Council becomes first to permanently adopt four-day work week

Under South Cambridgeshire District Council's four-day week, staff are expected to carry out 100 per cent of their work, in around 80 per cent of their contracted hours, without reduction in pay. All Council staff will be able to opt-in under a Productivity Policy.

The move comes after the previous Government issued best value notices to South Cambridgeshire in November 2023 and May 2024 over a long-running row over the arrangements.

These notices called on the council to demonstrate how it was delivering its best value duty.

The Labour government later said it would not reissue a best value notice in November 2024, after Max Soule, Deputy Director, Local Government Stewardship and Intervention at the MHCLG, said the department recognised "that local authorities are independent employers who are rightly responsible for the management and organisation of their own workforces".

The council initially ran a three-month trial of a four-day week at the start of 2023, which was then extended for one year.

The council then had to run a public consultation – which took place earlier this year – before being able to determine the next steps. Four-day week working continued in the meantime.

South Cambridgeshire said independent analysis of the trial from the Universities of Salford, Bradford and Cambridge showed that 21 of 24 services they monitored improved or stayed the same since adopting the four-day week.

It added that the research showed that the percentage of planning applications (both large and small) decided within target or agreed timescales saw improvements during the trial, as did the percentage of council house repairs being carried out within 24 hours.

The number of applications for jobs at the council meanwhile rose by more than 120% during the four-day week, while the rate of employees leaving the council fell by more than 40%, South Cambridgeshire said.

Spending on staff also dropped, resulting in a yearly saving of £399,263.

"This is mainly due to filling vacancies permanently – rather than using more expensive agency workers, which can be disruptive for residents as officers change," the council said in a press release.

The council also said the research found that the shorter work week benefited disabled colleagues, those with medical conditions and carers.

South Cambridgeshire District Council's Lead Cabinet Member for Resources, Cllr John Williams, added: "Since we introduced the four-day week, the difference in recruitment and retention has been remarkable. We've seen job applications more than double, which means we're attracting a much wider pool of talent."

He added: "It means we're not constantly re-training new people or relying on expensive agency workers. As a result, our services are more consistent and, in many cases, better, and we're saving hundreds of thousands of pounds by reducing our dependence on agency staff."

The Leader of South Cambridgeshire District Council, Cllr Bridget Smith, said: "Work is not just sitting at a desk for a set number of hours every week; it's about what you do, how productive you are and delivering excellent services for communities. When planned carefully and with a laser focus on performance, the four-day week helps people focus better and work more efficiently.

"With the right structure and support, teams can deliver just as much - if not more - while also having more time for their wellbeing and personal lives. South Cambridgeshire had particularly acute recruitment and retention challenges due to the high cost of housing locally. I strongly believe the four-day week has solved this problem for us."

Adam Carey