Council rules out move to four-day week

A local authority has ruled out shifting staff onto a four-day week.

West Berkshire Council made the decision after local government secretary Steve Reed wrote to all council leaders in England warning them not to introduce it.

Council leader Jeff Brooks, also the Liberal Democrat councillor for Thatcham West, said it was "not something we would consider".

Mr Reed expressed his "deep disappointment" when South Cambridgeshire District Council, also a Liberal Democrat authority, became the first to make the change in the summer.

The letter, which was reported by The Telegraph, is understood to have said that "council staff undertaking part-time work for full-time pay without compelling justification would be considered an indicator, among a wide range of factors, of potential failure".

He added that he hoped he had made the government's policy "unambiguously clear to all councils".

A Labour source said: "Voters deserve high standards and hard work from local councils, and seeing council staff working a four-day week just won't cut it.

"They should get on with the job and make sure residents get the best service possible five days a week."

South Cambridgeshire District Council became the first to make a permanent move to a four-day week in July after it began trialling a shorter working week in 2023.