Agenda, decisions and minutes

No declarations of personal interest were received. 

The Chair accepted the minutes of the meeting held on 9 March 2021 as a true record.

     I.        To adopt a new complaints procedure for the Council in accordance with Appendix 1.

    II.        To designate the Head of Corporate Support as the Responsible Officer.

  III.        To accept the annual reports and the Ombudsman's Annual Letter.

The report was submitted by Cllr Dafydd Meurig 

DECISION

        I.To adopt a new complaints procedure for the Council in accordance with Appendix 1.

     II.To designate the Head of Corporate Support as the Responsible Officer.

  III.To accept the annual reports and the Ombudsman's Annual Letter.

DISCUSSION

The report was submitted noting that there were many elements to the report. The complaints element of the Adults Department was highlighted, noting that it was standard to submit an annual complaints report. It was expressed that there were two steps for complaints, namely a local resolution and then a full investigation. It was emphasised that the department was learning lessons following each complaint and using them to improve the service. It was added that although the report focused on complaints, it also acknowledged the good work being done within the department with a specific section in the report highlighting the good comments that had been received.

The Monitoring Officer noted that the first recommendation in the report asked the Cabinet to adopt a new complaints procedure, emphasising that this procedure was specific for corporate complaints. It was expressed that the Public Services Ombudsman for Wales Act 2019 introduced a statutory basis for the complaints arrangements of public service providers in Wales.  It was added that the model reflected the procedure that had been adopted by the Council in 2014, and so only minor changes would need to be done. It was also reiterated that the Monitoring Officer would step back and that the Head of Corporate Support Department would be designated as the Responsible Officer.

Observations arising from the discussion

¾ The need for an implementation timetable was noted.

¾    It was expressed that the Children and Supporting Families Department had prioritised complaints. It was added that they had placed emphasis on providing information about how to complain to residents and offering a hand-holding service for residents who complained in order to give individuals full support. It was highlighted that the number of complaints in step 1 had arisen as a result of the department recording each enquiry it received. It was elaborated that the department received a quarterly comprehensive report and analysed the complaints in order to improve the service.

¾    The Head of Corporate Support Department noted that a reduction had been seen in complaints, but now, there was a measure in place to measure how many days it took to deal with a complaint. Furthermore, it was explained that it took approximately 7 days to deal with a complaint.

¾    In terms of the comment on clause 7.3 of the report on complaints in the Adults field, it was asked why action on the Ombudsman's recommendations had been delayed when the main recommendations falling on the Council were to apologise and remind staff of the importance of assessments.  The officer noted that she did  ...  view the full minutes text for item 6.

To agree to the Gwynedd Sustainable Economy Principles in draft form to commence a consultation process with the residents and businesses of Gwynedd.

To agree to continue discussions on a structure for the future implementation of the principles with Snowdonia National Park and any other relevant partner.

The report was submitted by Cllr Gareth Thomas. 

DECISION

To agree to the Gwynedd Sustainable Economy Principles in draft form to commence a consultation process with the residents and businesses of Gwynedd.

To agree to continue discussions on a structure for the future implementation of the principles with Snowdonia National Park and any other relevant partner.

DISCUSSION

The report was submitted, noting the decision, and emphasising that the principles were in draft form, in order to begin consulting with residents and businesses. It was reiterated that the Covid-19 period had reinforced the need to create principles in the Tourism field. It was noted that the main principle was to create a Visitor Economy for the benefit and well-being of the people of Gwynedd. An explanation was given of the discussions that had been held to create the draft principles, which included workshops with members, discussions with Visit Wales and the tourism sector. It was added that further discussions would be held during the consultation period.

Observations arising from the discussion

¾    It was expressed that this step was an important step to create a new relationship within the field.

¾    It was noted that this work was all important as this was such an important field for the area.

¾    It was explained that the principles were good and clear, but that it was essential that communities, and not just businesses, were involved in the discussion. The need for the discussions to be held with communities on the basis of the 13 highlighted areas was added, as the needs of each area would be completely different. It was emphasised that the discussions needed to be held jointly between communities and the businesses so that the dialogue was created, as well as to share experiences.

¾    It was expressed that a Summit would be held in the autumn, which would include businesses and communities where it would be possible to present the principles in their final form and to create actions.

¾    Support was shown to the principles, as there was a need to ensure that there was benefit to the community through tourism.

¾    It was emphasised that each area would be a part of the discussion, and not the communities where there was a high number of tourism.