Agenda, decisions and minutes

To receive any apologies for absence.

Apologies were received from Councillors Aled Evans and Mair Rowlands, Colette Owen (The Catholic Church) and Councillor Gareth Thomas (Cabinet Member for Economy).

To receive any declarations of personal interest.

Councillor Dewi Roberts declared a personal interest in item 5 - Cabinet Decision - 28-09-21 - Item 8 - Ysgol Abersoch - as he was a governor at Ysgol Abersoch; however, as he had been appointed to this role by the Authority, he was of the opinion that it was not a prejudicial interest, and he did not withdraw from the meeting during the discussion on the item.

Councillor Selwyn Griffiths declared a personal interest in item 6 - The Economy and Business Support - as his son was the author of the report to the committee.  He was of the opinion that it was not a prejudicial interest, and he did not withdraw from the meeting during the discussion on the item.

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 10th June, 2021 be signed as a true record.

The Chair signed the minutes of the previous committee meeting held on 10 June 2021 as a true record.

To consider the report of the Head of Democratic Services

That the scrutiny committee refers the matter back to the Cabinet for reconsideration on the grounds that a sufficient response had not been received to the second reason for calling in, namely:-

"2. The report does not take future Housing and Employment that would come into force in the Village into consideration.

(a) A new development to construct a new hotel that would create a minimum of 40 full-time posts in the area – employees and their families would need resources, including education for our children.

(b) Welsh Government, Gwynedd Council's Housing and Property Department and a Housing Association (which owns land in the village) are currently exploring the potential to construct more homes – Welsh Government has stated that a grant is available to develop this land to potentially construct 15 homes.

The Housing Association has confirmed that plans have already been drawn up for the Bryn Garmon site.

There is no mention in the report of the new plan by the Housing and Property Department and nothing about the developments underway in the Village and therefore, by not doing so, the Education Department has not responded to the requirements of the Well-being of Future Generations Act."

The report of the Head of Democracy Service was submitted noting that the following decision had been called in for scrutiny in accordance with Section 7.25 of the Council's Constitution:-

Item 8: Ysgol Abersoch, Cabinet meeting 28.9.21

"To finally confirm the proposal issued through statutory notice to close Ysgol Abersoch on 31 December 2021, and to provide a place for the pupils at Ysgol Sarn Bach from 1 January 2022 in accordance with Section 53 of the School Standards and Organisation Act (Wales) 2013 and the requirements of the School Organisation Code 011/2018."

The Chair explained that a request had been made to call in the decision for scrutiny, by Councillors Alwyn Gruffydd, Elwyn Jones and herself, within the necessary requirements and timeframe.

It was noted that the reasons for calling in, namely the aspects of the decision that it was considered should be scrutinised, and that were within Constitutional requirements, had been noted as follows:

“1. The Report is inaccurate and misleading in terms of the impact on the community, for example, the Welsh language and culture - it states that there is no impact on the language in the table on page 714.

2. The Report does not take into account future Housing and Employment that will take effect in the village.

(a) There is a new development to construct a new hotel that would create a minimum of 40 full-time posts in the area - employees and their families would need resources, including education for our children.

(b) Welsh Government, Gwynedd Council's Housing and Property Department and a Housing Association (which owns land in the village) are currently exploring the potential to construct more houses - Welsh Government has stated that a grant is available to develop this land to potentially construct 15 houses.

The Housing Association has confirmed that plans have already been drawn up for the Bryn Garmon site.

There is no mention in the report of the new plan by the Housing and Property Department and nothing about the developments underway in the village and therefore, by not doing so, the Education Department has not responded to the requirements of the Well-being of Future Generations Act.

3. Concern has been expressed in relation to the footpath between Abersoch and Sarn Bach; the Education Department stated that contact had been made with the Highways Department but nothing definite has been submitted in terms of resolving this risk which places pupils in danger. The Education Department mentions transport arrangements which will inevitably have an effect on climate and is a poor example to the children of how the Council considers climate impact.

4. One child is ineligible for the offer of transport due to age policies - in future, when the number of children increases as a result of (a) and (b), it is likely that other children will be refused this transport and, therefore, suffer in terms of their education.

5. The decision is to close the school in the middle of the academic year  ...  view the full minutes text for item 5.

Cabinet Member – Councillor Gareth Thomas

To consider a report on the above.

To accept the report and to look forward to receiving more information regarding grants for businesses in due course.

Officers from the Economy and Community Department were welcomed to the meeting.

The report of the Cabinet Member for Economy and Community was submitted, at the request of the scrutiny committee, outlining what support the Council was giving to businesses, particularly with regard to the United Kingdom leaving the European Union and the COVID-19 pandemic.

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

A member noted that, for accuracy, the report in Welsh should refer to 'y Deyrnas Gyfunol', not 'y Deyrnas Unedig'.

In response to questions from members, it was noted that:-

·         The increase in the number of enquiries and requests for assistance from businesses over the last 18 months had presented challenges to the service in terms of resources and in terms of redirecting and prioritising the work. In addition, the service had re-prioritised more towards supporting and sustaining businesses to continue, rather than developing and creating new jobs, as in the past.  More businesses had contacted the Council during the pandemic than ever before, and one of the positives that came out of this was the establishment of the business bulletin, which was now sent out at least twice a week to more than 4,500 businesses in the county. The service had also moved towards advising on slightly wider issues of good practice and how to adopt new technology.  An effort had to be put into the work of sustaining and ensuring that the information was distributed, and the service was also reorganising itself, seeking resources through the Council to enable it to continue with the work.

·         There was no specific conversation with the Housing and Property Department at this time regarding assisting key workers, etc., who were moving into the area, to find somewhere to live. Discussions were ongoing with the Department regarding planning policies, etc., but more work was needed on that. It was explained that the main complaint from businesses at present was not skills shortages, but a lack of people to work for those businesses, and this was true across the sectors.  Reference was made to a piece of work to try to support the unemployed into jobs in areas where there were gaps, but the scale of the problem was much wider than before, and this would need to be looked at more extensively with other partners, to meet the current level of demand.  It was further noted that more than 120 people had been assisted through the Gwaith Gwynedd team, and although this did not address the demand as a whole, significant activity had taken place.  Also, there was an attempt to take some small but practical steps to support businesses, e.g. by facilitating Facebook pages, so that businesses could promote their job opportunities.

·         The British Government's announcement on future grant arrangements, due to the withdrawal of European funding, had been pushed back, but it was likely that there would be some announcement following next month's financial review.  It was explained that the intention was to announce a  ...  view the full minutes text for item 6.

Cabinet Member – Councillor Cemlyn Williams

To consider a report on the above.

To accept the report and record our thanks to the workforce for their contribution during the last 18 months.

The Managing Director of GwE and his fellow officers, officers from the Education Department and the Head of Ysgol Cefn Coch and Ysgol Talsarnau, the Head of Ysgol Botwnnog and the Head of Ysgol Pendalar, were welcomed to the meeting.

The report of the Cabinet Member for Education was submitted, presenting information to the scrutiny committee on the Well-being and Achievement Gap, including:-

·         The impact of COVID on the education of all pupils;

·         What plans schools have for the well-being of all pupils

The Cabinet Member set out the context noting that:-

·         Although the well-being and achievement gap may have worsened during the pandemic, there was a need to acknowledge that these problems had existed for some years.

·         The presence of GwE officers at this meeting underlined the importance of working in partnership with GwE, and that this enabled us to respond positively to this complex problem.

·         He was keen for the committee to gain the views of front-line workers, and therefore he was extremely grateful that representatives from the secondary, primary and special sectors were at the meeting to share their experiences.

The Head of Education reiterated the Cabinet Member's comments, and further noted that:-

·         The pandemic had been a very challenging time for the schools, and that the Authority, GwE, schools and other partners had collaborated very closely to reduce the problems as far as possible.

·         Estyn's report on the extent to which the Authority had been successful in supporting learners during this period was a commendable report, and he was also aware that GwE's Managing Director and his team had also received an equally complimentary report on their work during this period, which again highlighted the collaboration between them.

GwE's Managing Director set out the context for the Renew and Reform Strategy, which supports pupils' well-being and learning across north Wales, with a specific focus on Gwynedd.

A series of presentations were then received from GwE officers, as follows:-

·         Assistant Director (Standards) - main headings of the Strategy (Appendix 1)

·         Senior Leader - Secondary - a taste of the engagement work with the schools to capture the progress and impact of the action taken to date (Appendix 2)

·         Core Leaders - Primary/Secondary - an update on the use and impact of the Accelerated Learning Grant (Appendix 4)

A member noted that one side-effect of the COVID period was the lack of opportunities for pupils to practise oracy and speak with one another, and that the reference in the papers to 'reviving' Welsh oracy and discussion skills underlined that there had been a decline.  Given that the main purpose of the Language Charter was to promote informal use of Welsh, it was asked what the role of the Language Charter would be during this period in trying to accelerate learning, and why there was no specific reference to the key work of the Language Charter in the accelerated learning report.  In response, it was explained that this report specifically referred to the focus of the grant.  Following GwE's  ...  view the full minutes text for item 7.

To submit a revised scrutiny work programme for 2021/22.

To approve the work programme for the 9 December meeting, and to discuss the rest of the programme at the informal meeting to follow the committee.

The revised scrutiny work programme for 2021-22 was presented.

RESOLVED to approve the work programme for the 9 December meeting, and to discuss the rest of the agenda at the informal meeting to follow the committee.