Wrthi'n llwytho
Y penderfyniadau fel y mae cofnodion y cyngor yn eu cofnodi. Bydd crynodeb mewn iaith glir yn dilyn pan fydd wedi'i ysgrifennu.
AGREED: that the Chairperson, on behalf of the Committee, writes to the Cabinet Member conveying the observations of the Committee when discussing the way forward.
AGREED: that the Chairperson, on behalf of the Committee, writes to the Cabinet Member conveying the observations of the Committee when discussing the way forward.
AGREED: that the Chairperson, on behalf of the Committee, writes to the Cabinet Member conveying the observations of the Committee when discussing the way forward.
AGREED: that the Chairperson, on behalf of the Committee, writes to the Cabinet Member conveying the observations of the Committee when discussing the way forward.
AGREED: that the Chairperson, on behalf of the Committee, writes to the Cabinet Member conveying the observations of the Committee when discussing the way forward.
AGREED: that the Chairperson, on behalf of the Committee, writes to the Cabinet Member conveying the observations of the Committee when discussing the way forward.
Apologies were received from Cllrs Boes, Littlechild and Melbourne. The Chair noted that Cllr Mike Ash-Edwards had left the Committee, and thanked him for his diligent work over the past few years.
There were none.
The minutes of the 9th December meeting were approved and signed as a correct record.
Y penderfyniad fel y'i cofnodwyd
AGREED: that the Chairperson, on behalf of the Committee, writes to the Cabinet Member conveying the observations of the Committee when discussing the way forward.
Members were provided with context for pre-decision scrutiny of the sections of the draft Corporate Plan 2025/28 and draft Budget Proposals 2025/26 relating to council services which fell within the Committee’s Terms of Reference, before their consideration by Cabinet on 27th February and Council on 6th March. For this item, the Chair welcomed: Cllr Chris Weaver Cabinet Member for Finance, Modernisation & Performance Chris Lee Corporate Director, Resources Ian Allwood Head of Finance The Cabinet Member was invited to make an opening statement, in which he highlighted that Cardiff’s 5.3% settlement was substantially higher than they had expected prior to the UK government’s October budget. A budget gap of £27m still remained, in particular due to rising costs in Adult and Children’s Services, Education and Schools, and these proposals set out how they intended to tackle it through back-office efficiency savings, an increase in council tax, a small use of reserves and some service changes. Officers gave a presentation outlining how the proposals fit into the council’s Corporate Plan, noting that the above average settlement reflected Cardiff’s population growth and national pay awards. In all, it covered approximately 50% of their total growth pressures for 2025/26, although some specific grant information remained incomplete. Key pressures included pay and price inflation, as well as various commitments and realignments, demographic pressures and schools pressures. The total savings of £18.261m in total were made up of £12.463m efficiency savings, £2.8m corporate savings and £2.998m in service change proposals. All relevant budget proposals were subject to an equality impact assessment. Regarding the service change proposals, officers clarified that these were those which had an impact on existing levels of services. For some of these, consultation was city-wide, while for others specific groups or organisations were consulted. The proposed increased surcharge for weekend and bank holiday burials was not being taken forward as a result of consultation, while the proposal to increase residential parking charges for second and visitor permits was being taken forward at a reduced level, with the cost rising from £80 to £90 rather than £120 as originally proposed. Officers outlined the status of the General Fund and Housing Revenue Account and their projections in the medium and long term, the Capital Strategy for 2025/26, the use of the Financial Resilience Mechanism and the council’s capital commitments, which included the new core offices, the contingency to complete works on City Hall, coastal risk management, road and footpath resurfacing, and the updated housing capital investment programme. Officers highlighted the increase in employer National Insurance contributions as a key uncertainty being carried forward, with an estimated cost of just under £10m with regard to directly employed staff and just over £5m related to commissioned services. The Treasury would provide funding to public sector organisations to compensate for this impact, but it was not part of the settlement and would be paid separately in 2025/26. Officers were operating under the assumption that they would be compensated for 85% of the cost, but only for directly employed staff, and they did not know how it would be distributed yet. It was also unclear whether increases for staff whose salaries were funded by specific grant streams would be separately funded, or whether their costs would need to be absorbed by the grant. Members noted that the response rates to the consultation were lower than last year and heard that Cardiff’s response rate was relatively good compared to other cities. It had involved a lot of targeted consultation to ensure they heard directly from the people most affected. Officers also suggested that last year’s proposals had been more controversial, which may have led to a higher level of public engagement. Members queried the reasons for the higher-than-expected settlement and heard that this was due to Cardiff’s significant need, similar to Newport which had also received a relatively large settlement. This need was driven partly by population which brought increased demand, in addition to nationally negotiated pay awards. Officers reiterated that the 5.3% increase still only covered about half of the budget gap the council faced. The Committee explored the main reasons for the budget gap, with major drivers including price inflation (especially in adult services) and pay inflation through pay awards. Further pressures included realignments, demographic pressures, and increased need and demand in Schools and Education more generally, such as home to school transport and children educated out of county. In Adult and Children’s Services in particular, more money was needed every year to deliver the same services, and as a result these areas were receiving the most significant funding increases. Members asked whether the budget gap was specifically caused by any of the special projects the council was undertaking, and heard that it was not. Members asked how much the council tax increase would contribute to closing the gap, and heard that it would be around £10m. AGREED: that the Chairperson, on behalf of the Committee, writes to the Cabinet Member conveying the observations of the Committee when discussing the way forward.
Y penderfyniad fel y'i cofnodwyd
AGREED: that the Chairperson, on behalf of the Committee, writes to the Cabinet Member conveying the observations of the Committee when discussing the way forward.
For this item, the Chair welcomed: Cllr Julie Sangani Cabinet Member for Adult Services and Public Health & Equality Jane Thomas Director of Adults, Housing & Communities Helen Evans Assistant Director of Adults, Housing & Communities The Cabinet Member was invited to make an opening statement, in which she emphasised the council’s commitment to reducing health inequality in the city. Officers were working closely with Public Health Wales and other partners across the city to ensure information about key topics such as smoking, vaccinations, healthy eating and exercise was provided in the right way, increasing awareness and accessibility. She highlighted the translation of public health information into numerous languages, with targeted adverts in areas where those languages were most commonly spoken, and welcomed the progress of projects relating to dementia prevention and blood pressure monitors. Members noted plans to welcome refugees and asylum seekers and asked if the Cabinet Member was confident that the council had the necessary resources to achieve its aims. She confirmed that she was and emphasised the value of collaborative services and officers working on the ground. The service area sought to take a bottom-up approach rather than a top-down one, with a focus on engaging and collaborating with a wide range of people and responding to community needs, and hubs were central to this. Members noted the relatively low consultation response rate and asked whether the impact of the work being done was being effectively assessed and monitored. The Cabinet Member acknowledged that more could always be done when it came to engagement, but there was a wealth of information in the consultation which could be broken down further by age, gender and ethnicity. The steps the service area took to support inclusive health were not always reflected in the budget, and their results were sometimes hard to quantify. Members noted that a lack of qualitative data could have an impact on the council’s ability to make its case when it applied for grants. AGREED: that the Chairperson, on behalf of the Committee, writes to the Cabinet Member conveying the observations of the Committee when discussing the way forward.
Y penderfyniad fel y'i cofnodwyd
AGREED: that the Chairperson, on behalf of the Committee, writes to the Cabinet Member conveying the observations of the Committee when discussing the way forward.
For this item, the Chair welcomed: Cllr Peter Bradbury Cabinet Member for Childrens Services, Tackling Poverty & Supporting Young People Jane Thomas Director of Adults, Housing & Communities Helen Evans Assistant Director of Adults, Housing & Communities The Cabinet Member was invited to make an opening statement, in which he emphasised the importance of supporting vulnerable people. A lot of the funding within his portfolio was reliant on the Shared Prosperity Fund, which had remained the same this year. There had been a number of updates and changes in the Corporate Plan, mostly realigning KPIs to meet realistic aims, with some having been too low and some too high. He highlighted the work of the Money Advice team, with £14m of additional benefits identified for residents and more than 44,000 calls in total. So far, officers had helped more than 200 people to claim pension credits, but they believed that up to 6,500 Cardiff residents could be entitled to these. Members asked about the impact of savings made in the young persons’ advice service, and heard that these were in relation to vacant posts which had been absorbed into other existing roles. Members asked for more detail on the use of earmarked reserves to mitigate pressures within the housing funding service. Officers explained that a welfare reform reserve was set up some years ago to cope with increased demand as people moved over to Universal Credit. Funding from the DWP for this had reduced significantly so it was necessary to draw on these reserves on a one-off basis. AGREED: that the Chairperson, on behalf of the Committee, writes to the Cabinet Member conveying the observations of the Committee when discussing the way forward.
Y penderfyniad fel y'i cofnodwyd
AGREED: that the Chairperson, on behalf of the Committee, writes to the Cabinet Member conveying the observations of the Committee when discussing the way forward.
For this item, the Chair welcomed: Cllr Lee Bridgeman Cabinet Member for Housing & Communities Jane Thomas Director of Adults, Housing & Communities Helen Evans Assistant Director of Adults, Housing & Communities The Cabinet Member was invited to make an opening statement, in which he highlighted the value of hubs and libraries, in particular their ability to respond to local need and help older people stay active and connected. The total number of visits remained high at 1.7m. Officers gave a presentation outlining the work of the Community Volunteer Team, which was created in 2022 to build on the community resilience of the Covid pandemic. It sought to offer meaningful volunteering experience, with paid roles for Volunteer Mentors and Co-ordinators. In 2023 it was proposed that the number of volunteers in hubs and libraries be increased, which was achieved by not recruiting into certain posts when staff left. There were three key areas for volunteering: leading free community activities for citizens across the city, like exercise and warm spaces; supporting the delivery of library services; and peer support. Officers added that there were now 96 community volunteers with 32 more in training, and more than 3,000 volunteer hours had been donated last year. More than 30 volunteer-led activities took place in hubs and libraries, with half the volunteers being under 40 and three quarters being women. The 2024 Volunteers Survey found that 100% of respondents felt they got personal value from what they did, while 88% said it improved their confidence and mental wellbeing. Their top motivations were to learn new skills and give back to their communities. Members welcomed the success of the scheme and asked how volunteers were recruited and retained. Officers explained that they mostly recruited through community events at hubs and libraries, and also worked closely with colleges and universities. Volunteer Cardiff, which volunteer organisations could use to advertise their opportunities, had 88,000 hits last year. It was important to both reach out to communities and have an online presence. Regarding retention, officers noted that while there were a number of long-serving volunteers, younger people were more likely to do it for six to nine months. Officers sought to keep volunteers engaged and involved, giving them the right training and ensuring they were doing something meaningful and rewarding. Turnover had always been relatively high, as volunteers were well trained and could use it as a gateway to working in another service area. Aside from community volunteers, there were also work volunteers, more than 80% of whom had gone on into paid employment. Members explored the planned Youth Zone development in Ely, noting that in such a large area it could be difficult to ensure accessibility of services to all. Officers explained that this was an ongoing piece of work which they hoped would be resolved soon, with two sites being considered on Cowbridge Road and around Ely Rec. They had consulted young people in the area last summer and gathered interesting data about how people accessed services within walking distance. The Committee noted the importance of core staff and asked if officers were confident that these vacant posts did not need to be filled. Officers explained that internal restructuring had created some more specialist library roles at a slightly higher grade, but acknowledged that they did not want to reduce their core staff any further. Paid permanent roles were essential to support and co-ordinate volunteers. AGREED: that the Chairperson, on behalf of the Committee, writes to the Cabinet Member conveying the observations of the Committee when discussing the way forward.
Y penderfyniad fel y'i cofnodwyd
AGREED: that the Chairperson, on behalf of the Committee, writes to the Cabinet Member conveying the observations of the Committee when discussing the way forward.
For this item, the Chair welcomed: Cllr Leonora Thomson Cabinet Member for Adult Services and Public Health & Equality Jane Thomas Director of Adults, Housing & Communities Helen Evans Assistant Director of Adults, Housing & Communities The Cabinet Member was invited to make an opening statement, in which she highlighted the council’s continuing commitment to make the city age-friendly, working with partners to keep older people active and connected to their communities. The Hubs For All approach was key and they had committed to build on this, as well as increasing employment opportunities for older people. She emphasised the importance of providing the right help to keep people independent, offering community living schemes and housing with care. Hospital discharge rates were improving, and Cardiff’s performance was among the best in Wales, but she was confident that further improvement was possible. She also highlighted the strengthening of preventative services, with a focus on reablement and keeping people out of care and hospital when possible and appropriate. She stressed the importance of supporting the social care workforce, with strengthened commitments in this area including a new step for overseas workers, who played a vital role in both domiciliary and residential care workforces. The Volunteer Befriender service, which sought to support unpaid carers, had been piloted and was now being rolled out. Officers gave a presentation outlining the key savings made within the portfolio, following a full-service review due to the increasing costs of adult social care. The review identified a number of key themes, including the provision of high-quality, cost-effective care; prevention, reablement and right sizing care to reduce demand; providing alternative forms of care; and taking a full cost recovery approach. They highlighted a number of key changes, including their approach to commissioning care home placements, introducing a framework for care packages so providers could be more aware of costs. Existing Respite Service and Adult Placement Schemes had also been reviewed, while void (empty) placements had been identified across supporting living contracts. In relation to prevention and reablement, the Community Reablement Team had been rearranged to focus on identifying need and prescribing long-term care, which had been effective so far. Officers also highlighted opportunities for providing alternative forms of care that were more cost-effective, such as step-down day services for those with less complex needs and supported living options as an alternative to residential care. New housing schemes would also seek to offer ‘extra care light’ services in order to keep older people independent, with one having already opened in St Mellons. Charges for the ‘floor rate’ of domiciliary care had been increased in 2024/25 on a two-year basis, with the charge for care provided by an agency rising from £16.38 to £23.80 per hour. The Welsh government’s cap remained the same, so the maximum anyone would be required to pay per week was still £100. Members welcomed the emphasis on keeping older people independent and helping them to live at home, but noted that with independence could come loneliness. Officers explained that hubs and libraries offered a wide range of activities to keep people engaged, and they tried to target particular groups. Avoiding social isolation was key, and in some cases residential care could give people a better sense of community. The Committee explored the cost of care and heard that individuals only paid for the care they needed. When someone moved from their home into independent living, they required the same level of care but this could be delivered in a more cost-effective way, and in homes that were designed to be easier to get around. Community living had higher service charges but that was covered by housing benefit. Those who transitioned into step down services had a full package of support from a specialist team and a social worker, running parallel with other services. Members asked how the risks of the transition phase were monitored, and heard that each individual care plan identified potential issues and assessed where it was most appropriate for a person to be. Individuals were constantly monitored as they settled in to ensure the facility was meeting their needs. Officers stressed the importance of treating residents as individuals and key consultees, for example enabling them to design their own room. Members queried whether officers were confident the efficiency savings would not impact on frontline services, and heard that they were. Officers emphasised that they were changing the way they were delivering care rather than changing the actual service, and there would be no reduction in the services available. AGREED: that the Chairperson, on behalf of the Committee, writes to the Cabinet Member conveying the observations of the Committee when discussing the way forward.
Y penderfyniad fel y'i cofnodwyd
AGREED: that the Chairperson, on behalf of the Committee, writes to the Cabinet Member conveying the observations of the Committee when discussing the way forward.
For this item, the Chair welcomed: Cllr Lynda Thorne Cabinet Member for Housing & Communities Jane Thomas Director of Adults, Housing & Communities Helen Evans Assistant Director of Adults, Housing & Communities Dave Jaques Assistant Director, Housing Development & Regeneration The Cabinet Member was invited to make an opening statement, in which she reported significant progress in addressing the housing emergency but acknowledged huge demands on the homelessness service. Early intervention work had achieved good results, supporting young people through enhanced advice and mediation services and ensuring access to dedicated prevention officers, and they were continuing to collaborate with children’s services. Efforts to reduce rough sleeping had also shown good progress, and a full review of the multi-disciplinary team would be conducted. She added that in 2025/26 they would increase the number of managed blocks to provide settled accommodation for single people, freeing up places in homeless hostels for those in need of intensive support and ensuring tenants were in suitable housing, for example new older persons’ accommodation. Providing quality affordable housing was an essential part of this, and the council sought to deliver 2,800 affordable homes by 2035, with 340 new homes already delivered this year. It was equally important to invest in existing homes, through the responsive repairs service and by ensuring compliance with the Welsh Housing Quality Standard (WHQS). Members asked about the key challenges and heard that while family homelessness seemed to be plateauing, single homelessness was not. Lots of housing developments were coming forward but there were various different pressures, including inflation. The WHQS was the biggest individual challenge for all local authorities, and some parts of it like the energy pathways were not possible at the moment without extra funding. Additional funding had been invested in responsive repairs in order to alleviate the backlog that service was facing. Members advocated calling on the Welsh government to provide extra support to meet the requirements of the WHQS, which the Cabinet Member agreed with. She emphasised that councils were already doing lots of work on energy efficiency, especially in comparison to the private sector where the least energy efficient homes were. Members discussed single people’s homeless accommodation and asked how the council could ensure a spread of this across the city rather than it being concentrated in particular areas. The Cabinet Member responded that that was their aim, and they were developing supported accommodation right across the city with the right support services nearby. Emergency accommodation was key, providing single rooms and other facilities for individuals and enabling them to move into permanent premises in good time. Members asked for more detail on the savings made by restructuring the benefits assessment team, and heard that as housing benefit shifted over to Universal Credit, assessors were seeing their workloads reduce significantly and efficiencies had become available. The UC migration progress was in its final stage but officers felt it would take a couple more years to be fully complete. Members discussed the responsive repairs service and heard that a number of apprentices were coming through. Cardiff lacked provision for some courses, such as plastering, and so the service had undergone a trade-by-trade review in order to identify capacity and opportunities for each. Officers were happy to bring more information on this review to a future meeting. Members noted that extra funding had been allocated for community safety and asked how these opportunities would be assessed. The Cabinet Member noted that this was an entirely new fund and a new protocol would be required, but she would meet with officers soon to get an overview. AGREED: that the Chairperson, on behalf of the Committee, writes to the Cabinet Member conveying the observations of the Committee when discussing the way forward.
Monday 17th March 2025 at 4:30pm.
There were none.
Rhaid i gynghorwyr ddweud pan fydd ganddyn nhw gysylltiad personol â rhywbeth sy'n cael ei drafod, fel swydd, eiddo neu aelod o'r teulu. Mae buddiant sy'n rhagfarnu yn ddigon cryf i'r cynghorydd adael yr ystafell fel arfer a pheidio â chymryd rhan.
Caiff datganiadau eu darllen o'r cofnodion unwaith y byddan nhw wedi'u cyhoeddi.
Yn rhestru cynghorwyr presennol y cyngor yn unig. Nid yw aelodau cyfetholedig, swyddogion a chyn-gynghorwyr yn cael eu dangos.