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The decisions as the council's minutes record them. A plain-language summary follows once it has been written.
RESOLVED- (a) That the amendments of £2.683m, which increase the total Capital Programme, be approved. (b) That the total Capital Programme of £106.458m and the third quarter capital outturn position for 2024/25 be noted.
RESOLVED- That the latest financial assessment of the estimated budgetary position for 2024/25 be received and noted.
RESOLVED- That Council be recommended to approve the budget proposals, as set out in Table 5 of Appendix 1.
RESOLVED- That the issuing of a statutory notice to formally amalgamate Ysgol Glan Gele and Ysgol Sant Elfod as one school be approved.
RESOLVED- That the issuing of a statutory notice to formally amalgamate Ysgol Y Foryd and Ysgol Maes Owen as one school be approved.
RESOLVED- (a) That the termination of the agreement to work in partnership with other North Wales Local Authorities in the context of the regional School Effectiveness and Improvement Service (GwE) and subsequent dissolving the requirement for the GwE Joint-Committee be approved. (b) That the right to decide the exact date of the termination of the agreement be delegated to the Head of Education Services in consultation with the relevant Directors of the other 5 North Wales Local Authorities. (c) That Cabinet confirms the contractual commitment in relation to ending the arrangement.
RESOLVED- That the Public and Press be excluded from the meeting under the provisions of Section 100A of the above Act during consideration of the following items as it involves the likely disclosure of exempt information as defined in paragraphs 12, 13 and 14 of Part 4 of Schedule 12A to the Act and that in all the relevant circumstances, the public interest in maintaining the exemption outweighs the public interest in disclosing the information.
An apology for absence was received from Councillor Chris Cater.
Councillor Paul Luckock declared a personal interest in Agenda Item 7i (Consultation Outcome Report on the Proposed Amalgamation of Ysgol Glan Gele and Ysgol Sant Elfod), as he is a Local Authority Education governor for Ysgol Sant Elfod. As the interest was not considered prejudicial, Councillor Luckock was able to speak on the matter. Councillor Charlie McCoubrey declared a personal interest in Agenda Item 7i (Consultation Outcome Report on the Proposed Amalgamation of Ysgol Glan Gele and Ysgol Sant Elfod), as he is Local Authority Education governor for Ysgol Glan Gele. As the interest was not considered prejudicial, Councillor McCoubrey was able to speak and vote on the matter. Councillor Bernice McLoughlin declared a personal interest in Agenda Item 7ii (Consultation Outcome Report on the Proposed Amalgamation of Ysgol y Foryd and Ysgol Maes Owen), as she is a Local Authority Education governor for Ysgol y Foryd. As the interest was not considered prejudicial, Councillor McLoughlin was able to speak on the matter.
None.
The Leader welcomed the announcement that Venue Cymru had been awarded £10m by the UK Government, subject to the submission of a full business case. Venue Cymru delivered over £30m in economic benefit to local businesses every year.
The Chief Executive echoed the comments of the Leader and thanked the work of the team in attracting the funding to Venue Cymru.
Decision as recorded
RESOLVED- (a) That the amendments of £2.683m, which increase the total Capital Programme, be approved. (b) That the total Capital Programme of £106.458m and the third quarter capital outturn position for 2024/25 be noted.
The Leader presented the Revised Capital Programme 2024/25 - Quarter Three Monitoring Report and requested approval for amendments of £2.683m. The Finance and Resources Overview and Scrutiny Committee considered the report on 17 February 2025 and supported the recommendations. RESOLVED- (a) That the amendments of £2.683m, which increase the total Capital Programme, be approved. (b) That the total Capital Programme of £106.458m and the third quarter capital outturn position for 2024/25 be noted.
Decision as recorded
RESOLVED- That the latest financial assessment of the estimated budgetary position for 2024/25 be received and noted.
The Leader presented the Revenue Budget 2024/25 - Quarter Three Monitoring Report. The Finance and Resources Overview and Scrutiny Committee considered the report on 17 February 2025 and supported the recommendation. Discussion ensued as follows:- · Work had been undertaken to control spending through various methods, including different ways of working and transformation of services. · Demands had increased and it was important to protect the most vulnerable residents of the County, which came at a significant cost. · Housing Services had been through a transformation process, which had resulted in improvements, including the planned delivery of housing developments and increased engagement with Registered Social Landlords. · Over £73m of coastal protection works had been undertaken over the past few years, including inland flooding projects to protect residents and businesses. · The Revenue and Benefits Assessment Service was working to ensure that households were charged the correct Council Tax rate and they were receiving the right benefits. RESOLVED- That the latest financial assessment of the estimated budgetary position for 2024/25 be received and noted.
Decision as recorded
RESOLVED- That Council be recommended to approve the budget proposals, as set out in Table 5 of Appendix 1.
The Leader presented the Draft Revenue Budget and Council Tax increase for 2025/2026 and highlighted key points from Appendix 1 of the report. The Finance and Resources Overview and Scrutiny Committee considered the report on 17 February 2025 and requested that Cabinet recommended that Council approve a balanced budget. Discussion ensued as follows:- · The financial challenges facing households was acknowledged but there was a difficult choice of setting a balanced budget and a Council Tax rise in order to provide services for the most vulnerable residents. · Schools worked hard to support families and children with increasing demands and reducing budgets. · Local Government was still being underfunded after years of austerity, however, the additional £15m from Welsh Government (WG) was welcomed. · The proposed Council Tax rise equated to £13.58 for households within Band D. · The Chief Executive advised that the setting of the 2025/2026 budget had been a continual process over the past 13 months and thanked the Strategic Director- Finance and Resources, the Head of Finance, and the Finance Team for producing exceptional and clear reports, which was echoed by Members. · The past six years had been challenging in terms of the impact of Covid and continuing budget reductions. · The following actions had been put in place over the past year:- o Realigning the Council’s estate, which included the disposal of Bodlondeb. o Establishing the Housing Boards, which were delivering transformational projects. o Peer Review 2023 o Engaging with the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy (CIPFA), which resulted in establishing vacancy controls, spending controls for expenditure over £1,000 and spot checks for expenditure under £1,000, social care commissioning reviews, introduction of a new finance system and work on digital transformation. · Work had already started on the budget for 2026/2027 and further updates would be provided in due course. · Services that supported wellbeing continued to be delivered including theatres, leisure centres, swimming pools and libraries. · Events relating to climate change were increasing, placing additional demand on services. · Town and Community Councils were thanked for the support they had provided in maintaining some services. · Social Care Teams were thanked for holding the line in terms of their statutory duties, which was set against a backdrop of delivering complex care packages. · The reintroduction of the weed spraying was welcomed as it was key to tourism and residents’ wellbeing to live in an area with tidy street scenes. · The Council Tax Reduction Scheme provided relief to low income households of up to 100% in certain circumstances. · The work and challenge provided by Overview and Scrutiny Committees was acknowledged and welcomed. RESOLVED- That Council be recommended to approve the budget proposals, as set out in Table 5 of Appendix 1.
Decision as recorded
RESOLVED- That the issuing of a statutory notice to formally amalgamate Ysgol Glan Gele and Ysgol Sant Elfod as one school be approved.
The Cabinet Member for Education sought approval for the issuing of a statutory notice to formally amalgamate Ysgol Glan Gele and Ysgol Sant Elfod as one school. The Education and Skills Overview and Scrutiny Committee considered the report on 13 February 2025 and supported the recommendation, together with a request that savings realised from school amalgamations were reinvested into school budgets. In relation to the above request, the Strategic Director – Finance and Resources advised that endorsing the policy could have an impact on setting a balanced budget in the future. The Chief Executive added that the recommendation did not provide a consistency in approach for all other services in terms of ring-fencing and should be considered as a separate policy. Members supported the concept as it would support school budgets, but acknowledged that it would require consideration of a future policy change. Members were assured that work was being undertaken with the school in terms of financial regulations and budget settlements. RESOLVED- That the issuing of a statutory notice to formally amalgamate Ysgol Glan Gele and Ysgol Sant Elfod as one school be approved.
Decision as recorded
RESOLVED- That the issuing of a statutory notice to formally amalgamate Ysgol Y Foryd and Ysgol Maes Owen as one school be approved.
The Cabinet Member for Education sought approval for the issuing of a statutory notice to formally amalgamate Ysgol Y Foryd and Ysgol Maes Owen as one school. The Education and Skills Overview and Scrutiny Committee considered the report on 13 February 2025 and supported the recommendation. RESOLVED- That the issuing of a statutory notice to formally amalgamate Ysgol Y Foryd and Ysgol Maes Owen as one school be approved.
Decision as recorded
RESOLVED- (a) That the termination of the agreement to work in partnership with other North Wales Local Authorities in the context of the regional School Effectiveness and Improvement Service (GwE) and subsequent dissolving the requirement for the GwE Joint-Committee be approved. (b) That the right to decide the exact date of the termination of the agreement be delegated to the Head of Education Services in consultation with the relevant Directors of the other 5 North Wales Local Authorities. (c) That Cabinet confirms the contractual commitment in relation to ending the arrangement.
Members were presented with a report seeking approval to terminate the agreement with other North Wales Authorities and the School Effectiveness and Improvement Service (GwE). The Head of Law and Governance advised that an additional recommendation was required to the report; to delegate the exact date of the termination of the agreement to the Head of Education Services in consultation in the relevant Directors of the other 5 North Wales Local Authorities. The Cabinet Member for Education supported the above additional recommendation in relation to the GwE Inter Authority Agreement. The Education and Skills Overview and Scrutiny Committee considered the report on 13 February 2025 and supported the recommendation. Clarification was awaited from the Welsh Government in terms of the final redundancy costings for GwE. RESOLVED- (a) That the termination of the agreement to work in partnership with other North Wales Local Authorities in the context of the regional School Effectiveness and Improvement Service (GwE) and subsequent dissolving the requirement for the GwE Joint-Committee be approved. (b) That the right to decide the exact date of the termination of the agreement be delegated to the Head of Education Services in consultation with the relevant Directors of the other 5 North Wales Local Authorities. (c) That Cabinet confirms the contractual commitment in relation to ending the arrangement.
Decision as recorded
RESOLVED- That the Public and Press be excluded from the meeting under the provisions of Section 100A of the above Act during consideration of the following items as it involves the likely disclosure of exempt information as defined in paragraphs 12, 13 and 14 of Part 4 of Schedule 12A to the Act and that in all the relevant circumstances, the public interest in maintaining the exemption outweighs the public interest in disclosing the information.
RESOLVED- That the Public and Press be excluded from the meeting under the provisions of Section 100A of the above Act during consideration of the following items as it involves the likely disclosure of exempt information as defined in paragraphs 12, 13 and 14 of Part 4 of Schedule 12A to the Act and that in all the relevant circumstances, the public interest in maintaining the exemption outweighs the public interest in disclosing the information.
Councillors must say when they have a personal link to something being discussed, such as a job, a property or a family member. A prejudicial interest is one strong enough that the councillor usually leaves the room and takes no part.
Declarations are read from the minutes once they are published.
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