Venue: Siambr Hywel Dda, Council Offices, Caernarfon, Gwynedd, LL55 1SH
Contact: Annes Siôn 01286 679490
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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: Item 6 - The Future of Primary Education Provision in the
Bangor Catchment Area A declaration of interest was received from Cllr Dafydd
Meurig as his sister ran the nursery on the Ysgol y Faenol site. It was a
prejudicial interest and he left the meeting for this item. The Local Member for the above item - Cllr Richard Medwyn
Hughes - declared an interest as he was a Governor of Ysgol Coedmawr and Ysgol
Glanadda. It was not a prejudicial interest and therefore he was able to
express his view. Item 7 - Remodelling the Youth Service A declaration of interest was received from Cllr W. Gareth
Roberts, as his son-in-law was employed by the Service. It was a prejudicial
interest and he left the meeting. Item 12 - Discretionary Relief from Non Domestic Rates A declaration of interest was received from Cllr
Dyfrig Siencyn, Cllr Mair Rowlands, Cllr Peredur Jenkins and the Head of
Finance, Dafydd Edwards, as they were trustees or directors of various clubs
and enterprises which received rates relief.
Iwan Evans, the Monitoring Officer provided advice on the personal interests
and emphasised that they were not prejudicial interests, and therefore the
members and officer had the right to take part in the discussion. |
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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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MINUTES OF THE MEETINGS HELD ON 13 FEBRUARY 2018 PDF 129 KB Additional documents: Minutes: The Chairman signed the minutes of the Cabinet meeting held
on 13 February 2018, as a true record. |
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FUTURE OF PRIMARY EDUCATION PROVISION IN THE BANGOR CATCHMENT AREA PDF 201 KB Cyflwynwyd gan: Cyng. Gareth Thomas Additional documents:
Decision: Resolved: i.
Hold a statutory consultation, in accordance with Section 48 Schools
Standards and Organisation (Wales) Act 2013, in the Bangor catchment area on
the proposal to close Ysgol Glanadda and Ysgol Coedmawr on 31 August 2020, and offer
a place to the pupils at Ysgol y Garnedd (subject to parental choice); and
increase the capacity of Ysgol y Garnedd to 420. ii.
Hold a pre-consultation with the Church in Wales regarding increasing
the capacity of Ysgol y Faenol to 315 in accordance with the School
Organisation Code 2013 requirements and report on the results to the Cabinet. Minutes: The item was submitted by Cllr. Gareth Thomas RESOLVED Resolved:
i.
To hold a statutory consultation, in accordance with Section 48 Schools
Standards and Organisation (Wales) Act 2013, in the Bangor catchment area on
the proposal to close Ysgol Glanadda and Ysgol Coedmawr on 31 August 2020, and
offer a place to the pupils at Ysgol y Garnedd (subject to parental choice);
and increase the capacity of Ysgol y Garnedd to 420.
ii.
To hold a
pre-consultation with the Church in Wales regarding increasing the capacity of
Ysgol y Faenol to 315 in accordance with the School Organisation Code 2013
requirements and report on the results to the Cabinet. DISCUSSION The report was submitted noting
that the purpose of the report was to seek permission to proceed to hold a
statutory consultation in relation to the process of reorganising schools in
the Bangor area. It was added that at the end of 2016, Welsh Government had
announced that there was an opportunity for Local Authorities with the
capacity, to apply for further funding to fulfil additional projects within
Band A of the 21st Century Schools Programme.
Following submitting a request, the Education Department had received
confirmation that funding had been agreed in principle. In addition to this, there was a
new housing development in Bangor. One of the planning conditions when the
application had been approved was that the company would commit to contributing
funding towards primary-age education provision in Bangor. By combining funding
from Welsh Government and the Housing Development Company, there was a budget
of approximately £13.8m. It was noted that work had been
done to look at potential options, and it was noted that, of the nine Primary
Schools in Bangor, two schools had high numbers over capacity and two were
fairly empty. The Department's preferred option would need to be consulted
upon. The preferred option was to increase the capacity of Ysgol y Faenol,
build a new school for Ysgol y Garnedd and increase the capacity from 210 to
420 and close Ysgol Coedmawr and Ysgol Glanadda. Observations arising from the
discussion -
Observations were made by the Local Members who
noted that they congratulated the Council on receiving this money. He suggested
that the Department revised the options and that he favoured option 10, namely
to increase the capacity at Ysgol y Faenol, provide a new school and increase
the capacity of Ysgol y Garnedd and adapt the Ysgol Glanadda site to receive
children from Ysgol Coedmawr. He noted that the level of education at Ysgol
Glanadda and Ysgol Coedmawr had been in the red category, but since the arrival
of the acting Headteacher, the school had been raised to the orange category. - The Local Members added that it was a mistake to go for option 3 as Ysgol Cae Top and Ysgol Glancegin, which had been developed over the previous eight years, were already over capacity. With the wards growing and more demand for housing for families the numbers at the schools would ... view the full minutes text for item 6. Awdur: Diane Jones |
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RE-MODELLING THE YOUTH SERVICE PDF 314 KB Cyflwynwyd gan: Cyng. Craig ab Iago Additional documents:
Decision: Resolved: i.
Approve the adoption of the County Youth Club model, Option 3 with the
amendments outlined in paragraph 10.1 of the report for the re-modelling of the
Youth Service ii.
Approve the re-profiling of £24,800 of the savings from 2018/19 to
2019/20 to allow some funding for the voluntary organisations in 2018/19 as set
out in part 10.4.3 of the report. iii.
Commit
the Cabinet Member for Housing, Leisure and Culture to report back to the
Cabinet every four months on the progress of the service Minutes: The report was submitted by Cllr Craig ab Iago DECISION Resolved: i.
To approve the adoption of the County Youth Club model, Option 3 with
the amendments outlined in paragraph 10.1 of the report for the re-modelling of
the Youth Service
ii.
To approve the re-profiling of £24,800 of the savings from 2018/19 to
2019/20 to allow some funding for the voluntary organisations in 2018/19 as set
out in part 10.4.3 of the report. iii.
To
commit the Cabinet Member for Housing, Leisure and Culture to report back to
the Cabinet every four months on the progress of the service DISCUSSION The report was submitted and it
was noted that there were many reasons for remodelling the Youth Service. It
was noted that Welsh Government expected Gwynedd Council to remodel the
service. In addition, following the Gwynedd Challenge consultation, the Full
Council resolved to cut £200,000 from the Service's budget, together with
achieving an efficiency target of £70,000. Consequently, it was noted that it
was impossible for the service to continue with the current structure. A consultation was undertaken
with young people, who had noted that they wanted a different model. The new
structure would be pioneering and exciting which would provide the same youth
provision to every young person across the county. It was added that there were
negative elements to the restructuring, as some of the young people wanted to
continue to attend their local youth club. It was also noted that grants to
support voluntary organisations working in the field would end in nine months'
time. Observations arising from the
discussion -
It was noted that engagement work had been
carried out with the young people and that over 3,000 had taken part. The
consultation emphasised that young people wanted a youth worker that was
available regularly. -
Travelling was one of the main problems for
young people, and how it would be possible to access the service. This model
would ensure that the youth worker would go out to the young people rather than
the young people going to the worker. -
Some areas wanted the clubs to continue in their
communities; it was noted that local engagement work was needed to see whether
the Community Councils were eager to take on the club or volunteers. It was
added that staff would be available to provide assistance and support
volunteers. -
The timeframe was discussed and it was noted
that the provision ended annually in April and recommenced in September, and
this cycle would be emulated. The clubs would close in April and the new
provision would commence in September. This would give an opportunity for the
department to dismantle the old structure and to identify local needs and to
discuss with partners. -
The importance of youth to the county was
stressed, and the importance of keeping the young people here. It was believed
that the new service would be able to collaborate closely with the Children and
Supporting Families Department. - It was noted ... view the full minutes text for item 7. Awdur: Catrin Thomas |
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PARLIAMENTARY REVIEW OF HEALTH AND CARE IN WALES PDF 457 KB Cyflwynwyd gan: Cyng. Dilwyn Morgan a Cyng. W Gareth Roberts Additional documents: Decision: Resolved: i.
To accept
the report and appendix and acknowledge the alignment of the plans which are
already in the Council's Corporate Plan with the reference noted in the review.
ii.
To request that the Leader and Chief
Executive contact Welsh Government directly, in addition to Assembly Members
and the WLGA to highlight the question of how it will be possible to proceed
following the review. Minutes: The report was
submitted by Cllr Dilwyn Morgan and Cllr W. Gareth Roberts DECISION Resolved:
i.
To accept the report and
appendix and acknowledge the alignment of the plans which are already in the
Council's Corporate Plan with the reference noted in the review.
ii.
To request that the
Leader and Chief Executive contact Welsh Government directly, in addition to
Assembly Members and the WLGA to highlight the question of how it will be
possible to proceed following the review.
DISCUSSION The report
was submitted, noting that the Parliamentary Review confirmed that the changes
undertaken by the Children and Supporting Families Department and the Adults,
Health and Well-being Department were going in the right direction. It was
added that the Council was seen as a pioneering Authority. It was noted
that the integrated working in the departments had been included as good
practices. It was expressed that the department showed the way forward clearly,
emphasising that decisions needed to be kept local. Despite this, many
discussions were national ones, but that the work needed to start locally. It was added that the timeframe to report
back was tight, and that this was a cause of concern. It was noted that it was
important not to rush and to ensure that we were clear on what needed to be
changed regionally and that these were intertwined. Observations arising from the
discussion -
It was noted that this was only the start of the
journey but that the report underlined that Gwynedd was ahead of the game. It
was added that the Williams Report raised concerns and the timeframe was tight. There was a need for a discussion with the Assembly Members in
order to build on the report and ensure that it was citizen-centric. There was
a need to emphasise that a measured response was needed and to pay attention to
ensure a solution to the recommendations. It was added that the Chief Executive
and Leader would send a message to the Government, Assembly Members and the
WLGA to highlight the question of how it would be possible to proceed following
the review Awdur: Morwena Edwards |
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NORTH WALES POPULATION ASSESSMENT REGIONAL PLAN 2018 TO 2023 PDF 226 KB Cyflwynwyd gan: Cyng. W Gareth Roberts Additional documents:
Decision: To
approve the North Wales Population Assessment Regional Plan 2018 to 2023 Minutes: The report was
submitted by Cllr W Gareth Roberts. DECISION To approve the North Wales
Population Assessment Regional Plan 2018 to 2023 DISCUSSION The report
was submitted, noting that it was a requirement to approve the Regional Plan to
ensure that the Council complied with the Social Services and Well-being
(Wales) Act 2014. It was emphasised that this was a regional plan and a live
document which would evolve over time, but the question was asked in relation
to how a Local Assessment would come in to this. It was noted that the
Plan had followed the order of the act of creating a joint regional plan and
then creating a local one. In future, it may be an idea to undertake a Local
Assessment to begin with and then combine them to create a regional one. There
was certainty that a Local Assessment was available for the county, however,
local aspects to Gwynedd were seen in the Regional Plan. Observations arising
from the discussion -
It was
noted that the Plan was easy to read, but nonetheless it highlighted that the
Regional Transformation Structure was unclear. -
It was
added that the obvious differences between working regionally and locally in
the Act and the Parliamentary Review caused tension. Awdur: Rhion Glyn |
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AMENDMENTS TO THE COUNCIL'S LOCAL CONDITIONS OF SERVICE PDF 405 KB Cyflwynwyd gan: Cyng. Mair Rowlands Additional documents: Decision: Approve the proposed amendments to the Council's Local Conditions of
Service. Minutes: The report was submitted by Cllr Mair Rowlands DECISION To approve the proposed
amendments to the Council's Local Conditions of Service. DISCUSSION The report was submitted and the proposed changes to the
Local Conditions of Service were noted. It was noted that discussions had been
held with the recognised unions since October 2015; nevertheless, it was not
possible to ensure a collective agreement in order to realise the saving
because the Unison National Office would not allow any local branch to hold a
ballot on a proposal relating to a deterioration in conditions of service. It was added that consultation with staff had been carried
out and 116 of the 6,000 had responded, and the main responses were noted. It
was emphasised that Community Social Carers would not be included in the
amendment to reimburse travelling expenses as their home was their place of
work. In addition, gritting and highways workers would not be included in the
condition to reduce the payment to be on duty outside normal working hours. Despite this, many of the observations received reflected
the general opinion, namely that the package in question, though not desirable,
was a step that needed to be taken. Observations arising from the discussion Appreciation was noted of the close collaboration between
Council and Union staff. Awdur: Geraint Owen |
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Cyflwynwyd gan: Cyng. Dyfrig Siencyn Additional documents:
Decision: Approve the draft response which has been prepared on behalf of the
Council to the Statutory Consultation on the Gwynedd and Anglesey Draft
Well-being Plan. Minutes: The report was submitted by Cllr Dyfrig Siencyn DECISION To approve the draft
response which has been prepared on behalf of the Council to the Statutory
Consultation on the Gwynedd and Anglesey Draft Well-being Plan. DISCUSSION The report was submitted and it was noted that the Gwynedd
and Anglesey Draft Well-being Plan had been published. It was added that the
Communities Scrutiny Committee had scrutinised the Plan and that its responses
had been incorporated within the draft response submitted. It was outlined that
the response noted that some elements within the well-being objectives and
priorities needed to be strengthened and that there was insufficient
information in the plan about the implementation methods. It was noted that the response was fair and that the next
step for the Gwynedd and Anglesey Public Services Board would be to determine
how the plan could be executed. Observations arising from the discussion It was noted that the priorities were to have healthy communities
and to empower the communities. It was added that it was important to ensure
that there was no duplication and that there would be collaboration on how the
objectives would be delivered Awdur: Dewi Wyn Jones |
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DISCRETIONARY RELIEF FROM NON DOMESTIC RATES PDF 152 KB Cyflwynwyd gan: Cyng Peredur Jenkins Additional documents:
Decision: To adopt the Framework for Awarding Discretionary Relief from Non
Domestic Rates that appears in Appendix 1 to the report. Minutes: The report was submitted by Cllr Peredur Jenkins DECISION To adopt the Framework for
Awarding Discretionary Relief from Non Domestic Rates that appears in Appendix
1 to the report. DISCUSSION The report was submitted, noting that it was timely for the
Council to conduct a comprehensive review of its policy on Discretionary
Relief, as the framework had been established for some years and there was a
need to ensure it remained relevant in light of legislative changes. In
September 2017, the Audit and Governance Committee agreed to establish a
Working Group to review the existing Framework. The Group had met twice and the
outcome was that the Group was satisfied with the framework in place on the
whole, but some adaptations were highlighted. All the adaptations were elaborated upon, which included
abolishing the additional relief for Organisations of Special Interest for
those that have registered as a charity but without a local connection. These
adaptations were as a result of agreeing in principle that the Gwynedd
taxpayers' money should not pay to meet the tax deficit when there was no local
benefit. In addition, the recommendation of the Working Group was noted that
the discretionary additional relief given by default to the properties of the
National Trust, the RSPCA and the RSPB should cease. It was explained that the
justification for this was that these national charities should not be dealt
with differently from other charities, and, consequently, the properties of
these charities, like everyone else, would have to be considered on merit. Awdur: Dafydd Edwards |
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GWYNEDD LANGUAGE STRATEGY 2018 PDF 115 KB Cyflwynwyd gan: Cyng. Mair Rowlands Additional documents: Decision: To approve the consultation version of the Welsh Language Strategy 2018. Minutes: The report was submitted by Cllr Mair Rowlands. DECISION To approve the consultation
version of the Welsh Language Strategy 2018. DISCUSSION The report was submitted, noting that agreement was needed
on the content of the strategy and the priorities, and that they were in
keeping with the priorities identified in other plans such as the Council Plan.
It was added that the strategy needed to note a target for increasing or
maintaining the number of Welsh-speakers in the county. It was emphasised that the Council was a pioneer in terms of
the language strategy in Wales, and that the language policy showed the
Council's commitment to the language. It was added that the strategy built on
the work of promoting the use of the Welsh language. It was noted that the
strategy needed to go to public consultation during March and April and that
the outcome of the consultation would be discussed in April. The intention was
for the strategy to return to the Cabinet in June, before going to the Full
Council in July. Awdur: Gwenllian Williams |
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ADULTS, HEALTH AND WELLBEING DEPARTMENT'S PROGRAMME OF SAVINGS PDF 253 KB Cyflwynwyd gan: Cyng. W Gareth Roberts Additional documents: Decision: Resolved: a) To
combine some schemes (that have already been approved) to work streams that are
achieving savings from the same budgets and re-profiling equivalent to £270,000
of the 2018/19 to 2019/20 savings as outlined in part 7 of the report. b) To
increase the savings target in some areas that are achieving more than the
original target, £195,000 in 2018/19 and £200,000 in 2019/20, as outlined in
part 8 of the report. c) To
increase the savings target from new schemes, £390,000 in 2018/19 and £570,000
in 2019/20, as outlined in part 9 of the report. Minutes: The report was submitted by Cllr W. Gareth Roberts. DECISION Resolved: a)
To combine some
schemes (that have already been approved) to work streams that are achieving
savings from the same budgets and re-profiling equivalent to £270,000 of the
2018/19 to 2019/20 savings as outlined in part 7 of the report. b)
To increase the
savings target in some areas that are achieving more than the original target,
£195,000 in 2018/19 and £200,000 in 2019/20, as outlined in part 8 of the
report. c)
To increase the
savings target from new schemes, £390,000 in 2018/19 and £570,000 in 2019/20,
as outlined in part 9 of the report. DISCUSSION The report was submitted noting the proposed programme of
savings. It was noted that the previous programme of savings had slipped as a
result of a change in the care field nationally. Following time to restructure
and rationalise the programme, new schemes had been proposed. It was added that it was possible for the
department to achieve more than the original target in some fields. However, it was noted that the challenge continued, as some
schemes would have to be slipped. It was emphasised that the department's
intention was to commission differently and change the service rather than
reducing the available service. Observations arising from the discussion It was confirmed that these savings would address the
historical targets, but that further savings for the Council would be seen in
the future, and it was noted that the department anticipated that it would be
possible to build on the proposed programme Awdur: Aled Davies |
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WELSH GOVERNMENT'S TAXATION POWERS PDF 91 KB Cyflwynwyd gan: Cyng. Dyfrig Siencyn Additional documents: Decision: To respond favourably to Welsh Government's intention to introduce new
taxes, whilst noting observations made in the discussion and specifically the
desire for local features to be emphasised in the regime. To respond favourably to Welsh Government's intention to introduce new
taxes, whilst noting observations made in the discussion and specifically the
desire for local features to be emphasised in the regime. Minutes: The report was submitted by Cllr Dyfrig Siencyn DECISION To respond
favourably to Welsh Government's intention to introduce new taxes, whilst
noting observations made in the discussion and specifically the desire for
local features to be emphasised in the regime. DISCUSSION The report was submitted and it was noted that Welsh
Government had the right to legislate to obtain new taxes. It was added that
the item was an opportunity to discuss the proposals and to decide on the next
steps forward. Each of the taxes was considered individually. Vacant Land Tax In principle, the tax would be useful which would act as an
end to large companies sitting on lands for long periods of time. It was added
that more information was needed and that it was difficult to define it. It was
noted that this was already happening in Ireland. Social Care Levy It was suggested that this may be valuable, as the
population lived longer and needed support, so it would be possible to use it
to address the demand on the service. Disposable Plastic Tax It was noted that a notice of motion had been made at the
Full Council regarding Disposable Plastic. It was asked that as this would be a
national tax how much could be claimed in Gwynedd. It was noted that a request
would have to be made to devolve the money and distribute it on a local level. Tourism Tax Support was expressed to the tax, emphasising that it was
seen as a local tax abroad at present. It was added that it was not a very high
tax but businesses would need to see the local advantages of doing it. In terms of the proposals, it was noted that there was
support for all of them, but that more information was needed and the aspect of
a local tax needed to be emphasised. A response would be drawn up based on the
discussion. To respond favourably to Welsh Government's intention to introduce new
taxes, whilst noting observations made in the discussion and specifically the
desire for local features to be emphasised in the regime. Awdur: Dilwyn Williams |