Outline initial contractual terms under which Director of Social Services was engaged and terms under which this has been extended including annual total costs and contract period

2.2   Deputy A.E. Jeune of St. Brelade of the Minister for Health and Social Services regarding the initial contractual terms under which the Director of Social Services was engaged:

Would the Minister please outline the initial contractual terms under which the Director of Social Services was engaged and the terms under which this has been extended, including the annual total cost and contract period, if any?

Deputy A.E. Pryke of Trinity (The Minister for Health and Social Services): I shall ask my Assistant Minister to answer this question.

Deputy J.A. Martin of St. Helier (The Assistant Minister for Health and Social

Services - rapporteur):

Thank you, Deputy . Yes, the actual answer to the cost of the 6-month contract from

August 2010 to February 2011 was total salary of £60,000. Just for a bit of

information, we brought in Mr. Williamson to implement his own plan in late December 2009, and by July, it was obvious that we needed a substantive post, but we knew we could not get one in straight away, so it was with talks with Mr. Williamson and the Chair of the J.C.P.C. (Jersey Child Protection Committee) we decided to have

a very short contract until we could fulfil this substantial post. The contract has not been, under the words of the Deputy , extended. We have been out to interview: 11 people applied, 4 were fit for interview and on interview day - I think it was in

November last year - 3 turned up, and now the person who was doing the contractual job on a temporary basis was offered the job permanently as the substantive post holder.

1. Deputy A.E. Jeune :

The Deputy has not answered for how long this new ... is it a permanent contract or is there a period on it, and also, does it now include responsibility for mental health care, both inpatient and community?

Deputy J.A. Martin:

As I said, it will not be temporary. It went out ... it went through the Appointments Commission. It went out internally ... sorry, it was advertised on-Island and off- Island. Yes, it is a new post, it is substantive. It was recognised by Mr. Williamson and all the things he needed to put in place.  We needed a Director of Social Services, and that covers all the things under the umbrella, which is community and care of mental health.

Deputy A.E. Jeune :

If the Assistant Minister could confirm it includes the inpatient care of mental health? Deputy J.A. Martin:

Yes, of course. Yes, it does. It comes under the umbrella, what is under mental health. As I said, there are lots and lots of things that the new Director of Social Services is doing and pulling together, and there is a lot of exciting work that will come out later this year, but inpatient, outpatients, if they are under the umbrella of the Director of Social Services, he is the one where the buck stops.

2. Deputy R.G. Le Hérissier:

Could the Assistant Minister outline what is the annual cost under the contract, under the permanent contract, and is the contract in any way tied to performance?

Deputy J.A. Martin:

The post was advertised as a grade A, and there are still some discussions going on and as people may not know - or may know - grade A at the moment, there is no

upper level, but it will not be ... at the moment, as I say, it is a contract of employment, which most people would have. It is a substantive post that we need and it will fall under all the laws of the States of Jersey Employment Board and all States employees have to adhere to.

Deputy R.G. Le Hérissier:

I am sorry, Sir, that was not an answer. What is the cost per annum of this post? Deputy J.A. Martin:

I am sorry, that was an answer. I said it is still under discussion.

3. Senator S.C. Ferguson:

Given that short-term contracts pay higher than permanent contracts, can we expect a lower cost to the States than the £120,000 a year?

Deputy J.A. Martin:

As I say, it is still under negotiation and all these jobs have to be benchmarked. I would point out that it went out as a grade A, and 11 people applied. Only 4 were fit to even interview and only 3 turned up, and out of those 3, there was only one person that the job could be offered to.

4. Senator S.C. Ferguson:

What salary level did the advertisement contain? Deputy J.A. Martin:

It was advertised as a grade A, and I have already said, Sir, there is no upper limit on a grade A.

Senator S.C. Ferguson:

Yes, but there must have been a lower limit, because an advert would say: "Salary from" to be negotiated.

Deputy J.A. Martin:

Sorry, if the Senator would like to check, there were no figures. It was advertised: "States of Jersey, Grade A."

5. Deputy A.E. Jeune :

Given that mental health is now included in the Social Services Division, would the Assistant Minister give an assurance that she will look at the staff costs in the Mental Health Division, as I understand it is running like a loose horse at the moment, with a lot of planned overtime.

Deputy J.A. Martin:

Of course I would like to assure the Deputy . I will look into this, and I will look into this. It is a matter of, as I say, we are at the beginning. We are at the beginning of the

road. If mental health is running with planned overtime, it will be nursing, and this

comes up again and again. It is retention and getting the right package to get people into Jersey. I will certainly look into this particular ... and if the Deputy has got any more information, she could just email me specifics and I will get back to her personally.

The Deputy Bailiff :

The next question Deputy Tadier is to ask of the Minister for Education, Sport and Culture. As he is not here, we will pass on to question 4, which the Deputy of St. Mary will ask of the Minister for Treasury and Resources.