Venue: Siambr Hywel Dda, Council Offices, Caernarfon, Gwynedd, LL55 1SH
Contact: Annes Siôn 01286 679490
No. | Item |
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APOLOGIES Additional documents: Minutes: Cabinet Members and Officers were welcomed
to the meeting. No apologies
were received. |
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DECLARATION OF PERSONAL INTEREST Additional documents: Minutes: A declaration of interest was received from Cllr Nia Jeffreys as her husband worked as a part-time Fire Officer but it was not a prejudicial interest. |
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URGENT ITEMS Additional documents: Minutes: There were no urgent
items. |
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MATTERS ARISING FROM OVERVIEW AND SCRUTINY Additional documents: Minutes: There were no matters arising from overview
and scrutiny. |
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Cyflwynwyd gan: Cyng / Cllr Dyfrig Siencyn Additional documents: Decision: The
Cabinet resolved to permit officers to form a final response to the above
consultation based on the draft response prepared on behalf of the Council to
the Consultation on the reform of governance and funding arrangements for the
Fire and Rescue Authorities in Wales submitted in Appendix A to be adjusted to
change the reference to "North Wales" to refer to "the
North" and to note that if the funding arrangements did not change to a
precept arrangement following the consultation, further consideration would be
needed to the membership of the Fire and Rescue Authority in order to ensure
that the Councils have a direct voice in the funding decisions. Minutes: The report was submitted
by Cllr. Dyfrig Siencyn DECISION The Cabinet resolved to permit officers to form a final response to the above consultation based on the draft
response prepared on behalf of the Council to the Consultation on the reform of governance and funding arrangements for the Fire and Rescue Authorities in Wales submitted in Appendix A to be adjusted to change the reference to "North Wales" to refer
to "the North" and to note that if the funding
arrangements did not change
to a precept arrangement following the consultation, further consideration would be needed to the membership of the Fire and Rescue
Authority in order to ensure that the Councils have a direct voice
in the funding decisions. DISCUSSION The report was submitted
noting that it outlined Gwynedd Council's response to the consultation on the reform of the Fire and Rescue Authorities in Wales' governance and funding arrangements. The current procedure was outlined and it was noted that five elected
members were members of the Fire Authority. It
was noted that the Council's response supported continuing to keep the individual Authorities as they were and not create one all-Wales Authority. It was added that and Authority which was familiar with and operated locally in the North was needed. It was noted that
there was a suggestion for the Fire and Rescue Authority to be placed under the Police Commissioner. It was explained that the response did not agree with this suggestion
and that the Council's membership of the Authority needed to be secured in order to make
sure that Gwynedd Council had a strong voice. It was added that it would be possible to have a further discussion on possibly reducing
the numbers of elected members. It was noted that
the most important element in the consultation was the financial element as it was a discussion which raised its head
annually. It was noted that the public contribution to the Fire and Rescue
Authority was outlined under the Gwynedd Council contribution on the Council Tax bill. It was explained that it would be an idea
to charge a precept as the Police did, which ensured the Council's accountability as well. It was added that if
a precept would be charged, there would be a need for clarity and agreement across Wales. Observations
arising from the discussion -
Attention was drawn to linguistic changes, noting that the reference to "North
Wales" should be changed
to "the North". - A question was asked regarding if money for the Fire and Rescue Authority came through the councils why was there not a Joint-Committee as happened with other fields such as Education. It was explained that the Fire and Rescue Authority was a Public Authority in its own right, and was currently funded via money from the Council and as a result elected members were a part of the Authority. It was noted that if ... view the full minutes text for item 5. Awdur: Vera Jones |
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PERFORMANCE REPORT OF THE CABINET MEMBER FOR ADULTS, HEALTH AND WELLBEING PDF 99 KB Cyflwynwyd gan: Cyng / Cllr W Gareth Roberts Additional documents:
Decision: To accept
and note the information in the report. Minutes: The report was submitted
by Cllr. W Gareth Roberts RESOLVED To accept and note
the information in the report. DISCUSSION The report was submitted noting that the department had been taking steps in
order to reintroduce and re-examine the way it offers services to the residents of Gwynedd. It was added
that the department had been pioneering and active and that it was continuing to develop in order to reach
the end of the journey. It
was added that, in future, preventative
work would be prioritised in order to fulfil people's wishes and to provide early intervention. It was added that preventative
work would address the department's financial problems. It was noted that the department had received funding for temporary
projects from the Government, but often the benefits were long-term and the projects were expected to continue after the grant ended through the core budget. This
was not always possible. It was stressed that the department's main challenge was people living longer
and a higher number of people with dementia. It was added that work
had been done to address the challenges in some areas
and specifically on providing high standard dementia support. The importance of providing this care in
all areas of Gwynedd was stressed,
in order to ensure that support
was available close to individuals' homes. It was added that this
work was being carried out jointly
with Health, and that they were
working as one service to support the individual's needs. It was noted that the number of individuals unable to be discharged from hospital on
time because of social reasons had fallen over the past three months. It was noted that working
together and the development
of the community resources teams were the reasons for this.
As well as developing domiciliary
care schemes in the Tywyn and Pwllheli area.
It was added that Hafod y
Gest, namely extra care housing in
Porthmadog, had now opened its doors. It was noted that the 'Bridging the Generations' project
was progressing well. This
was a scheme that brought children, young people and older people together.
It was added that the individuals who had taken part had enjoyed the scheme. Attention
was drawn to one major challenge which was emerging across the North, namely the lack of psychiatrists, specifically in Meirionnydd and Arfon. It was noted
that this had been escalated to the Health Board for
further discussions. Observations
arising from the discussion - It was asked whether it would be possible to combine two projects - Hafod y Gest, Porthmadog and Bridging the Generations, as Ysgol Eifion Wyn was so close to the Hafod y Gest building. It was noted that discussions were taking place with Grŵp Cynefin on this matter, and it was added that the Hafod y Gest location was a Hub available to the entire ... view the full minutes text for item 6. Awdur: Morwena Edwards |
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PERFORMANCE REPORT OF THE CABINET MEMBER FOR CHILDREN AND SUPPORTING FAMILIES PDF 325 KB Cyflwynwyd gan: Cyng / Cllr Dilwyn Morgan Additional documents:
Decision: To accept and note the information in the report
but in light of the significant overspend reported during the last budgetary
review, to ask the Chief Executive, the Head of Finance Department and the
Corporate Director to meet with the Cabinet Member and the Department to see
which fields could be prioritised in financial terms to avoid wasteful efforts
on matters with which nothing can be done. Minutes: The item was submitted
by Cllr. Dilwyn Morgan RESOLVED To accept
and note the information in the report but
in light of the significant overspend reported during the last budgetary review, to ask the Chief Executive, the Head of Finance Department and
the Corporate Director to meet with the Cabinet Member and
the Department to see which fields could
be prioritised in financial terms to avoid wasteful efforts on matters
with which nothing can be done. DISCUSSION The report was submitted noting that he
would outline the latest about the department, and the scrutiny members who had been a part of the performance challenge meetings were thanked
for their contribution. It was noted that the Cabinet Member was happy
with the performance of the
department on the whole but that
a few slippages had occurred. However, none of the slippages was a cause of concern in terms of safeguarding
within the department. Attention
was drawn to the department's priorities,
noting that the Supporting Families Strategy was developing more integrated services within the Council with partners. It was noted that mapping
work was currently underway. It was added that the work of developing the strategy and the recent announcement from Welsh Government regarding merging their preventative grants had given the department an opportunity
to reflect upon its direction. It was added that it was an extremely exciting
time. It was further noted that the Council had a Well-being Support Board, which would
promote cross-departmental working in the interests of the residents of
Gwynedd. Also, attention
was drawn to the Corporate Parenting
Strategy, noting that task groups
had been set up to try to identify what needed
to be improved and to identify
good practice. This work was very
ambitious. Attention
was drawn to the 'End to End'
review, which was a savings scheme and had been joint work
between the Children and Supporting Families Department, Finance and the Research and Information Manager. It was noted that the review noted an
increase in the number of looked-after children in each
category. It was added that there had been a reduction in the number of children with Learning
Disabilities / Severe Needs but that
there had been an increase in
the number within other categories. It was noted that work
was ongoing to look at the situation. It was noted that the information in the review highlighted that it was now difficult to anticipate what cases would come up. It was added that it was difficult to give a specific budget as care needed to be taken and respond to cases as effectively as possible. It was added that work was being done to try to improve the financial situation. It was stressed that the department was trying to be responsible and contribute to the savings targets. It was noted that ... view the full minutes text for item 7. Awdur: Morwena Edwards |
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PERFORMANCE REPORT OF THE CABINET MEMBER FOR EDUCATION PDF 124 KB Cyflwynwyd gan: Cyng / Cllr Gareth Thomas Additional documents: Decision: To accept and note the information in the report. Minutes: The item was submitted by Cllr Gareth Thomas DECISION To accept and note the information in the report. DISCUSSION The report was submitted, drawing attention to some projects in
the Strategic Plan. It was noted
that the Education Principles had now been adopted by the Cabinet and would be considered when responding to any opportunities for the future. It was added that the department was looking forward to working with GwE in order
to arrange relevant training in order
to strengthen Leadership within schools. In
looking at the Twenty First
Century Schools Programme it was noted that the majority of it could currently be seen in the Bangor catchment area. It was noted that construction
work had started at Ysgol y
Garnedd and arrangements were
continuing with the plans at Ysgol y Faenol. With the
Bala catchment area, it was
expressed that the Head had now been
appointed and that staff appointments would now start. It was expressed that the building had been used as a social space and that the first evening had been a great success. It was noted that the work of transforming the Additional Learning Needs and Inclusion Provision was underway. It was added that Phase
1 of the transforming work
had been completed, but there were
a number of other aspects that required
attention in Phase 2 in relation
to the new act, and creating
new arrangements within work processes
across our schools. It was noted that it was not possible to compare this year's results
with previous years because of the adaptations to the national policy. It was discussed that English GCSE results had dropped this year as a result of a substantial increase in the margins between grades. It was noted that though Qualifications
Wales had published an extremely technical report to justify its processes, officers and the Cabinet Member were
of the opinion that the justification was insufficient.
It was explained that discussions were ongoing. Reference
was made to the financial situation and the Transport Overspend
specifically. The main reasons
were noted, which included -
£149,000 as a result
of the a new contract following
the opening of Ysgol Hafod Lon -
£125,000 due to new contracts in
the field of transport -
£73,000 due to an increase in
the Dolgellau and Cymerau ABC units as both units were
open four days a week, while
the previous provision at
Ysgol Eifion Wyn had been open
five days a week. -
£69,000 due to the impact of re-tendering over the summer. -
£69,000 due to new mainstream contracts. It was added that no
child would be transported without the necessary permission. It was noted that the department was working with the Environment Department and a further report to the Cabinet would follow. Observations
arising from the discussion - The overspend in the transport service was discussed, noting that ... view the full minutes text for item 8. Awdur: Iwan Trefor Jones |
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PERFORMANCE REPORT OF THE CABINET MEMBER FOR HOUSING, CULTURE AND LEISURE PDF 163 KB Cyflwynwyd gan: Cyng / Cllr Craig ab Iago Additional documents:
Minutes: The report was submitted by Cllr. Craig ab Iago DECISION To accept and note the information in the report. DISCUSSION The report was submitted noting that the department was doing good and exciting work. Attention was drawn to the
Gwynedd Libraries service, noting that 2,422 children had participated in the Summer Reading Challenge, and that 46,851 children's books were read over
the challenge period. It
was added that over 1,000 children had attended Summer Fun for Children activities. It was expressed that the new structure of the Youth Service was in place and that the situation was now much better and positive. It was noted that the results were encouraging that 1,107 young people had received support from the service, and a range of activities had been held. It was emphasised that the new structure
worked and was successful,
and this had happened as a result of collaboration with Community Councils. Attention was drawn to
the Dyffryn Nantlle area, noting
that a good provision had been created under the youth's leadership. It was added that the Gwynedd Young Ambassadors Scheme remained successful with 255 Ambassadors giving up hours
of their time to volunteer with the plan. It was noted that eight
of the ambassadors had been
to the National Conference in
Cardiff, and the staff member, Hannah Hughes, won the Young Ambassador Officer of the Year award. It was noted that work
was being done on the Council's Housing Strategy, which would show
the way for the service for the five years. It was added that the strategy was pioneering. It was reported that there
was an increase in the demand for
the homelessness service, but that work
was being done to reduce it. It was added that a Rehabilitation Officer had been appointed, who would be a contact point providing a service for individuals
who needed support. It was expressed that in future the field
would use the scrutiny process more effectively. Observations
arising from the discussion - It was noted that there had been many opportunities for youths following the restructuring of the Youth Service, and it was noted that evidence shows that there were opportunities for young people and that it was a flexible service. - As the customer satisfaction proportions were high, it was noted that the number of calendar days it took to provide a disabled facilities grant was still high. It was noted that this was because a wide range of solutions were required. It was expressed that in some cases, a planning application was required to modify houses, and others were only modifications inside the house. It was noted that there was certainly a need to work with the planning department and reduce the number of days. It was explained that the individuals who received modifications understood why there was a delay and ... view the full minutes text for item 9. Awdur: Morwena Edwards & Iwan Trefor Jones |