Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to the Civil Service People Survey 2018, published in December 2018, what steps his Department is taking to address staff concerns on the HMCTS reform programme.

HMCTS leaders ensure a regular flow of information to staff to provide them with opportunities to help shape the reform programme, and support them through it.

Any concerns raised by HMCTS staff are highlighted and discussed through a variety of communication and engagement tools to ensure managers understand what reform means for staff.

This includes analysing results from the People Survey to help create local action plans addressing key issues that require action and intervention. These are reviewed throughout the year and help ensure any concerns and issues raised by HMCTS staff are addressed effectively.

A HMCTS ‘One Conversation’ cross-departmental engagement tool has also been created to enable staff to participate regularly in conversations regarding the reform programme.

One Conversation is led by local leadership teams and uses interactive techniques and exercises to enable staff to discuss the impact of reform. Content is identified from several sources including the People Survey results and feedback from previous One Conversation sessions, and is validated by a cross departmental review group, made up of HMCTS staff at all grades. This review group provides feedback and challenge to ensure the content and design of the sessions reflect concerns of colleagues across the organisation.