Wrthi'n llwytho
Bu'r pwyllgor yn adolygu cynnydd y Strategaeth Ddigidol ac yn cynnal craffu cyn penderfynu ar Strategaeth Gyllideb a Chynllun Ariannol Tymor Canolig 2027/28. Nododd y ddau adroddiad a chytunodd i drosglwyddo sylwadau ac argymhellion i Aelodau'r Cabinet. Cytunodd hefyd ar ei raglen waith ar gyfer 2026/27.
None received.
Members were reminded of their responsibility under Article 16 of the Members’ Code of Conduct to notify at the start of the meeting whether they have an interest in any of the items. Cllr Bowen-Thomson declared a personal interest in Item 5 as the charity she is employed by is part-funded by the Council. Cllr Caruana declared a personal interest in Item 5 as a family member is employed by the Council.
The minutes of the meeting held on 1st July 2026 were approved by the Committee as a correct record and signed by the Chairperson.
Y penderfyniad fel y'i cofnodwyd
RESOLVED: To note the report and offer observations and recommendations to the Cabinet Member in the Way Forward.
The Chair welcomed Cllr Bethan Proctor, Cabinet Member for Social Justice, Cohesion and Digital, and Isabelle Bignall, Chief Digital Officer, and Emlyn Nash, Operational Manager for Digital Delivery. This item was to follow up progress on delivering the Digital Strategy 2025/30, which was formally agreed by Cabinet in September 2025. Members were reminded that the Committee was involved in policy development scrutiny prior to its adoption. Cllr Proctor gave an opening statement, after which the Chief Digital Officer delivered a presentation. Members were then invited to make comments and ask questions. Members asked why there were no plans to host servers in the new Core Office and what footprint the Council was looking to acquire in a data centre. Officers advised that while there was room for server capacity in the Core Office it was more cost-effective to have servers offsite as they need to be in a controlled and secure environment and having them offsite allows the Council to reduce footprint costs when possible. Officers advised Committee that the Council’s public engagement is one of the key outputs of the strategy, and includes user research, user testing and user journey mapping with service area involvement. C2C officers are trained to encourage callers to use digital services. Members wished to hear how the Council was preparing for increasingly rapid developments in digital technology, and about the challenges in recruiting people with the requisite skills. Officers advised Committee about the limits in using AI while keeping the Council’s confidential data secure and about the risks in AI programmes producing erroneous information. Committee was advised that software skills are presently being developed inhouse but that there could be future recruitment challenges due to pay differentials between the public and private sectors. Officers see recruitment of university leavers as a way to mitigate this challenge. Committee was advised that the incorporation of policy changes to keep up with new technology developments within the Digital Strategy when required would be relatively straightforward. Officers described the process for having new AI software approved for use including carrying out a Data Protection Impact Assessment. Members sought information about the location of data centres used by the Council, and were told that for its own systems the Council principally uses the Vantage data centre which is shared with Welsh Government and the WLGA. Committee discussed the allocation of Microsoft Copilot Premium licences within the Council and was informed that licences are re-evaluated quarterly with underused licences redistributed. Users are trained in effective prompting and careful use of data sources. Members discussed the safeguards around the Council’s chatbot BOBi and its access to Council information and were assured that BOBi only has access to information publicly available on the Council’s website. The generative AI version of BOBi will be road-tested by C2C. Committee discussed the proposed data centre in Pentwyn and was assured that it did not form part of the Council’s future Digital Strategy. Members discussed what the Council could learn from the use of Magic Notes and were told that it is under constant evaluation with feedback being received from all teams. It has been rolled out in Social Services and Housing and is being considered for Human Resources. Members asked about inclusion of vulnerable citizens in AI and digital services and were advised that feedback could be provided to the Committee once Officers had had an opportunity to consult with colleagues in Communities. Members were told Microsoft Pilot can be a great benefit for officers with neurodiversity and that feedback could be provided to the Committee about this. Committee wished to hear whether there was increased prevalence of cyberattacks on Local Authorities and how successful the Council was in defending against them. Officers advised that the Council is under continuous attack. As part of CymruSOC it has a very wide range of security measures in place. As a capital city Cardiff Council receives more attacks than other Local Authorities in Wales. The Council’s cyber response is regularly practised with the Leadership team. Members asked about the challenges of addressing linguistic and neurodiversity barriers in the Digital Strategy. Officers advised that there are opportunities in AI with natural language processing and translation, and discussed the cultural preferences within some communities for the spoken over the written word, and age-related responses to digital services. Committee asked for an update on access to fast and stable networks and was told that Cardiff has become a Super-connected City in terms of broadband speed and availability. RESOLVED: To note the report and offer observations and recommendations to the Cabinet Member in the Way Forward.
Y penderfyniad fel y'i cofnodwyd
RESOLVED: To note the report and make requests and recommendations for consideration by the Cabinet Member in the Way Forward.
This item was to provide Members with an opportunity for pre-decision scrutiny of the Council’s preparations and timetable for delivering the Budget 2027/28 and an estimate of the 2027/28 budget gap, the Council’s approach to delivering the 2027/28 budget proposals, and specifically a fuller understanding of the financial resilience work underway to tackle the changes posed by inflation, demand for services, funding, capital financing and the capital programme. The Chair welcomed Cllr Leo Thomson, Cabinet Member Finance, Performance and Modernisation, and Ian Allwood, Chief Finance Officer and Deputy Section 151 Officer. Cllr Thomson gave an opening statement, after which the Chief Finance Officer delivered a presentation. Members were then invited to make comments and ask questions. Members asked about the Real Living Wage and annual fee reviews for commissioned services. Committee was advised that the Real Living Wage will be applied in all areas, not just in revised or new procurement contracts. Committee discussed the impact of the predicted Real Living Wage increase on Council pay bands and was advised that the Council was continuing to monitor the situation. Members wished to hear about any mitigations to ensure that ALN provision was not affected by any reduction in Barnett consequentials, and about devolution of funding for post-16 education to the Local Authority. Officers advised that strong representations were being made to Welsh Government that the Barnett consequential funding was needed by all Local Authorities. The Council hopes that appropriate placement of ALN pupils will take some pressure off mainstream schools which are struggling financially. Officers advised that the Council is working with schools that provide post-16 provision and that further information could be provided to the Committee when it becomes available. Discussions are ongoing about the mechanism for allocating funding for post-16 ALN provision. Committee discussed what was being done to make the new Welsh Government aware of the consequences of budget settlements on Local Authorities, and to ensure that the Council received the best possible settlement. Members were advised that Officers are involved in the discussions about the overall size of the settlement for Local Authorities and the potential redistribution of funding between Local Authorities. Members wished to know what could be done to reduce the stress on school management teams from having to work on very restricted budgets. Officers advised that there are various reasons why schools fall into deficit including falling rolls and high ALN need. Of those schools in deficit, few have credible medium term financial plans in place. The full ALN consequential, should it be received, would amount to £30m which would make a substantial difference but would not result in all schools having healthy surpluses. Committee discussed the effect of the falling birth rate and net outward migration from the Local Authority area on school finances. Officers advised that the previous cyclical birth rate is not recurring, that the number of surplus primary school places is increasing, and that this will in time affect secondary schools. School Organisation and Planning is modelling the process. Members discussed the UK Government policy of devolving further powers to Local Authorities. Officers advised that the WLGA is brokering conversations with UK and Welsh governments, but these are in the early stages. Committee asked whether the amount the Council is paying to service its debt is reducing. Officers advised that capital financing is part of the revenue deliberations. In recent years the Council has sought to involve itself in more grant-funded capital projects or Invest to Save schemes such as the Indoor Arena. The Council is concerned to ensure that debt increase is constrained year to year and that capital borrowing goes to the right projects. RESOLVED: To note the report and make requests and recommendations for consideration by the Cabinet Member in the Way Forward.
Members agreed the Committee’s planned programme of work for 2026/27.
Members were given an update on correspondence arising from the meetings held on 10th June and 1st July 2026.
The next meeting will take place on Wednesday 7 October 2026 at 4.30pm.
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.
Bowen-Thomson: Buddiant personol ar Budget Strategy & Medium-Term Financial Plan 2027/28
Mae'r elusen y mae'n gweithio iddi yn cael ei hariannu'n rhannol gan y Cyngor.
Caruana: Buddiant personol ar Budget Strategy & Medium-Term Financial Plan 2027/28
Mae aelod o'r teulu yn cael ei gyflogi gan y Cyngor.
Yn rhestru cynghorwyr presennol y cyngor yn unig. Nid yw aelodau cyfetholedig, swyddogion a chyn-gynghorwyr yn cael eu dangos.