Wrthi'n llwytho
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AGREED to accept the report as information.
AGREED to note the minutes for information.
AGREED to recommend that Cabinet approve the Policy for Elective Home Education.
AGREED to recommend that Cabinet approve the Policy for Children Missing Education.
AGREED to recommend that Cabinet approve the Policy for Promoting Regular School Attendance.
AGREED to recommend that Cabinet approve the Revised Code of Conduct for Penalty Notices.
AGREED to note the report for information.
AGREED to note the reports.
AGREED to note the work of the workstreams as presented and recommend to Cabinet for consideration. Pupil Projections Consideration was given to the feedback following the meeting of the ‘Ensure an effective and efficient infrastructure to meet our priorities’ workstream held on the 16.10.2025 to consider and discuss Pupil Projections. It was AGREED that: - A Pupils Projections report was presented to the ‘Ensure an effective and efficient infrastructure to meet our priorities’ workstream on a yearly basis so that projected surplus or deficits in the County’s Schools could be monitored closely. - Following the publication of data to Welsh Government, that the Learning Communities Overview and Scrutiny Committee public meeting receive a report outlining the current and projected situation in Ceredigion County Council’s primary and secondary schools.
AGREED to note the contents of the Forward Work Programme presented subject to the following: - It was noted that Bethan James, Dyfed Powys Police Schools Service Manager had accepted the invitation to attend a future meeting - An overview of the processes of identifying Additional Learning Needs - Update on the use of mobile phones in schools
i. Councillors Euros Davies and Marc Davies apologised for their inability to attend the meeting. ii. Sian Jones, Co-opted Member apologised for her inability to attend the meeting. iii. Councillor Elizabeth Evans apologised for leaving the meeting early due to other Council commitments.
Councillor Chris James declared a personal and prejudicial interest in item 12 (School Transport Policy).
- The Chair extended her condolences to Sian Jones, Co-opted Member on the loss of her mother. - Councillor Wyn Thomas, Cabinet Member congratulated everyone on their success at the Gŵyl Cerdd Dant held in Aberystwyth recently. He also congratulated six of Ceredigion’s pupils on their performance in the Music for Youth Proms 2025 at the Royal Albert Hall recently.
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AGREED to accept the report as information.
Councillor Wyn Thomas (Cabinet Member for Schools, Lifelong Learning and Skills) presented the report upon the provisional GCSE (KS4) and A Level (KS5) results from Summer 2025. He reported that the official data included in the report had recently been published by the Welsh Government (WG) and the final data would be available in December, with very little change usually. The data published by the WG in terms of results had decreased considerably over the years, as they now only publish points scores. Gwion Dafydd, Corporate Manager explained that the Capped 9 measure would end in Summer 2026, with a more considerate method of measuring data currently being discussed by a national working group. The Chair and Councillor Wyn Thomas, Cabinet Member congratulated Ceredigion’s pupils and school staff on their excellent results. It was AGREED to accept the report as information.
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AGREED to note the minutes for information.
Councillor Wyn Thomas (Cabinet Member for Schools, Lifelong Learning and Skills) explained that one of the duties bestowed on Local Authorities within the Welsh Government - Shared Purpose: Shared Future: Statutory Guidance to the Well-being of Future Generations (Wales) Act 2015- is Annex B - the Statutory Guidance on Children and Young People’s Participation. To meet one of the requirements of the legislation, Local Authorities were expected to work with relevant partners as outlined in the report. An overview of the minutes from the 17.10.2025 meeting was provided to the Committee. The Chair highlighted the importance of raising awareness of the Youth Council’s activities. It was AGREED to note the minutes for information.
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AGREED to recommend that Cabinet approve the Policy for Elective Home Education.
Councillor Wyn Thomas (Cabinet Member for Schools, Lifelong Learning and Skills) presented the report upon the Policy for Elective Home Education. It was reported that parents had the primary responsibility for ensuring that their children received a suitable education in Wales. Although this responsibility was usually delegated to schools, some parents chose to exercise it directly by providing education based in the home, which was equal in statute to education at school. Ceredigion Local Authority (LA) respected that some parents, carers, or legal guardians chose to educate their child at home or based at home, which was otherwise than at school, for a range of reasons. This was referred to as ‘Elective Home Education’ (EHE). It was reported that Ceredigion LA recognised the right of parents to educate their child at home and worked in partnership with parents to ensure children received a broad, balanced, and efficient education suitable to their needs. LAs had a duty to make arrangements to identify children not in receipt of a suitable education under Section 436A of the Education Act 1996. The duty applied to children of compulsory school age who were not on a school roll and did not receive a suitable education otherwise than at school. This policy considered Welsh Government’s (WG) statutory guidance on EHE (document 292/2023 issued in October 2023) and observed the principles of the Well-being of Future Generations (Wales) Act 2015. The policy also recognised the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. In Wales, education was compulsory, but attending school was not. Section 7 of the Education Act 1996 stated that ‘The parent of every child of compulsory school age shall cause him to receive efficient full-time education suitable (a) to his age, ability, and aptitude, and (b) to any special educational needs (in the case of a child who is in the area of a local authority in England) or additional learning needs (in the case of a child who was in the area of a local authority in Wales) he may have, either by regular attendance at school or otherwise.’ Parents who decided to home educate their child/children should be prepared to assume full responsibility and this could have financial implications. The purpose of the policy was to encourage good practice by clearly setting out the legislative position and the roles and responsibilities of the LA, schools and parents/carers in relation to children who were electively home educated. Councillor Wyn Thomas proceeded to provide an overview of the policy. Members were provided with the opportunity to ask questions which were answered by Officers. The main points raised were as follows: - EHE remains a standard agenda item for senior leadership discussions. In the past few years, the number of home educated children remained around 300. From the current 307 children on the register, approximately 37% had never accessed mainstream education, whilst approximately 7% had not attended a school in Ceredigion. Officers noted that the figure was high, and Ceredigion had the highest number of home educated children per 1000 of the population, but figures had increased across Wales. It was suggested that parents advocated more and had a greater awareness of the legislation around compulsory school age. - There are approximately 50 children of GCSE age receiving home education. The LA offer year 11 home educated children the opportunity to sit English and Maths GCSEs. Around 10 children had sat GCSE exams last year, whilst approximately 12 had registered this year. It was noted that many home educated children followed the IGCSE as opposed to the WJCE curriculum. - Officers clarified that Welsh language medium of education had not been noted as a reason during yearly enquiries as to why children were de-registered from mainstream education. Parents of home educated children were often eager for their children to learn the Welsh language. - The LA received a grant from WG to support home educated families. The LA have previously arranged activities for home educated families to support the learning of the Welsh Language, for example with the sessions provided by Theatr Felinfach. - The law for home educated children has not changed; the LA works closely with agencies particularly health, police and children’s services to identify children not in receipt of a suitable education. It was noted that one of the biggest concerns was children who were not known to any service or agency. - If the LA felt there is no evidence of suitable education the LA would need to consider a School Attendance Order in accordance with Section 437 of the Education Act 1996; it was acknowledged that this was an area that could be strengthened in moving forward. It was AGREED to recommend that Cabinet approve the Policy for Elective Home Education.
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AGREED to recommend that Cabinet approve the Policy for Children Missing Education.
Councillor Wyn Thomas (Cabinet Member for Schools, Lifelong Learning and Skills) presented the report upon the Policy for Children Missing Education. Section 436A of the Education and Inspections Act 2006 required Local Authorities to make arrangements which enabled them to establish the identities of children that resided in their area who were not registered pupils at a school receiving a ‘suitable education’ at a school or otherwise. The duty did not apply to children and young people who were registered on a school roll but not attending regularly. In such cases, a child or young person should be subject to intervention through existing attendance strategies and the Education Inclusion Service’s procedures. This policy aimed to ensure the Local Authority (LA) met its statutory duties related to the provision of education and safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children. An overview of the policy and aims as outlined in the report was provided. It was reported that at present, there were 10 children on the Ceredigion Children Missing Database. The officer responsible for CME was the named officer for both Children Missing Education and Elective Home Education, and this helped to ensure there was a consistent approach. It was noted that where a child was not registered with an educational provider, the Education Inclusion Service would make reasonable enquiries to locate the child. Officers explained that attendance records for individual schools were not available publicly online and as attendance changed daily, any data published online provided a general view of the attendance for that particular school for previous years. Both Estyn and the LA focused on attendance and data was shared with Elected Members at the quarterly Performance Board. It was noted that the Education Inclusion Service managed the Ceredigion Children Missing Database and information was shared with the senior team monthly. It was AGREED to recommend that Cabinet approve the Policy for Children Missing Education.
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AGREED to recommend that Cabinet approve the Policy for Promoting Regular School Attendance.
Councillor Wyn Thomas (Cabinet Member for Schools, Lifelong Learning and Skills) presented the report upon Policy for Promoting Regular School Attendance. Although there had been an improvement in both Primary and Secondary School attendance, current attendance figures Wales-wide remained below those recorded prior to the pandemic as presented in the report. It was reported that poor attendance was detrimental to educational achievement, undermined the well-being of each learner, and could impede life chances. The Policy was aimed at maintained schools, PRUs, EOTAS settings, parents/carers and local authorities and was a practical document for leaders, teachers and other practitioners and set out the roles and responsibilities to ensure high levels of learner engagement and attendance. An overview of the law on school attendance and the right to a full-time education was provided as outlined in the report. Whilst the legal responsibility for regular school attendance rested with parents, the school and the Local Authority (LA) were also responsible for encouraging good attendance and improving poor attendance. Members were provided with the opportunity to ask questions which were answered by Officers. The main points raised were as follows: - It was noted that the method of registration varied from one school to another, with some schools moving to more technology-based methods. The Headteacher of each school held responsibility for the school register and for following the attendance codes. - It was acknowledged that there were many factors for poor attendance. It was key to work closely with other LA services and agencies to ensure support was provided where appropriate to try and improve attendance. School staff were praised for their efforts to improve school attendance. - In response to a query, Officers clarified that persistent absence was based on a 90% attendance or below. Headteachers could approve up to 10 days of authorised absence; however, unless there were exceptional circumstances, this was not encouraged due to the possible educational and social impact on the child. It was AGREED to recommend that Cabinet approve the Policy for Promoting Regular School Attendance.
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AGREED to recommend that Cabinet approve the Revised Code of Conduct for Penalty Notices.
Councillor Wyn Thomas (Cabinet Member for Schools, Lifelong Learning and Skills) explained that the Welsh Government Education (Penalty Notice)(Wales) Regulations 2013 stated that Local Authorities were required by law to adhere to the Education Act 1996 section 444 to include penalty notices as one of the interventions to promote better school attendance. It was reported that Ceredigion Local Authority (LA) would continue to investigate cases of irregular attendance from school / alternative education provision, follow appropriate casework and instigate legal action if appropriate. However, penalty notices offered a means of swift intervention to deal with issues of regular non-attendance before they became entrenched. The issuing of penalty notices would be based on clear threshold criteria which would be applied consistently and equitably across the LA. A penalty notice could only be issued in cases of unauthorised absence; notices should only be issued for offences where the LA were able and willing to prosecute. Councillor Wyn Thomas provided an overview of the use of penalty notices and the key criteria as presented in the report. It was noted that non-payment of a penalty notice could result in a prosecution under Section 444 of the Education Act 1996. Officers clarified that fewer than 3 notices were issued annually, although a few more were issued pre-covid-19 pandemic. As the service acknowledged circumstances could be difficult at times, the aim was to work with families. It was noted that the code had been revised slightly to remove the references to ERW, which had formally dissolved in March 2022. Councillor Wyn Thomas extended his thanks to the Education Inclusion Service for their continuous work, and for ensuring the 4 policies vital to the safeguarding of children were presented to the Scrutiny Committee for consideration ahead of Cabinet. It was AGREED to recommend that Cabinet approve the Revised Code of Conduct for Penalty Notices.
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AGREED to note the report for information.
The Chair and Councillor Wyn Thomas (Cabinet Member for Schools, Lifelong Learning and Skills) congratulated the Catering Team for their success at the Wales Food and Fun 10 Year Celebration Awards. Councillor Wyn Thomas explained that the Catering Service within schools and care homes sat under the Learning Resources Service within the Schools, Lifelong Learning and Culture Service. An overview was provided as follows: - The Catering Service currently operated and managed 30 producing Primary School kitchens (cooking on site at the school). - The service also provided food for 7 schools which operated as receiving kitchens (food was cooked off site, transported to the receiving kitchen before being served at the school). - 11 schools also hosted breakfast clubs in the mornings. - There were 126 positions ranging from Cook in Charge, Catering Assistant, Dining Room Assistant and Breakfast Club Catering Assistant across the Service. - Current Financial Situation in relation to the 2025/26 Budget. Members were provided with the opportunity to ask questions which were answered by Officers. The main points raised were as follows: - The Catering Service were praised for their efforts to ensure local food was available in schools where possible, and that the dietary needs of pupils were met. Officers clarified that Andrew Rees Butchers, Narberth supplied the meat that was sourced from local reputable suppliers and was fully traceable. In addition, the local authority had been involved in the pilot project, Welsh Veg in Schools which was procured through Castell Howell to comply with hygiene standards. It was suggested that further work could be done in the future on procurement within the catering service. - Officers confirmed that they continued to lobby Welsh Government at any given opportunity for an increase in the grant to cover the costs of supplying free school meals in primary schools, as the provision currently ran at a loss. - Feedback from staff and pupils on meals was deemed important. It was suggested that the matter was very likely to be on the agenda of all School Councils. Officers noted they would explore how feedback from staff was collated. - The Catering Service designed their menus to comply with Welsh Government’s requirements, and a certificate was granted yearly if the criteria was met. As external providers managed the catering service in some schools, it was not possible for the local authority’s catering service to influence much on the menus, however, support and advice was available if required. - Recruitment and retention of staff continued to prove challenging for the catering service in both schools and care homes and vacancies were often re-advertised. Officers suggested working closer with organisations such as the Young Farmers Clubs, whilst Members suggested exploring ways to support the employment needs of the catering service in the proposals to deliver vocational and post-16 courses in Lampeter. - It was noted that the figures for Care Homes accounted for residents being provided with 4 meals a day. It was AGREED to note the report for information.
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AGREED to note the reports.
Duncan Hall, Executive Corporate Lead Officer: Finance and Procurement provided an overview of the quarterly Controllable Revenue Financial Monitoring report and quarterly Capital Financial Monitoring report for Quarter 4 24/25 and Quarter 1 25/26. From a Capital perspective, funding for the Museum’s new roof would be re-profiled over the 2 financial years. The funding for additional Capital Works for schools was an annual grant from Welsh Government worth £541k. There was hope of additional funding in December as had been the case in the past. Duncan Hall proceeded to explain that at the quarter 1 point for 25-26, the financial position was robust, albeit it was still early in the new financial year. A broadly breakeven position was currently forecasted on the Controllable Budget for the year, with a very small projected underspend of £15k (0.01% of the 25/26 Budget). An overview of the Post-Budget Setting Update as outlined in the report was provided. The key challenges that included high-end children’s placements and the use of agency staff had not changed significantly in the quarter 2 reports due to be presented to Cabinet on 02.12.25. From a service perspective, there was a net overspend of £582k projected across the Pyrth Through Age Services. Whilst there were several variances within that position due to the volatile and unpredictable nature of key parts of the service, it was quite clear that the financial position would be in positive territory if there was no requirement to use agency staff to fulfil key statutory roles. The Finance and Procurement Service expected to underspend by £600k due to lower external borrowing costs (£300k) combined with an underspend on the core F&P service (£300k). In response to a query on the current use of agency staff, Duncan Hall clarified that further detail would be available in the quarter 2 reports. He added there was a slightly different approach to recruitment, with promotional videos being recorded by many Officers to provide an overview of their service. It was AGREED to note the reports.
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AGREED to note the work of the workstreams as presented and recommend to Cabinet for consideration. Pupil Projections Consideration was given to the feedback following the meeting of the ‘Ensure an effective and efficient infrastructure to meet our priorities’ workstream held on the 16.10.2025 to consider and discuss Pupil Projections. It was AGREED that: - A Pupils Projections report was presented to the ‘Ensure an effective and efficient infrastructure to meet our priorities’ workstream on a yearly basis so that projected surplus or deficits in the County’s Schools could be monitored closely. - Following the publication of data to Welsh Government, that the Learning Communities Overview and Scrutiny Committee public meeting receive a report outlining the current and projected situation in Ceredigion County Council’s primary and secondary schools.
School Transport Policy Consideration was given to the feedback following the meeting of the Members of the three Workstreams (Ensure that local and national priorities are delivered effectively, Ensure equity for all pupils, Ensure an effective and efficient infrastructure to meet our priorities), on 18.09.2025 to consider the current Home to School/ College Transport Policy approved by the Cabinet on 18.05.2021. Members thanked Officers for the opportunity to discuss and consider the Policy at the workstream, albeit bearing in mind that Welsh Government had recently undertaken a consultation which local authorities were awaiting the outcome of. On 18.09.2025, the Workstream agreed to recommend: 1. that the word ‘walking’ be removed from the Policy, and replaced with ‘safest route’, (this change could only be considered after the new WG Learner travel operational guidance has been issued) 2. that if an applicant had a sibling/s in the same school and were in receipt of free school transport, this was taken into consideration, (this would also relate to other children/young people who lived at the same address) 3. that only NEW information may be submitted at appeal stage, and, 4. that the following was taken into consideration when deciding if a pupil was to be allocated free home to school transport and the type of transport provided: - the pupil’s individual needs, social, emotional, educational or medical. - the severity of the pupil/student’s additional learning needs. - whether the pupil/student has serious medical problems, short-term or long-term. - whether the pupil/student has serious difficulty with walking or general mobility difficulties. - the distance to the school/college/placement in relation to the criteria set out above. - whether there were any severe family/personal circumstances which impact on the ability of pupil/student to attend school/college which should be considered. It was also agreed that the Workstreams would discuss and consider the Home to School/College Transport Policy again, once Welsh Government’s new guidance was available. It was AGREED to note the work of the workstreams as presented and recommend to Cabinet for consideration. Pupil Projections Consideration was given to the feedback following the meeting of the ‘Ensure an effective and efficient infrastructure to meet our priorities’ workstream held on the 16.10.2025 to consider and discuss Pupil Projections. It was AGREED that: - A Pupils Projections report was presented to the ‘Ensure an effective and efficient infrastructure to meet our priorities’ workstream on a yearly basis so that projected surplus or deficits in the County’s Schools could be monitored closely. - Following the publication of data to Welsh Government, that the Learning Communities Overview and Scrutiny Committee public meeting receive a report outlining the current and projected situation in Ceredigion County Council’s primary and secondary schools.
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AGREED to note the contents of the Forward Work Programme presented subject to the following: - It was noted that Bethan James, Dyfed Powys Police Schools Service Manager had accepted the invitation to attend a future meeting - An overview of the processes of identifying Additional Learning Needs - Update on the use of mobile phones in schools
It was AGREED to note the contents of the Forward Work Programme presented subject to the following: - It was noted that Bethan James, Dyfed Powys Police Schools Service Manager had accepted the invitation to attend a future meeting - An overview of the processes of identifying Additional Learning Needs - Update on the use of mobile phones in schools
It was AGREED to confirm as a true record the Minutes of the Meeting of the previous meeting held on 10 July 2025. Matters arising: It was suggested that a letter be sent to Dr Catrin Edwards, Mudiad Meithrin’s new Chief Executive to congratulate her on the appointment. It was suggested that an invitation could be extended for her to attend a future meeting.
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.
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Yn rhestru cynghorwyr presennol y cyngor yn unig. Nid yw aelodau cyfetholedig, swyddogion a chyn-gynghorwyr yn cael eu dangos.