Agenda, decisions and minutes

To receive any apologies for absence.

Apologies were received from Councillors Jina Gwyrfai and Sasha Williams.

To receive any declarations of personal interest.

No declarations of personal interest were received.

To note any items that are a matter of urgency in the view of the Chair for consideration.

None to note.

The Chair shall propose that the minutes of the previous meeting of this committee held on 2nd February, 2023 be signed as a true record.

The Chair signed the minutes of the previous meeting of this committee held on 2 February, 2023 as a true record.

Cabinet Member – Councillor Dyfrig Siencyn

To consider a report on the above.

To accept the report and to note the observations.

The Leader and Ambition North Wales officers were welcomed to the meeting.

Submitted – the report of the Leader on the Quarter 3 2022-23 performance of the North Wales Growth Deal, following the committee's request.

The Leader outlined the context by providing a brief update on the work of the Growth Deal, some of the background of establishing the North Wales Economic Ambition Board, along with details of different schemes that were relevant to Gwynedd.  The Operations Manager then provided an overview of the Growth Deal and the main highlights of 2022-23.

Members were given an opportunity to ask questions and offer observations. 

It was enquired how the Ambition Board intended to draw up a language policy for the Trawsfynydd project to ensure that the development and the workforce would not Anglicise the area.  In response, it was noted:-

·         That this was a project that wholly relied on UK Government investment, and that there was no certainty on that.

·         In terms of a language policy, the Egino company would soon hold a workshop to examine the social benefits, including the linguistic benefits.

It was noted that the greatest risk in terms of delivering the objectives of the Growth Deal was ensuring public and private sector investment, and it was enquired what steps it intended to take should the capacity of those sectors to invest reduce over the next few years due to the current financial situation.  In response, it was noted:-

·         That economic circumstances had changed immensely since the Growth Deal was agreed in 2010, and that the financial crisis was a challenge that faced us on a regular basis where there was a contribution from the private sector.

·         The Business Delivery Board, which had representatives from the private sector, was meeting to discuss projects regularly, under the guidance of Askar Sheibani, who ran his own global digital business and who was very enthusiastic for the whole of north Wales.

·         The only assurance that could be given at present was that this was a matter that was being addressed, and it was believed that there was a desire among the private sector to invest, provided that the circumstances were right.

·         The North Wales Ambition Programme Office worked very closely with the private sector on specific projects, and that the sector was currently looking to invest. 

·         It was acknowledged that there was a risk that the capacity to invest could change over coming years, and the Programme Office worked very closely with both Governments on this.  More public sector investment would possibly be required should the private sector investment not be there but, at present, the situation seemed quite positive.

·         The Programme Office was developing a strategy with the Business Delivery Board to ensure that it was possible to bring this strategy forward, and one of the specific things that had been undertaken as part of the demand for new projects to the £30m fund was to place a strong emphasis on the ability of businesses to invest as part of  ...  view the full minutes text for item 5.

Cabinet Member – Councillor Beca Brown

To consider a report on the above.

To accept the report and to note the observations.

The Cabinet Member for Education and officers from the Education Department were welcomed to the meeting.

Submitted - the report of the Cabinet Member for Education, at the committee's request, presenting background information about the vision of the immersion education system, along with providing answers to the questions of the scrutinisers received in advance about the arrangements for the immersion education provision in Gwynedd.

The Cabinet Member set out the context by noting that the two schemes in the Bangor area, namely the Bangor Catchment Area Foundation Phase Immersion Project and the Years 5 and 6 Learners' Support Pack to encourage them to choose a Welsh-medium Education route as they transfer to secondary school in the Bangor catchment area, were important and far-reaching pieces of work for the children of that area.  She expressed her admiration of the work in the language centres and officially thanked the staff for the work.

A short video was shown to the members, giving a taster of the ABERWLA Scheme.

Members were given an opportunity to ask questions and offer observations. 

It was enquired on what basis the conclusion was reached that it was beneficial not to immerse children early, and it was suggested that bringing the children who were being immersed back to the mother school for one day per week undid the immersion that took place in the language centre for the other four days.

In response, it was noted:-

·         That the headteacher in the ABERWLA video mentioned the clear advantages of having children returning to the mother school for one day per week.

·         The pandemic had highlighted the importance of well-being as children had gone through long periods of not being able to mix with their peers.  It was concluded that it would be a good idea for the children being immersed to have an opportunity to catch up with their peers at the schools for one day per week, and the immersion occurred in a different context to an extent in the mother school, and increasingly thereafter as the child went through the system.

·         Secondary school headteachers now reported that it was easier to persuade parents to send their children to immersion centres as those children maintained some contact with their peers.

·         The fifth day at the mother school was a new project and, as well as advantages in the context of well-being, there were also educational advantages.

·         The relationship between school staff and staff of the centres who visited the mother school on a weekly basis had strengthened further as a result of sharing immersion practices, sharing resources and discussing how to overcome any challenges the children faced back at school.

·         Visits to the mother school varied with some teachers requesting staff of the centre to remain in class to support the activity.  This encouraged a discussion on gathering effective immersion methods and there were also situations where children received one-to-one attention, or in a small group, and that other children also benefited from the experience.

·         Despite the advantages,  ...  view the full minutes text for item 6.

Cabinet Member – Councillor Menna Jones

To consider a report on the above.

To accept the report and to note the observations.

The Cabinet Member for Corporate Support and officers from the Corporate Support Department were welcomed to the meeting.

The Cabinet Member set out the context and the Human Resources Advisory Services Manager provided a summary of the content of the report, which gave an overview of the Council's situation in relation to staff recruitment and retention, referring to the challenges over the last few months and the steps already being taken to address the situation, and provided an overview of the Council's long-term objectives to plan the workforce.

Members were given an opportunity to ask questions and offer observations. 

It was asked whether priority was given to fill statutory posts over other posts.  In response, it was noted:-

·         That there was certainly an element of prioritisation and that this was a regular discussion between the Human Resources Service and the employing department. 

·         It was not believed that market price was the solution to every problem, but cost would become an inevitable part of that if there was a number of statutory posts to fill.

The member noted that he accepted that the situation was difficult but failure to employ, e.g. enforcement officers, led to a situation where the work accumulated over a period of time.

In response, it was noted:-

·         That identifying priority posts also worked through the Apprenticeship Scheme, which examined where the gaps had been, and encouraged apprentices in those fields for the future.

It was noted that the report was concise, purposeful and honest, that clearly showed where the shortage was.  A request was made for examples of creative methods of attracting workers, information about how many apprentices had remained with Cyngor Gwynedd, and what had worked, and not worked, in terms of the Work Experience Scheme.

In response, it was noted:-

·         In terms of what had worked, and not worked, that the old way of working was thinking that there was one solution to every question and that one method could tackle each problem. It was now realised that communication was needed with different audiences in different ways, e.g. even more use of social media with some cohorts, and more use of local recruitment or using the website with other cohorts.

·         The Council was currently developing a new recruitment website and that there was much more evolution in the content of the website than what was currently available, with the intention of drawing on the experiences of current staff, and seeking to use their experiences as a method to sell the Council.

·         In terms of the Work Experience Scheme, the intention was to try to open the eyes of children and young people to what the Council had to offer as an employer, and provide worthwhile experiences for individuals.

·         There was a lot of work to respond to and learn about different methods as every employer was looking for the best solution at the time.

·         The different apprenticeship and trainee schemes were certainly creative schemes, and that considerable support was given to individuals who had registered  ...  view the full minutes text for item 7.

To nominate a representative to attend the Finance Department Performance Challenge Meetings.

To nominate Councillor Paul Rowlinson to attend the Finance Department's performance challenge meetings, and contact all committee members to enquire about a representative to attend the performance challenge meetings of the Corporate Support Department in Councillor Paul Rowlinson's place.

Submitted - the report of the Scrutiny Advisor inviting the committee to nominate a representative to attend the Finance Department's performance challenge meetings in Councillor Elin Hywel's place, who had stepped down from being a committee member.

Councillor Paul Rowlinson's name was proposed.  Councillor Paul Rowlinson noted that he was willing to be nominated, provided that the committee nominated another representative to attend the Corporate Support Department's performance challenge meetings in his place.

As many members had left the meeting, and others were absent, it was suggested to contact all committee members after the meeting to enquire about a representative to attend the Corporate Support Department's performance challenge meetings, and to formally nominate that member at the next meeting.

RESOLVED to nominate Councillor Paul Rowlinson to attend the Finance Department's performance challenge meetings, and to contact all committee members to enquire about a representative to attend the performance challenge meetings of the Corporate Support Department in Councillor Paul Rowlinson's place.