34,873 items
RESOLVED (a) That the Forward Work Programme for 2026-27 be endorsed. (b) That the programme remains a live document, subject to amendment to reflect emerging risks, regulatory changes and Committee requirements.
RESOLVED that pursuant to Paragraph 13 of Part 4 of Schedule 12A of The Local Government Act 1972, the public be excluded from the meeting during consideration of the following items as the reports contained exempt information and the outcome of the public interest test in these matters was that: “The reports contained personal information relating to the applicants. Although disclosure would support transparency and accountability, the public interest in maintaining confidentiality outweighed the public interest in disclosure because of the need to protect the identities of the applicants and their families”.
Decided: The minute records that decisions be recorded as shown on the Planning Applications Schedule in Appendix A. It also authorises the Planning and Development Manager to draft any amendments to, or additional conditions on, those decisions.
Decided: The Committee made five recommendations. It asked officers to wait for the Welsh Government review of the school funding formula before reviewing free school meal funding in Torfaen. It asked that support on the new Healthy Eating in Schools Regulations be offered to all schools, and that clear messages on portion sizes go to parents and pupils. It also asked for better information on free school meal entitlement, and for the Executive Member to ask Estyn about checking meal quality in inspections.
RESOLVED to exclude the public for the following item of business on the grounds that there would be disclosure to them of exempt information under category 1 of The Local Authorities (Access to Information) (Variation) (Wales) Order 2007).
Decided: Members noted that the current scrutiny cycle had ended. They noted that the 2026/27 work programme will be developed after the Annual General Meeting confirms membership and meeting dates.
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 paragraph 12 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 minutes of the meeting of the Senior Employment Committee held on 11 March, 2026 be approved and signed as a correct record.
Resolved that: Grant the variation with the supply of alcohol OFF the premises only and opening hours of Monday to Sunday 7am to 11pm, subject to a number of conditions
RESOLVED that the minutes of the meeting held on the 1st April 2026 [10:00am] be signed as a correct record
RESOLVED that the minutes of the meeting held on the 1st April 2026 [10:10am] be signed as a correct record
RESOLVED that the minutes of the meeting held on the 1st April 2026 [10:20am] be signed as a correct record.
Decided: The Committee confirmed its future programme of work, as set out in Appendix 1 to the report, with the inclusions and amendments agreed at the meeting. The next meeting is on 11 June 2026. The recruitment, retention and workforce planning item has moved to July. Findings on the review of the waste and recycling roll-out will not be ready until autumn, because the Task and Finish Group (a small group set up to examine one issue in depth) has not finished its work.
Decided: The Committee acknowledged the progress made since November 2025 on the cloud-based Planning IT system. It supported the measures being considered to strengthen project management when buying and introducing critical ICT systems in future. It asked for a further report in twelve months on how well the new Planning IT system is working, on possible new technology, and on how well the project management measures are working.
Decided: The Committee received the Corporate Risk Register summary. It acknowledged the reinstatement of Risk 48 (recruitment and retention). It supported a change to the reporting schedule, with two full reviews a year in March and September instead of four light updates. It supported the actions agreed after the November 2025 Internal Audit review of the risk management strategy, including a timeline to review the strategy at least every three years. It noted that a full-day Senior Leadership Team (SLT) workshop in June was likely to lead to significant revision of the register.
Decided: The Committee confirmed that it had read, understood and taken account of the Well-being Impact Assessment. Subject to its observations, it supported the steps taken so far, after consultation with all stakeholders, to buy a new Digital Services Platform and customer relationship management (CRM) system.
Decided: The Committee recommended that a robust set of measures be developed with HDRC colleagues to inform any future decision on continuing the pre-birth service beyond its two-year grant. Members welcomed the introduction of the pre-birth service, Crystal Pathways.
Decided: Cabinet accepted that there were no objections to report, and agreed to move to the decision notification stage. This stage must happen within 7 days of the decision, under the Welsh Government School Organisation Code (2018, version 2). The minute records this as Option 1.
Decided: Cabinet accepted the outturn report (a report on the outcome of the earlier process), the associated documents and the course of action, including proceeding to Statutory Notice (a formal public notice that a school change is being proposed). The minute records this as Option 1. Councillor J.C. Morgan declared an interest and took no part.
RESOLVED that the decisions be accepted as a true record of proceedings.
AGREED the decisions be accepted as a true record of proceedings.
Decided: The committee agreed to accept and note the findings of the Audit Wales report. It also agreed that the council's management response (its written reply to the recommendations) addresses the recommendations.
Decided: Councillor W Lewis was elected Presiding Officer. Councillor Ann Crimmings was appointed Leader of the Council. Councillor K Morgan was confirmed as Leader of the Opposition. The outgoing Leader, Councillor A Morgan OBE, stepped down from the role.
Decided: Council noted the Cabinet members and their portfolios, as set out in the Leader's Scheme of Delegation 3A, which was emailed to Members during the meeting.
Decided: Council adopted the scheme for allocating seats to political groups under Section 15 of the Local Government and Housing Act 1989. It authorised the Service Director to make appointments to politically balanced bodies once groups notify their choices. It allocated notices of motion for 2026-2027: Labour Group 12, Plaid Cymru Group 3, RCT Independent Group 2, Conservative Group 1 and Independent Group 2.
Decided: Council appointed 14 committees: Planning and Development (11 members), Licensing (11), Appointments (5), Appeals (5), Overview and Scrutiny (14), Education & Inclusion Services Scrutiny (14), Community Services Scrutiny (14), Climate Change, Frontline Services & Prosperity Scrutiny (14), Governance & Audit (6), Democratic Services (21), Standards (2), Constitution (8), Pension Fund (5), and the Cwm Taf Morgannwg Public Services Board Joint Overview and Scrutiny Committee (6).
Decided: Council appointed: Planning and Development, Chair R Williams, Vice Chair J Smith. Licensing, Chair A S Fox, Vice Chair G Stacey. Appointments, Chair M Webber BEM, Vice Chair B Stephens. Appeals committee, Chair J Brencher, Vice Chair N Morgan. Pension Fund, Chair J Smith, Vice Chair T Leyshon. Democratic Services, Chair W Jones, Vice Chair M Webber BEM. Overview & Scrutiny, Chair J Edwards, Vice Chair R Lewis. Community Services Scrutiny, Chair L Tomkinson, Vice Chair T Williams. Climate Change, Frontline Services & Prosperity Scrutiny, Chair C Middle, Vice Chair W Hughes. Council noted recommendations on which chair roles should receive a senior salary under the Annual Remuneration Report 2026-2027, but the minute does not list them. Council noted that the schedule of remuneration must be published and sent to Democracy and Boundary Commission Cymru by 31 July 2026.
Decided: Council appointed: Local Education Authority Governors (Appointments) Committee (5 members): S Rees, G Stacey, J Edwards, J Brencher and Sera Evans (4 Labour, 1 Plaid Cymru). Voluntary Early Retirement/Redundancy Panel (5 members): M Webber BEM, M Ashford, J Bonetto, G O Jones and D Grehan (4 Labour, 1 Plaid Cymru). Joint Consultative Committee (4 members): A Crimmings, M Webber BEM, S Rees and G Caple.
Decided: Outside bodies: Age Concern Cymru, G Caple. Consortium Local Authority Wales (C.L.A.W.), R Davis. Cynon Valley Indoor Bowls Committee, A Morgan OBE. Edward Thomas Charity (4), R Lewis, R Williams, A S Fox and A Dennis. Joint Council for Wales (2), M Webber BEM and C Leyshon. The Alliance (3), G Jones, G Warren and M Maohoub. Tower Site Liaison Committee (3), L Addiscott, S Emanuel and K Morgan. Welsh Local Government Association (5), A Crimmings, M Webber BEM, S Rees, C Leyshon and M Norris. Trivallis (3-year term), C Middle. Business in Focus (3-year term), M Norris. Strategic Reference Group (Cwm Taf Morgannwg Health Board), G Caple. Welsh Centre for International Affairs (to 2029), S Emanuel. Welsh Books (to 2027), S Rees. Non-executive joint committees: Bannau Brycheiniog National Park (NPA), A Rogers. South Wales Police Crime Panel (2), W Treeby and M Maohoub. Cwm Taf Morgannwg Community Health Council (3), M Ashford, J Bonetto and K Morgan.
Decided: Council nominated: Governance & Audit Sub-Committee, W Lewis. Regional Transport Sub-Committee, L Addiscott. Strategic Development Sub-Committee, M Norris.