff engagement and support initiatives.

   

  The Staff Charter was designed in partnership with employees, it was developed to ensure that we can continue to provide the best possible service to our customers through the best possible contribution from all our employees. As the external challenges grow it is important that everyone has the support and opportunity to make that contribution. 

   

  An annual survey has been conducted year on year to measure levels of staff engagement and the effectiveness of the Council’s Staff Charter. Results of the 2017 survey revealed:

  • ‘I am trusted to get on with my job’ being the highest-ranking expectation at 92.5% positive rating

  • An increase in average ‘positive’ response rates in 15 out of 20 of the Staff Charter expectations

  • An increase in survey return rates from 48% in 57% when compared with the previous year

   

  Work around engagement with staff will continue to be a high priority and the results will help to inform and shape the staff engagement priorities for future years.

   

  The Culture Book has now been launched in 2021.

   

  Staff Appraisal and Development

  We are committed to training and career development, offering a rewarding and progressive career pathway that is open and equitable for all.

   

  Informed by the employee engagement strategy, the Vale of Glamorgan’s annual appraisal scheme has been refreshed to make the process easier to use and more meaningful for all employees and, crucially part of the ongoing discussion between managers and staff.

   

  Learning Café

  The Learning Café encourages staff to take part in thought provoking discussions. It is award winning which has introduced a new, informal way to network, share ideas and promote best practice. We invite staff to attend monthly events in a friendly and relaxed setting. In addition, articles are sent out on a regular basis.

• Health and wellbeing support 

  All workers are entitled to work in environments where risks to their health and safety are properly controlled. 

   

  We have dedicated in-house services in relation to Occupational Health, Health & Safety and Manual Handling that provide support and assistance in relation to your health, safety and wellbeing.  Examples of such services include: sickness absence management, health surveillance, job specific training, policy development, risk assessment support, workplace assessments, accident investigations, fire risk assessments, health and safety audits, etc.

• Employee assistance programme 

  Our Employee Assistance Programme offers emotional and practical support for issues at work and at home. 

   

  The services are available both online and through a Freephone number at any time, day or night.

   

  Support is available in a number of ways:

  • A telephone counselling service, providing advice, information and support 24/7, 365 days of the year (face-to-face counselling may also be provided following a clinical assessment)
  • Access to free and impartial information, advice and support, to help you find practical answers to real life questions. Common subjects include family and personal issues, finance/debt management, benefits, employment, childcare provision, health, writing wills and consumer matters
  • An online health and wellbeing service with a vast resource of regularly updated articles and information designed to help you manage a healthy lifestyle.
  • A website and mobile app which provides free interactive health and personal fitness support

• Career Opportunities for Young People 

  The Council is continually looking at ways to improve the number of 16 -24 year olds through Apprenticeship and Graduate Opportunities.

   

  Examples include apprenticeship opportunities in Building Control, Transport Fleet and ICT. These opportunities will be advertised on the Council’s vacancy bulletin.

   

  A career guide from Local Government association that describes the work that Council’s do to encourage young people to think about a career in local government. It describes the important work that councils do within the places that young people live, work, learn, shop, socialise and exercise.

   

  LGA Careers Guide

• Working Carers 

  Our carer policy includes a number of benefits for employees depending on the personal circumstances

   

  This policy aims to address the needs of carers working for the Vale of Glamorgan Council. The Council aims to support employees with caring responsibilities and enable them to balance these effectively with their employment responsibilities.

   

  Working Carers

Inclusiveness, Equality and Diversity

We aim to promote an inclusive culture for all staff.

So, we welcome you and your application whatever your background and regardless of: age; disability; gender identity; marriage or civil partnership; pregnancy or maternity; race, colour, and nationality (including citizenship) ethnic or national origins; religion and belief, including no belief; sex; and sexual orientation.

We have an LGBT+ and Allies Network for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and other groups of sexual and gender minorities (LGBT+) staff.  It meets monthly to provide support, an opportunity to discuss issues which affect LGBT+ people, and to identify ways to raise awareness of LGBT+ issues.

We have signed the Time to Change Employer Pledge and are committed to change how we think and act about mental health in the workplace and make sure that employees who are facing these problems feel supported.   

We will soon be developing another group to promote an inclusive and diverse working environment for a wider range of staff.

We are a Stonewall Diversity Champion and a Disability Confident organisation.

Further Information

If you need further information about the Vale of Glamorgan Council, please contact us:

• recruitment@valeofglamorgan.gov.uk