M365 UPDATE

Exchange Online (Email)

The M365 Team are approaching the final stages of the testing and the roll out schedule for migrating everyone’s mailbox to Exchange Online. Further guidance on how you can prepare for your migration and what you can expect will be provided before the actual migration takes place. So, keep your eyes peeled for further information when it’s your turn.

Additional benefits after migration will include (but not limited to):

• Calendar available in Teams
• Tasks by Planner and To Do

Office 365

We are also in the final stages of testing Office 365 applications (Word/Excel/Outlook/etc.) and plan to roll this out once your mailbox has been migrated.

As part of the move to Office 365 you will have access to additional facilities such as One Drive and in turn this will enable the use of Whiteboards in Teams.

As with Exchange there will be further guidance and extra information provided closer to the roll out.

HSCM Federation

Moray Council, NHS Scotland, Aberdeen City Council and Aberdeenshire Council are currently working together to allow greater sharing and collaboration when working together in M365.

The first phase is to allow the sharing of free/busy availability between our colleagues in NHS Grampian (and the wider NHS Scotland body) and Aberdeen City / Aberdeenshire Councils. External organisations will only be allowed to see free/busy at this phase. Work is progressing well and we are preparing to complete testing and sign off with NHS Scotland and our local authority neighbours. We will update you as soon as this work has been completed.

STAR AWARDS ARE COMING SOON!!

We are pleased to announce the STAR (Special Thanks and Recognition) Awards 2023 are opening up for nominations later in the summer. They celebrate the achievements of employees as nominated by their colleagues/managers, following on from the success of the STAR award scheme last year and for many years before that.

STAR Awards 2023 schedule

POLICY UPDATES

Two policies have recently been approved at Corporate Committee, the Menopause Policy and Safe Driving Policy.

The Menopause Policy was created to provide guidance and support to managers and employees with menopause issues as well as signposting to other organisations that can also give support and information. The menopause is a natural stage of life and it is acknowledged that for some people the symptoms of menopause can have a big impact on their daily lives. This in turn can have an impact on an employee’s ability to perform and maintain attendance at work.

The Menopause Policy is now available on Interchange and will shortly be joined by the Menopause Managers Guidance and Menopause eLearning being released at the end of June.

The Safe Driving Policy defines Moray Council’s policy on driving for work, and promotes a safe driving culture by ensuring that all employees or any other person or persons driving on behalf of Moray Council do so in a safe, reliable and responsible manner. It applies to operations that involve Moray Council vehicles, the employee's personal vehicle, hired or contracted vehicles when driving for works purposes. – WILL ADD LINK WHEN POLICY IS SET UP ON INTERCHANGE

The Safe Driving Handbook has been written to support the requirements of driving within a council job role, for new and existing employees. Whilst existing employees will already be aware of the information they require for driving as part of their job the handbook is a useful resource available to all, particularly new starts, to visit and revisit the principles around driving within a council job role. – WILL ADD LINK WHEN HANDBOOK IS AVAILABLE

ERDP’s

If you haven’t yet commenced your Employee Review and Development Process (ERDP) discussions for 2023/24, please remember to schedule them for your teams. ERDP’s are an important opportunity to pause and both reflect back over the last year, and to look forwards to what is coming in the months ahead. An ERDP complements regularly performance review through supervision, workload meetings and just checking in with your teams.

SMARTER WORKING UPDATE

We’ve now nearly completed the Smarter Working engagement workshops with those managers that fall into phase 2 & 3 of the roll out of this project. We would also like to let you know that the following rooms have hybrid meeting equipment installed in them:

• Meeting rooms 4, 5, and 7 in the annexe, and
• Room 200a, 236, 239, and 301a in HQ.

If you have any questions regarding the Smarter Working project please email SWDG@moray.gov.uk

REQUIREMENT TO COMPLETE D906

As you know, driving is an essential part of many of our jobs, and it’s important that we have the necessary documentation to do so legally. Employees have set responsibilities and as a manager, you have additional responsibilities. It is already a requirement for you to carry out spot checks to ensure that those driving on Council business have:

• Valid tax and MOT certificate
• Valid driving licence
• Appropriate insurance for business cover

Additional requirement:

• Completion of D906 form

We have recently introduced the requirement for all employees driving on Council business, to complete a D906 form.

Managers are responsible for ensuring that employees driving on council business hold a valid driving licence. In order to minimise risk and protect the council’s operating licence, the D906 form will automatically provide us with information from the DVLA about our employees’ driving licence and any medical conditions that may affect their ability to drive safely and notify us of any changes.

As a manager, you are expected to play a key role in supporting the completion of this form. The next time your employee submits a claim for travel, stop and ask yourself if they have completed a D906. If they haven’t, you should not approve their mileage claim form until it has been completed. If you are unsure, please contact fleetservices@moray.gov.uk

Completing this form is an essential requirement for driving at work, helping to minimise risk and to ensure that all of our employees are driving safely and responsibly on the job.

More information about your responsibilities can be found here.

MILEAGE CLAIM FORMS UPDATE

Please be advised that the P57 Moray Council Standard Mileage & Other Expenses claim form has been updated and a new version of the form can be found on the Interchange at the following link: http://interchange.moray.gov.uk/int_standard/Page_110741.html

• There is an excel version for electronic use and a pdf version for printing and completing manually.
• The Completion Guide has also been updated to reflect the new form.
• The ‘Claimant Statement’ has been updated and employees should read and acknowledge that they are complying with the points in the statement.
• All fields on the form should be completed as appropriate.
• If the employee uses a new vehicle then the vehicle MUST be ADDED to Employee Self-Service (ESS) before the employee submits the claim for payment.
• Employees should start using this new form for all claims from July 2023 onwards. Any old forms received will be returned and may miss the payment deadline.

CAREER READY – YOUR HELP IS NEEDED

Career Ready, a programme designed to connect disadvantaged young people with the world of work, unlock their potential and level the playing field, is looking for volunteers.

Moray Council have been supporting this wonderful programme since 2014 by creating opportunities for interested staff to volunteer as a mentor.

Becoming a Career Ready mentor is a fun, flexible way to inspire a young person, unlock their true potential, and guide them through the early stages of their career journey. There is no denying that being a mentor is a commitment. It requires monthly contact (about an hour a month) with the young person over the 18 months and the support of a 4-week summer internship but the benefits are clear:

• 91% of students say Career Ready raised their career aspirations
• 87% of alumni said Career Ready had a positive impact on their life
• 89% of mentors report their mentoring and coaching skills as excellent or good at the end of the programme, compared to 40% at the start
• 98% of Career Ready students’ progress onto positive destinations in education or employment

We ask that anyone interested in becoming a mentor, contact us so that we can begin to fulfil our commitment to the next programme which is due to start in October.

For further information please contact: organisational.development@moray.gov.uk

NEW E-LEARNING CONTENT

What’s Live on CLIVE?

Looking for guidance on how to take minutes during a meeting, or just to refresh your skills? Then why not check out our newest courses ‘Take a Minute’ and Responding to Challenging Behaviour.

Take a Minute will take you through the skills that you need to practice for taking minutes, what they’re used for, the types of minutes you take, and why it’s important to have minutes.

This new course can be found under the CPD tab.

Responding to Challenging Behaviour has been designed to support all customer facing staff and aims to provide them with an appropriate level of knowledge and skills in relation to responding to any incidents of violence and aggression in the workplace. And, although these incidents are rare it is important that we can respond appropriately should a challenging situation arise, understand the importance of reporting the incident and what support is available.

This module can be found under the Health & Safety tab.

Login to CLIVE to check out these courses, and why not have a look at the other 70 plus modules we have on offer.

If you’ve got any questions about eLearning please email organisational.development@moray.gov.uk.

MANAGERS FORUM

Save the Date - The next Managers Forum is planned for Thursday 27th July at 2pm. The topic is still to be confirmed but will be advertised shortly.

In preparation for future sessions, we would love to hear what topics you would like to be discussed and if there are any managers interested in hosting this session?

Are there any emerging themes you would like to explore or do you have any examples of good practice you would like to share? All suggestions are appreciated.

Remember, although facilitated by the OD team, the topics and direction of the forum are led by forum members.

If you have any ideas or suggestions for future sessions please contact glen.dunn@moray.gov.uk.

PRE RETIREMENT COURSES

Are your retirement savings on track? Do you know how much income your pension savings may provide? And have you thought about how much income you might need when you retire?

Financial education specialists ‘Affinity Connect’ would like to personally invite you to attend an interactive full day course around the key aspects of planning for a financially secure future.

Retirement might be up to 10 years away but it’s never too soon to start planning. This course is perfect for anyone thinking about retirement or already at the planning stages.

During the course you’ll learn how to:

• Help you plan for the lifestyle changes ahead
• Maximise the benefits of your State and workplace pensions
• Make the most of your tax-free cash
• Understand the income options available from your pension
• Achieve your retirement goals

CORPORATE TRAINING CALENDAR INCLUDING FLEXIBLE WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT FUND TRAINING

The Corporate Training Calendar hosts a variety of options for development. These courses are bookable via CLIVE. The Flexible Working Development Fund training is also available via the Corporate Training Calendar.

Should you have any queries or need help with a booking please email organisational.development@moray.gov.uk

SCOTTISH MILITARY COMMUNITY PAGE

The latest edition of the Scottish Military Community Update has been published on Interchange: Latest Updates

This month there is information on unclaimed service pensions, health and well-being in later life resource launched, council tax reductions, as well as the Unforgotten Forces Summer Gathering and much more!

TIME FOR TALKING

If you feel that you need someone to talk to or need a bit of extra support, either via private individual counselling, couples counselling, family & parent support, or relationship mediation, then Time for Talking may be able to help.

Time for Talking (TfT) the Councils Employee Assistance Provider, can offer counselling services for adults, families and children, for a wide range of issues.

They offer a number of resources, from blogs and podcasts to videos, planners and online information on their website.

You can contact them 365 days a year, via their website www.timefortalking.co.uk, by phone on 0800 970 3980, by app (downloaded from the app store or google play) or chat online to a counsellor through their Live Chat using the password TfTnow

All chats are totally confidential, people don’t need to give their name or email address unless they want to.

More information can be found at Time for Talking