The challenge
The standard and reach of the services local authorities provide to their citizens is heavily dependent on the quality and availability of their workforce. Like many councils across the UK, Haringey faces a major challenge filling key vacancies, which is having an impact on the care and support it delivers.
To address the problem, in February 2022, Haringey Works, which helps borough residents back into employment, partnered with Matrix with the aim of identifying the best possible candidates from the local area for the growing number of temporary vacancies to both relieve the council’s human resource burden and ease unemployment in the borough.
“For temporary employees, it’s important to find people who can hit the ground running and be pro-active in their roles, so careful screening is necessary each candidate to ensure drive successful placements,” explains Aarti Chhatwal Senior Resident Engagement Advisor for Haringey Works.
The solution
Working with Matrix, a campaign was launched across the borough spreading awareness of the temporary opportunities at the council and encouraging residents to register quickly and easily via a QR code. The myths of temporary work were busted through an informative flyer, pointing out how successful candidates would gain the opportunity to:
- Explore different roles
- Gain valuable work experience
- Work flexibly
- Enjoy a shorter commute and lower travel costs
- Earn London Living Wage
To engage more closely with local residents, regular live events were held across Haringey providing more detailed information and advice, and driving registrations for temporary work. The details of applicants were held and processed on the Matrix database. Job criteria for various roles were set by the local authorities hiring managers and programmed into the Matrix system. Appropriate candidates were then automatically selected and shared with the Haringey Works team for further screening. This saved valuable time and resources.
The outcome
The partnership between Matrix and Haringey Works has significantly increased the number of local residents taking up temporary placements with the council. This means that many will go on to apply for permanent roles within the council after their temporary roles. Those for whom the flexibility of temporary contracts is more desirable will remain in temporary roles.
From April 2022 to March 2023, 465 local residents expressed an interest in temporary work through the campaign, with 269 people registering. From this pool of candidates, the most appropriate were selected by Matrix and referred to Haringey Works. This resulted in 100 vacancies being filled by local people, with the majority of placements proving successful.
“Many local residents who secured temporary work have remained in their jobs or have progressed to different roles,” said Julian Panter at Matrix. “What’s really encouraging is that at least 12 have secured permanent roles, showing the benefits of the scheme. Not only was the originally aim of filling vacancies in administration, health and social care and manual labour achieved, but suitable candidates were also identified for other Haringey departments, including HR, housing and more, relieving resource issues across the local authority.”
For further information on Matrix Workforce Management please visit https://teammatrix.com/