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The decisions as the council's minutes record them. A plain-language summary follows once it has been written.
RESOLVED That the updated Records Management Policy be endorsed.
RESOLVED That the report be endorsed.
RESOLVED That the Annual Report 2021-22 be endorsed prior to consideration by Council.
RESOLVED That the Finance Panel be continued and that the Membership be as follows: Councillor Joshua Beynon Councillor Simon Hancock Councillor Elwyn Morse Councillor Aled Thomas Councillor Michael Williams
The following declarations were made: In respect of Item 7 – Rights of Way Improvement Plan, Councillor Elwyn Morse declared a personal and prejudicial interest, by virtue of a Rights of Way footpath that crossed his land that was currently subject to a major public safety concern involving network rail. He confirmed that he would withdraw from the meeting at when that item was discussed. In respect of Item 5 – West Wales Care Partnership’s Dementia Strategy, Councillor Joshua Beynon declared a personal interest by virtue of his employment at Hywel Dda University Health Board
Moved by Councillor Joshua Beynon; Seconded by Councillor Steve Yelland The vote, by way of show of hands, was carried. RESOLVED That the Minutes of the Meeting held on 28 June 2022 be approved as a correct record.
No public submission/correspondence were received.
The Chairman advised the Committee that Item 6 – Record Management Policy would be considered next.
Decision as recorded
RESOLVED That the updated Records Management Policy be endorsed.
The Cabinet Member for Corporate Improvement and Communities introduced the Recordss Management Policy outlining the recommendation, which was for the Committee to consider and endorse the updated Records Management Policy prior to it being presented to Cabinet for approval. The Interim Data Protection Officer presented the report for the consideration of the Committee highlighting that the policy had been updated in line with UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018. In considering the updated Record Management Strategy the following key points were highlighted: · In response to a query from Councillor Di Clements on retention timescales, the Interim Data Protection Officer, provided further detail on the current Retention Policy. It was noted that there was a plan to refresh the Retention Policy once the Record Management Policy had been fully approved. · Councillor Di Clements further commented that it would be helpful to have more guidance for Members on the retention of information, with the Director of Resources suggesting that there should be a separate retention schedule and guidance produced for Members. · Councillor Simon Hancock highlighted the extensive interactions between health and social care on a daily basis and referred to the work of the Caldicott Guardians. He queried what interfaces there were between the Authority and Health Board Caldicott Guardians in terms of sharing best practice. The Interim Data Protection Officer clarified that the Director of Social Services and Housing was the Authorities’ Caldicott Guardian and would find out that information. · The Interim Data Protection Officer responded to a query from Councillor Elwyn Morse on digitisation and disposal of records. He advised that the Authority were looking to digitise records and referred to an ongoing project to digitise all the Housing records, with Property also looking at similar record management digitisation. It was noted that once a disposal date was reached then those records would be destroyed. · Councillor Di Clements queried the process of digitisation and whether both paper and digital copies were kept. The Interim Data Protection Officer gave the example of Housing and advised that where new records were created that was now being done digitally; however, there were historic paper records which were being scanned digitally to enable more efficient document searches, with it noted that once scanned the paper files were destroyed. · Councilor Michael Williams referred to some confidential documents, which had previously been found in an unsecure location and sought assurance that all the documents had been sourced and in the possession of the Authority. The Interim Data Protection Officer advised that as far as he was aware all services had sent their paper records to the Records Management Unit. · The Cabinet Member for Residents' Services and Leisure stated that he held responsibility for the Archives as part of his portfolio and the Director of Resources responded to a query from him on business resilience and continuity with digital data outlining the security measures in place for digital data. The Chairman in conclusion highlighted Councillor Di Clements earlier comments about more guidance for Members, which the Director of Resources had noted. Moved by Councillor Joshua Beynon; Seconded by Councillor Di Clements The vote, by way of show of hands, was carried. RESOLVED That the updated Records Management Policy be endorsed.
The Chairman addressed the Committee and advised that there had been some technical issues and representatives from Hywel Dda University Health Board were unable to attend. It was agreed that the item would be deferred until the November Meeting.
Decision as recorded
RESOLVED That the report be endorsed.
[Having previously declared a personal and prejudicial in this item Councillor Elywn Morse withdrew from the meeting.] At this point in the Meeting Councillor Aled Thomas and Councillor Di Clements both declared a personal interest in this item by virtue of having land that had public footpaths. The Cabinet Member for Residents' Services and Leisure introduced the Rights of Way Improvement Plan report before bringing in the Definitive Map Officer to present and outline the key points of the report. In considering the Rights of Way Improvement Plan, the key points were highlighted as follows: · Councillor Di Clements referred to enforcement and planning rules in terms of building on a public right of way and that the diversion should occur before the building. The Definitive Map Officer highlighted that there were some historic planning problems; however, he highlighted that current procedure was that any impact on a Right of Way was now considered as part of the Planning process. · There was a query from Councillor Di Clements about usage data and whether due to the financial challenges, the Authority should be concentrating on Rights of Way that were used the most and of the most benefit. She also referred to the increase in material costs and asked whether we could use recycled materials. The Definitive Map Officer advised that it would be the Countryside Access Team who administer the budget for site materials and what routes to open. He highlighted the challenge of dealing with a definitive map created in the 1950s, with a large network and a limited budget. It was noted that Welsh Government expect 100% of the network to be available for public use, which the Definitive Map Officer advised was not possible. He concluded by stating would get more information for when the matter was reported back to the Committee. · The Director of Community Services highlighted that one of objectives of the plan was to engage more with communities and user groups as part of improvement work. He advised that there was a significant gap between the resource available and the scale of network, however, there was a healthy level of support that were received from groups that the Authority work with across the county. · In response to a query from the Chairman, on accessibility in the Rights of Way Improvement, Plan the Definitive Map Officer advised that decision on budget on improvements were dealt with by the Countryside Access Team, although stated that the Authority should be looking at making improvements for accessibility where possible. · The Chairman queried how the Authority engage with Town and Community Councils and other organisations to support the work in conjuncture with the Pembrokeshire Coast National Park Authority. The Development Plans and Conservation Manager in response outlined the work of the ‘Cleddau Reaches’ green infrastructure project, which was a good example of a partnership model. · In response to a query from Councillor Di Clements on shared paths and budget implications the Director of Community Services clarified that shared paths came out of the Highways Budget. He highlighted that the Authority had been successful in accessing grant money for improvements and increasing the use of shared paths, although highlighted the legacy issue of long-term maintenance. It was noted this was an area to report back on. The Definitive Map Officer confirmed that a report would come back early next year to include further detailed information picking up the points made by Members, which included budget, maintenance and usage data. The Committee agreed for the item to be reported back early next year. Moved by Councillor Joshua Beynon; Seconded by Councillor Di Clements The vote, undertaken by way of a show of hands, was carried. RESOLVED That the report be endorsed.
Decision as recorded
RESOLVED That the Annual Report 2021-22 be endorsed prior to consideration by Council.
The Chair introduced the Head of Democratic Services who presented the Overview and Scrutiny Annual Report 2021 – 22 to the Committee. The Head of Democratic Services advised Members that the report would be brought to Committee earlier in the future and that this delay had been due to the election duties. It was noted that each Overview and Scrutiny Committee had the opportunity to review the report prior to consideration by Council and Members were invited for any views/feedback. The Chairman highlighted that he believed the hybrid approach following the pandemic worked well. He also made reference to a Timing of Meetings report that had been considered by Council suggesting that the Committee could pilot changing the time of the Meeting in the new year following liaison with Committee Members to look at a more flexible approach. Councillor Michael Williams commented that Overview and Scrutiny Committees needed to ensure were more specific and focused on areas of concern. Moved by Councillor Joshua Beynon; Seconded by Councillor Di Clements The vote, undertaken by way of a show of hands was carried. RESOLVED That the Annual Report 2021-22 be endorsed prior to consideration by Council.
Decision as recorded
RESOLVED That the Finance Panel be continued and that the Membership be as follows: Councillor Joshua Beynon Councillor Simon Hancock Councillor Elwyn Morse Councillor Aled Thomas Councillor Michael Williams
The Chairman presented the report of the Finance Panel, which outlined the remit and role of the Finance Panel and asked Members to consider whether to continue with the Finance Panel. He highlighted that he had spoken to both the Director of Resources and the Cabinet Member for Corporate Finance, who had both highlighted that they supported the continuance of the Finance Panel. The consensus of the Members was that the work of the Finance Panel should continue, with a number of Members expressing an interest in being on the Membership of the Panel. The Chairman clarified that no previous financial experience was required to become a Member of the Finance Panel. Moved by Councillor Simon Hancock; Seconded by Councillor Michael Williams The vote, by way of show of hands, was carried. RESOLVED That the Finance Panel be continued and that the Membership be as follows: Councillor Joshua Beynon Councillor Simon Hancock Councillor Elwyn Morse Councillor Aled Thomas Councillor Michael Williams
The Committee considered the Forward Work Programme for 2022-23 with it noted that the deferred Dementia Strategy Item would be added to the forward work programme for November. The Chairman provided an update, on his liaison with Cabinet Members on prospective items for the forward work programme, advising that he would keep Members informed of any developments.
Councillors must say when they have a personal link to something being discussed, such as a job, a property or a family member. A prejudicial interest is one strong enough that the councillor usually leaves the room and takes no part.
Declarations are read from the minutes once they are published.
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