5 UPDATE ON THE NWEAB WORK PROGRAMME PDF 172 KB
Report by
Iwan Trefor Jones, Lead Director (attached).
Additional documents:
Decision:
1.
Approve the RAG status of all
actions within the Work Programme, in accordance with the report.
2.
To delegate the authority to the
Programme Director in consultation with the Chair and Vice Chair of the NWEAB
to agree the Job Description and recruitment process for the Digital Programme
Manager.
3.
Commit up to £55,000 (subject to
job evaluation and the success of the Growth Deal) of the “Project, Planning,
Development and Support budget” to finance the Digital Programme Manager post
for a year.
4.
To submit a quarterly progress
report on the work of the Board to the individual partners for the purposes of
report and scrutiny of the individual bodies.
Minutes:
The report was
presented by Iwan Trefor Jones, Lead Director.
RESOLVED
1. To approve the RAG status of all actions
within the Work Programme, in accordance with the report.
2. To delegate the authority to the
Programme Director in consultation with the Chair and Vice Chair of the NWEAB
to agree the job description and appointment process for the Digital Programme
Manager.
3. To commit up to £55,000 (subject to job
evaluation and the success of the Growth Deal) of the “Project, Planning,
Development and Support budget” to finance the Digital Programme Manager post
for a year.
4. To submit a quarterly progress report on
the work of the Board to the individual partners for the reporting and scrutiny
purposes of the individual partners.
REASONS FOR THE DECISION
Update and keep an
overview of the progress of the Work Programme tasks.
Approve the
appointment process for the Digital Programme Manager.
To ensure a flow
of information about the project to the partnership bodies.
DISCUSSION
The education
institutions expressed dissatisfaction and concerns regarding the system of
prioritising projects. It was also noted that the letters to Nigel Adams MP and
Ken Skates AM had not been shared with them prior to being sent to both
Governments. Attention was also drawn to the fact that the logos of all
partners had not been included on those letters. They were of the opinion that
this undermined the partnership and their role as advisors to the Board.
In response, the
Vice-chair confirmed that it had not been the intention to undermine any aspect
of the partnership and that the partnership was equal. He also confirmed that
no hard decisions had been made regarding individual projects and that the
projects had been scheduled, rather than prioritised.
The Lead Director
explained that a letter had been sent to both Governments since the last
meeting of the Board noting that the projects would be scheduled. During the
previous meeting of the Board, it had been recognised that some of the projects
were at a more advanced stage of readiness. It was noted that five
transformational projects had been identified as ones which would be ready for
the first phase: Digital Connectivity Project; Regional Land and Property Joint
Venture project, Holyhead Port; Smart Local Energy Network Project; Trawsfynydd
Power Station Project. It was agreed that the 14 projects would be included
within the Heads of Terms, in two phases. By ‘readiness’ it was meant that the
project met the tests of (a) proof of concept (b) outcomes and impact (c)
private sector investment and leverage and (d) readiness for delivery on
time.