Councilors in England are facing an ultimatum from local government secretary Steve Reed, who has issued a warning that introducing four-day working weeks could damage performance and public services. The warning was delivered in a letter to South Cambridgeshire council, which is the only local authority to have formally trialed this policy.
Reed's concerns center around rent collection and repairs by the council, citing an independent report that shows a decline in key housing-related services. He also expressed disappointment with the council's ability to move residents into new social housing developments, stating that empty homes could undermine the government's efforts to increase housing supply.
The council leader, Bridget Smith, has strongly disputed Reed's claims, saying her colleagues have delivered an annual saving of nearly £400,000 and maintained performance. She also argued that the 100% pay for 80% of the workload arrangement is not in line with government policy.
While Reed's letter marks a significant intervention by the Labour government on shortened working weeks in local government, it's worth noting that there is no legal power to force councils to end this policy. The government can only apply pressure, and ministers have reiterated guidance discouraging four-day working weeks due to concerns over service delivery and value for money.
Despite this, many are arguing that councils should be allowed to innovate and experiment with different working arrangements, such as the four-day week. The 4 Day Week Foundation has welcomed South Cambridgeshire council's efforts, citing numerous benefits for workers and employers.
Reed's concerns center around rent collection and repairs by the council, citing an independent report that shows a decline in key housing-related services. He also expressed disappointment with the council's ability to move residents into new social housing developments, stating that empty homes could undermine the government's efforts to increase housing supply.
The council leader, Bridget Smith, has strongly disputed Reed's claims, saying her colleagues have delivered an annual saving of nearly £400,000 and maintained performance. She also argued that the 100% pay for 80% of the workload arrangement is not in line with government policy.
While Reed's letter marks a significant intervention by the Labour government on shortened working weeks in local government, it's worth noting that there is no legal power to force councils to end this policy. The government can only apply pressure, and ministers have reiterated guidance discouraging four-day working weeks due to concerns over service delivery and value for money.
Despite this, many are arguing that councils should be allowed to innovate and experiment with different working arrangements, such as the four-day week. The 4 Day Week Foundation has welcomed South Cambridgeshire council's efforts, citing numerous benefits for workers and employers.
. I mean, who wouldn't want a longer weekend? And it's not just about the work-life balance, but also about the environment, less traffic, and more time for stuff that matters 
. Sure, there might be some teething issues, like with housing and repairs, but I think they're learning as they go and adjusting to make it work 
.
. I'd love to see more councils giving this a try and sharing their experiences 
. It's all about innovation and making things better for everyone, right? 
I mean, come on Steve Reed is just trying to cover his own backside. The 4 day workweek isn't gonna break the bank, it's about giving people a better work-life balance and actually improving productivity. I've seen it work in some companies, people are more focused and get stuff done faster! 
️ Why can't councils do that? It's not like they're asking for 4 days off every week or something... just 3 out of 5. The council is making a saving of nearly £400k by doing it so what's the problem? 
like how can u have a better work life balance and still save £400k annually? that sounds like a win to me 
and yeah lets give councils some freedom to innovate... they cant do any harm, right? 
. A four-day week might seem like a nice thing, but trust me, it's all about keeping costs down and increasing productivity at the expense of workers' well-being 
...
? It's all about finding a balance between productivity and work-life harmony. And I love how the 4 Day Week Foundation is highlighting the benefits for workers and employers - it's like, what's not to love about that? 
Maybe we just need to have more conversations around this and figure out what works best for each council 
. I'm not saying the other two days off would be all fun and games (although, who wouldn't want to spend more time binge-watching their favorite shows?), but at least you'd have time to catch up on your Netflix backlog or take a nap. The whole thing seems like it's just a fancy experiment to see if people can actually do their jobs with less time 
!
councils gotta make changes tho 
, maybe try 4 day week? 
, but govt's all like "no no no" 
. Like, cant they just let it happen? 
councils are already short staffed 
, so maybe thats the point? 
Like, can you imagine having an extra day off to chill, catch up on Netflix or just run some errands? 
. I mean, who doesn't love more free time on the weekends? 
It's not like councils are just going to slack off on their duties. They've actually achieved some serious savings and still kept up with service delivery. And yeah, it might be hard for them to move people into new social housing, but that's what they need to prioritize, right? 
. I mean, come on, £400k saved per year? That's not bad! 
Councils should be more open to change and innovation, it's all about being agile and adapting to the times 
.
. And it's not like the whole country is gonna collapse if councils have to do some extra work on Fridays 
. Plus, if 4 Day Week Foundation says it's a good idea, that's got to count for something, right? 
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