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Law could change to stop Cambridgeshire council's four-day week

PA Media Man with short white hair wearing a suitPA Media
Government minister Simon Hoare said the Government could change the law to stop the four-day week

A minister has said new laws could be passed to stop a council operating a four-day week.

South Cambridgeshire District Council implemented the system last year and recently agreed to continue with its trial.

The local government minister Simon Hoare said the decision was "disappointing and arrogant".

The council claims the system has improved performance and has made it easier to recruit and retain staff.

The Liberal Democrat-controlled council became the first local authority in the country to trial a four-day week in January last year.

Back office staff were given 100% of their pay for doing 80% of their hours, and the system was extended to include refuse collection workers.

Steve Hubbard/BBC South Cambridgeshire District Council officesSteve Hubbard/BBC
Almost 700 staff at South Cambridgeshire District Council have been trialling a four-day week

The government opposed the idea from the start, threatening to impose financial penalties if it continued.

Speaking to BBC Radio Cambridgeshire, Mr Hoare said: "I think it is hugely both disappointing and arrogant that the district council is persisting with this.

"We still request them to stop and we have said that, in extremis, we will legislate to make sure that this situation cannot continue."

Waste crew collecting refuse
Some South Cambridgeshire waste collection crews joined the four-day working trial in September 2023

Mr Hoare said the Local Government Association (LGA) had carried out a peer review, which found that staff had no time for training and had been left "feeling drained" by having to fit five days of work into four.

Mr Hoare told the BBC he would not outline what financial penalties could be imposed, but said: "We are receiving all sorts of data and that is being analysed so I'm not going to pre-judge that at this juncture."

Steve Hubbard/BBC Woman with long dark hair outdoors surrounded by treesSteve Hubbard/BBC
The council leader, Bridget Smith, said the council could not consult until the government explained what penalties might be imposed

Bridget Smith, the leader of the council, said: "Our four-day week trial is about improving the consistency and quality of our services - helping us attract and keep hold of talented staff in a hugely competitive job market.

"We expected to be able to consult about the four-day week early this year - but the government's own recent consultation into using financial levers to disincentivise councils from proceeding with a four-day week means we now can't.

"We need to understand what the government's next steps will be before we can meaningfully consult."

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