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.
RESOLVED That the updates be noted.
RESOLVED That the items outlined within the Forward Work Programme for 2025, be noted.
RESOLVED That ‘Proposed Change to DBS Renewal Period for Members’ be added to the Forward Work Programme for June 2025.
RESOLVED (a) That the Budget Monitoring report for Quarter 3 2024-25 be noted. (b) That the Capital Programme for 2024-25 be noted.
RESOLVED That the Corporate Scorecard data up to January 2025, the Social Services and Housing Directorate Scorecard and the related commentary, be noted.
RESOLVED That the information provided in relation to the performance; capacity and risks of the Procurement and Revenue Services, be noted.
RESOLVED That the update in relation to the Anti-Racist Pembrokeshire County Council Action Plan Notice of Motion be noted.
RESOLVED That the verbal update regarding the Improvement and Transformation Programme Board be noted.
RESOLVED That the draft Minutes of the Partnerships Panel meeting of 11 February 2025 be noted.
Apologies for absence were received from Councillors Steve Alderman, Pat Davies and Thomas Tudor and the Cabinet Member for Education and Welsh Language, Councillor Guy Woodham.
No requests were received.
There were no declarations of interest received.
Moved by Councillor Jonathan Grimes; Seconded by Councillor Steve Yelland. The vote, undertaken by way of a show of hands, was carried. RESOLVED (a) That the English and Welsh Minutes of the meeting held on 21 January 2025 be approved as correct records. [Councillor John Cole abstained from voting as he was not present at that meeting.] (b) That the English and Welsh Minutes of the Extraordinary meeting held on 29 January 2025 be approved as correct records.
Y penderfyniad fel y'i cofnodwyd
RESOLVED That the updates be noted.
The Chair made reference to the action log from the last meeting and commented that it had been pleasing to see that they had all been completed with the exception of one. Clarification was sought from the Cabinet Member for Corporate Finance and Efficiencies regarding the ongoing action, Action One, ‘For the Cabinet Member with responsibility for Corporate Finance and Efficiencies to contact the submitter to discuss the matter further in order to improve future budget consultations’. The Cabinet Member for Corporate Finance and Efficiencies provided an update stating that Democratic Services wrote to the respondent but received no reply but added that the concerns were addressed at all Overview and Scrutiny Committees and also by Full Council and the provided assurance that the points had been taken on board for the next consultation. The Chair welcomed any questions from Members regarding the updates contained within the action log. Councillor Mike Stoddart made reference to Action Three ‘To provide an explanation as to how the cumulative funding gap figure outlined within Appendix D1 was calculated. It was agreed that the explanation would be included within the reports to Cabinet and Council and would be done in time for the upcoming budget seminar’ and stated that whilst it had been confirmed that the word cumulative had been removed from the report, an explanation had not been received. The Cabinet Member for Corporate Finance and Efficiencies stated that an explanation had been provided to Councillor Mike Stoddart via email on 30 January 2025, which would be shared, via Democratic Services, with all Committee Members. Councillor Mike Stoddart requested that any references regarding ‘cumulative funding gap’ be removed from all future reports. Moved by Councillor Michael John; Seconded by Councillor Jonathan Grimes. The vote, undertaken by way of a show of hands, was carried. RESOLVED That the updates be noted.
There were no public submissions or items of correspondence received.
Y penderfyniad fel y'i cofnodwyd
RESOLVED That the items outlined within the Forward Work Programme for 2025, be noted.
The Chair drew the Committee’s attention to the work programme, highlighted the planned items for June and sought suggestions from Members for items they wished to be added to the programme for scrutiny later in the year. With no suggestions being received, Councillor Jonathan Grimes Moved that the work programme be noted; Seconded by Councillor Steve Yelland. The vote, undertaken by way of a show of hands, was carried. RESOLVED That the items outlined within the Forward Work Programme for 2025, be noted.
Y penderfyniad fel y'i cofnodwyd
RESOLVED That ‘Proposed Change to DBS Renewal Period for Members’ be added to the Forward Work Programme for June 2025.
The Committee considered a report by the Head of Democratic Services in relation to a referral from Cabinet regarding proposed changes to DBS renewal periods for Members. The Chair provided some background information on the matter and stated that during consideration of the matter by Cabinet on 13 January 2025 concerns were raised with the proposals so a recommendation was made for the Committee to further explore the best practice and legal requirements around the use of DBS checks for elected Members before returning the matter to Cabinet for a final decision. The Chair requested that when the matter returns to the Committee, that the report includes information on the legal obligations around DBS checks and also some examples of good practice from other Authorities. In line with the constitutional process, Councillor Michael John Moved that the matter be added to the work programme to be considered in June 2025; Seconded by Councillor Mike James. The vote, undertaken by way of a show of hands, was carried. RESOLVED That ‘Proposed Change to DBS Renewal Period for Members’ be added to the Forward Work Programme for June 2025.
Y penderfyniad fel y'i cofnodwyd
RESOLVED (a) That the Budget Monitoring report for Quarter 3 2024-25 be noted. (b) That the Capital Programme for 2024-25 be noted.
The Committee considered a report by the Deputy Chief Finance Officer (Deputy Section 151 Officer) regarding the County Council Budget Monitoring Report for Quarter 3 (Q3) 2024-25, including the Capital Programme. The Cabinet Member with responsibility for Corporate Finance and Efficiencies outlined the main points of the report and highlighted the projected overspend along with the shortfall in the 2024-25 Council Tax collection, at the end of the quarter. It was stated that a £2.1 million shortfall had been concluded which would need to be funded from reserves. It was added that since publication of the agenda, Welsh Government had advised of some underspend in the current financial year which would result in the Authority benefiting from an additional £1.8 million. It was noted that the funds could be used for Social Care overspends which would significantly reduce the funding gap for Q3. Reference was made to the Capital Programme and it was stated that the investment income reported at Q2 had remained unchanged at £3.9 million. The pressures included within the revenue budget monitoring report were outlined with it being noted that the number of schools falling into deficit budgets was increasing. Details of the underspends and overspends were highlighted and it was stated that following approval of the 2025-26 budget, with a significant amount of money being invested into bids, that some of the demands within the system may be able to be curbed. Reference was made to the ongoing work of the Council Tax Working Group which included consideration of reduced Council Tax rates for Foster Carers, to assist with growing the amount of Foster Carers within the County and limiting placements having to be sought out of County. The Director of Resources added that in 2024-25 a moratorium was put in place on non-essential expenditure which throughout the year was expanded to review all recruitment and which had been instrumental in addressing the challenges and had assisted in reducing the predicted overspend. The Committee debated the contents of the reports and the key points were highlighted as follows: · The Chair expressed his support for the planned investment in the prevention agenda, commenting that the work undertaken as part of the Invest to Save would be a welcomed approach. · Further information was sought on the challenge that the Authority would be faced with in relation to Teacher pay, to which the Cabinet Member with responsibility for Corporate Finance and Efficiencies stated that it was not clear whether the pressure would be a one-off grant or if Welsh Government would be adding it into the Aggregate External Finance (AEF) allocation for future years. · Councillor Mike James made reference to funding which was due to be allocated by Welsh Government for highways and requested an update regarding receipt of the funding. The Cabinet Member with responsibility for Corporate Finance and Efficiencies confirmed that whilst funding would be received, it was not year clear how it would be split between Local Authorities; however, provided assurance that more information would be shared when possible. · Following on from points made earlier in the meeting in relation to the investment in the prevention agenda, the Chief Executive drew Members’ attention to page 83 of the agenda pack, which provided details on some, but not all, of the initiatives that would be funded as part of the prevention agenda and stated that a full report on the matter could be brought to the Committee in due course. · In response to further information being sought by Councillor Michael Williams, the Chief Executive outlined the membership and purpose of the Officer run, Corporate Asset Management Board and stated that he would be happy to share the terms of reference. Following concern raised by Councillor Williams regarding the lack of democratic accountability and involvement, it was stated that the Board had no elected Member involvement as it was not a decision making Board. It was agreed that enquiries would be made with the Monitoring Office as to whether the definition of a Board in the Council’s Constitution, or legally, implied a certain level of decision making, and if the title of the Board may need to be adapted. · Councillor Mike Stoddart made reference to the Invest to Save agenda and queried when business cases would be created and when the proposed savings would be able to be made. In response, the Cabinet Member with responsibility for Corporate Finance and Efficiencies stated that timescales were not yet known but provided assurance that updates would be reported back to the relevant scrutiny Committees when possible. · In response to a number of points raised by Councillor Jonathan Grimes regarding specific details of Capital Scheme projects, it was agreed that he would re-direct the questions to the Regeneration Team for answers outside of the meeting. · Councillor Brian Hall made reference to the last meeting of the Asset Management Group, where it was stated that some Council owned properties and parcels of land would be advertised for the public to bid for at the end of February 2025, and an update on that matter was requested. Moved by Councillor Michael John; Seconded by Councillor Jonathan Grimes The vote, undertaken by way of a show of hands, was carried. RESOLVED (a) That the Budget Monitoring report for Quarter 3 2024-25 be noted. (b) That the Capital Programme for 2024-25 be noted.
Y penderfyniad fel y'i cofnodwyd
RESOLVED That the Corporate Scorecard data up to January 2025, the Social Services and Housing Directorate Scorecard and the related commentary, be noted.
The Committee considered a report by the Assistant Chief Executive on Performance Measurement Quarterly Monitoring. The Cabinet Member with responsibility for Corporate Improvement and Communities outlined the main areas of the report and drew Members’ attention to the commentary included within. Councillor Mike James made reference to the Carers Partnership Board, highlighted the important role that Carers play within communities and for the Council and Health Board and queried if it could be mentioned within the data. The Corporate Planning Manager lost connection so it was agreed that the request would be made through the action log. The Chair expressed thanks on behalf of the Committee to Officers who had worked to collate the data for the Committee. Moved by Councillor Michael John; Seconded by Councillor Steve Yelland. The vote, undertaken by way of a show of hands, was carried. RESOLVED That the Corporate Scorecard data up to January 2025, the Social Services and Housing Directorate Scorecard and the related commentary, be noted.
Y penderfyniad fel y'i cofnodwyd
RESOLVED That the information provided in relation to the performance; capacity and risks of the Procurement and Revenue Services, be noted.
The Committee considered a report by the Head of Procurement and Revenue Services regarding the services. The Chair welcomed the Head of Procurement and Revenue Services, the Revenues and Benefits Manager and the two Category Managers to the meeting to assist with questions. The Chair advised that to streamline scrutiny, the two services would be discussed separately, with the Procurement update being taken first. The Cabinet Member with responsibility for Corporate Finance and Efficiencies outlined the Procurement Service update stating that the service was currently delivering the Procurement Strategy for 2023-2027, in line with the new Procurement Act, which took effect from February 2025. Reference was made to the new legislation, and it was stated that training was currently being delivered across the Authority with a Members’ seminar planned for later in the year. The Procurement Service team structure was outlined, and it was stated that due to savings measures the size of the team had reduced over time. The Head of Procurement and Revenue Services added that the Procurement Service Key Performance Indictors (KPI’s) were pleasing, meaning that the level of spend within the Authority complied with the contract procedural standards and added that opportunities would continue to be given to local suppliers where possible. It was stated that the Council’s Contract Procedure Rules had recently been amended to reflect the new legislation. The reduction in team members was highlighted and it was stated that the reduction had led to the Service Level Agreement with Pembrokeshire College having to be discontinued, which was stated to be disappointing. The Committee discussed the Procurement service update and the key points were highlighted as follows: · The Chair made reference to a number of staff within the team who were currently undertaking qualifications and sought further information. In response, the Head of Procurement and Revenue Services confirmed that three Officers were currently studying for their professional qualifications in order to carry out the role. It was confirmed that having Officers in training was not a risk to the Authority, as they were overseen and mentored by the Category Managers. The Chair passed on his best wishes to the trainee Officers in successfully obtaining their professional qualifications. · In response to an update sought by the Chair, the Head of Procurement and Revenue Services advised that the National Procurement Service has ceased. · Councillor Mike James made reference to the Category Management and Spend Analysis for Highways and Corporate and queried if school transport costs were included within the Passenger Transport Services total. In response the Procurement Officer confirmed that it was and advised that she would circulate a breakdown following the meeting. The Cabinet Member with responsibility for Corporate Finance and Efficiencies outlined the Revenue service update highlighting the range of matters the service covered which due to the nature of the services bring with them a high level of public demand. Reference was made to collection rates of Council Tax, and it was noted that whilst it was getting increasingly harder to collect payments, the team was collecting the highest ever amount of Council Tax in value alongside recovering arrears where possible. It was highlighted that the holiday lets legislation regarding the 182 day rule was creating additional demand for the team with properties moving into Council Tax from Business Rates. Rent arrears were highlighted with it being stated that collection of rent payments was also a challenge, however due to the migration of housing benefit to universal credit, a decline in casework had been experienced by the Benefits and Welfare Advice Service. The KPI’s and risks were outlined and a range of factors being used to assist with improvement were highlighted. The Head of Procurement and Revenue Services stated that Revenue Services was a very busy service, of which a restructure was undertaken in 2024 to assist with future demands. The pressure on staff was highlighted and it was stated that the use of technology was increasing to streamline and simplify processes for the small teams. The Committee discussed the Revenue Service update and the key points were highlighted as follows: · Councillor Michael Williams sought further clarification as to whether Benefits Advisors were still employed within the Authority, to which the Head of Procurement and Revenue Services stated that they were not as the posts had been removed as part of savings measures some years ago. However, it was stated that the Authority had an externally funded benefits team for Cancer related benefits advice, funded by Macmillan. · Following concerns raised by Councillor Michael Williams regarding downward trends of KPI’s in some areas, the Head of Procurement and Revenue Services stated that most of the trends were a knock-on effect of COVID. It was stated that during that time, recovery action for arrears was halted so recovery of the backlog of funds was still ongoing and causing a spike in arrears. The situation had also been worsened by a large number of properties that had moved from Business Rates into Council Tax so had been subject of back dated Council Tax bills alongside the Second Home Premium going back to April 2023, which had resulted in many being faced with large bills. Assurance was given that work was ongoing with customers, with repayment plans being agreed. · The Chair made reference to a service which had been previously recommended to assist people in finding out if they were eligible for additional financial support, and further information was sought on that service. The Revenues and Benefits Manager advised that it was a support line provided by Welsh Government. It was added that the Authority had dedicated Financial Support Officers for tenants who provided support in relation to obtaining any relevant benefits, arrears, completion of Council Tax reduction forms, and general maintenance of tenancies. · The Revenues and Benefits Manager provided an update on new software which the Authority was in the process of obtaining through a pilot scheme called the ‘Low Income Family Tracker (LIFT) which was being funded by Social Services and Housing. It was stated that once the adequate data had been entered, the software would create a dashboard which would identify people who may be entitled to pension credit and were not currently claiming and those people would be contacted. The platform would also be able to identify Council Tax and Housing arrears, and it was stated that further information on the provision would be circulated when possible. · Following an observation being made by Councillor Steve Yelland of a clear reduction in people visiting the County Hall cash desk to pay Council Tax bills, it was stated that since COVID the use of the Post Office to pay Council Tax and Council rent had increased and a reduction of visitors to the cash desk had been experienced. The Chair thanked the Procurement and Revenue Services staff for their continued dedicated work. Moved by Councillor Michael John; Seconded by Councillor Steve Yelland. The vote, undertaken by way of a show of hands, was carried. RESOLVED That the information provided in relation to the performance; capacity and risks of the Procurement and Revenue Services, be noted.
Y penderfyniad fel y'i cofnodwyd
RESOLVED That the update in relation to the Anti-Racist Pembrokeshire County Council Action Plan Notice of Motion be noted.
The Committee considered a report by the Director of Education containing an update in relation to the Pembrokeshire County Council Anti-Racist Action Plan. On behalf of the Cabinet Member for Education and Welsh Language who had sent apologies, the Director of Education outlined the main points of the report stating that it reflected the work that had been undertaken over the course of the last year as a result of the Notice of Motion submitted by Councillor Tom Tudor. There were no questions raised by Members. Moved by Councillor Michael John; Seconded by Councillor Mike James. The vote, undertaken by way of a show of hands, was carried. RESOLVED That the update in relation to the Anti-Racist Pembrokeshire County Council Action Plan Notice of Motion be noted.
Y penderfyniad fel y'i cofnodwyd
RESOLVED That the verbal update regarding the Improvement and Transformation Programme Board be noted.
The Cabinet Member with responsibility for Corporate Improvement and Communities provided Members with the following verbal update in relation to the Improvement and Transformation Programme Board. It was stated that the Transformation and Improvement Programme Board was established in 2017-18 when there was a lot of low hanging fruit, lots of quick wins and whilst it did not feel easy at the time, there had undoubtedly been huge change across the Authority in this time. It was recognised that it was currently very difficult to be working in Local Government as an Officer or an Elected Member, constantly battling a narrative of increasing taxes and services reducing and it was noted that achieving transformational change was becoming harder. It was recognised that the programme had stalled over the last six months but for clarity it was stated that the Board was not a decision making body, but more of an opportunity for Members to have an oversight of the programme. It was stated that the transformation strategy was currently being refreshed with work ongoing with the Chief Executive and Senior Officers. A name change had been made from the ‘Transformation Programme’ to ‘Corporate Improvement’ with the focus being shifted to align with the Audit Wales recommendations to ensure that the Authority had the required governance in place. It was added that although budgetary challenges were an ongoing issue, the focus would remain on governance, customer focus, people and organisational culture, digital data and technology along with solutions to assist with the prevention agenda and communities. A brief update was provided on the ongoing Vanguard work and assurance was given that whilst the Board had not met for some time, work was still ongoing in the background whilst being mindful of the budgetary challenges. Following the verbal update, the Chair queried if the new arrangements would still include a Programme Board to which the Cabinet Member with responsibility for Corporate Improvement and Communities stated that specific arrangement discussions were still ongoing, of which suggestions were welcomed, but expressed that it was important for there to be a forum for Members and Officers to work collaboratively and have oversight of the programme. In response to a question raised by Councillor Steve Yelland, the Cabinet Member with responsibility for Corporate Improvement and Communities stated that he believed the LIFT platform was being launched at the poverty summit in April and that further correspondence would be circulated when possible. Moved by Councillor Michael John; Seconded by Councillor Jonathan Grimes The vote, undertaken by way of a show of hands, was carried. RESOLVED That the verbal update regarding the Improvement and Transformation Programme Board be noted.
Y penderfyniad fel y'i cofnodwyd
RESOLVED That the draft Minutes of the Partnerships Panel meeting of 11 February 2025 be noted.
The Committee considered a report by the Chair of the Partnerships Panel containing the Minutes of the Partnerships Panel meeting of 11 February 2025. The Chair advised that whilst the report was in his name, the Cabinet Member with responsibility for Corporate Improvement and Communities, (Chair of the Public Services Board) was also in attendance to assist with any questions. The Chair outlined the topics which were considered at the meeting and stated that a number of items had been agreed to be added to the work programme, which would be considered at the next Panel meeting in September. Moved by Councillor Steve Yelland; Seconded by Councillor Jonathan Grimes. The vote, undertaken by way of a show of hands, was carried. RESOLVED That the draft Minutes of the Partnerships Panel meeting of 11 February 2025 be noted.
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.