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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 Action Log be approved.
RESOLVED That the Forward Work Programme be approved with the following amendments noted: a) That the update from Citizens Advice Bureau – Pembrokeshire also include Ceredigion due to the support provided in the North of the County: and b) That the Domestic Violence/Abuse update be presented in January 2026.
RESOLVED That the report on the work undertaken be noted.
RESOLVED That the report and the transition that had been undertaken following the closure of the Anchorage Day Centre be noted.
RESOLVED That the current position in relation to residential placements for Pembrokeshire children, and the pressures associated with the demand for these placements, along with plans in place to try and mitigate for these pressures, particularly in light of Welsh Government’s ‘not for profit’ agenda be noted.
RESOLVED That the work and activities taking place related to homelessness and housing support in fulfilment of the Council’s statutory functions contained within the Housing (Wales) Act 2014 (Part 2), and Housing Support Programme activities aimed at preventing homelessness be noted.
RESOLVED That the current and planned activity taking place within Children’s Services along with current demand and resource pressures on the service be noted.
RESOLVED That the Overview and Scrutiny Annual Report 2024-25 be endorsed, prior to consideration by Council. The Chair thanked everyone for taking part in the meeting and continuing to conduct the meeting through the medium of Welsh.
Moved by Councillor Mike James; Seconded by Councillor Steve Alderman. The vote, undertaken by way of a show of hands, was carried. RESOLVED That Councillor Claire George be elected as Vice-Chair for the ensuing Municipal Year.
The following Declarations of Interest were received: Item 8: Llais Councillor David Bryan declared a Personal interest by virtue of being a volunteer with Llais. Councillor Maureen Bowen declared a Personal interest by virtue of being a Council Representative with Llais.
Moved by Councillor Steve Alderman; Seconded by Councillor Claire George. The vote, undertaken by way of a show of hands, was carried. RESOLVED That the Minutes of the meeting held on 3 April 2025, be approved as a correct record in both English and Welsh subject to the following amendments: a) That Natasha Fox – Chief Officer, Advocacy West Wales attendance be recorded under External to the Authority; and b) That the Meeting ended at 1.58p.m be recorded in English on the English Minutes.
Decision as recorded
RESOLVED That the Action Log be approved.
The Chair presented the Action Log to the Committee advising on the updates. The Director of Social Care and Housing advised that no date had been set for the visit to the VC Gallery but committed to ensuring this was arranged at the earliest opportunity. The Chair highlighted the work undertaken for Unpaid Carers and the need to ensure rural Unpaid and working Unpaid Carers were included. He further noted that the Commissioner for Social Care would be attending the Pembrokeshire County Show which would provide an opportunity to deliver information direct to the farming and rural community. Moved by Councillor Claire George; Seconded by Councillor Mike James. The vote, undertaken by way of a show of hands, was carried. RESOLVED That the Action Log be approved.
There were no items of public submission/correspondence received.
Decision as recorded
RESOLVED That the Forward Work Programme be approved with the following amendments noted: a) That the update from Citizens Advice Bureau – Pembrokeshire also include Ceredigion due to the support provided in the North of the County: and b) That the Domestic Violence/Abuse update be presented in January 2026.
The Chair presented the Forward Work Programme to the Committee advising that no referrals had been received. In response to a question from Councillor Cormack regarding the Neath Port Talbot Academics, the Director of Social Care and Housing advised that a written report would be provided. He further explained that the Academics report will be on practice and thresholds at the front door of Children’s services. The Director of Social Care and Housing explained that approval had been received from Cabinet to use an element of the Authority’s Reserves to invest in the O-25 Prevention Agenda and the advocacy networks in the County. The intention was to create a parental advocacy network as has been done in the Neath Port Talbot Authority. Councillor Alistair Cameron Alec Cormack [amended by Minute 13 – 11.9.25] agreed that it would be useful to receive a verbal report to supplement the written report and the Director of Social Care and Housing agreed to report that back to the Academics. The Chair suggested a seminar could take place to inform all Members of the future of this topic. In response to a question from Councillor Claire George regarding the collaborative communications, the Director of Social Care and Housing advised that this was designed to ensure that Professionals’ and Officers’ time was utilised as efficiently and effectively as possible by ensuring collaboration between partnerships and agencies. The collaborative communications programme had been developed with Social Care Wales. Councillor George further highlighted that Poverty was also included on the Forward Work Programmes of the Policy and Pre-Decision Overview and Scrutiny Committee and the Public Services Board and Partnerships Panel; and the Chair agreed to review this to ensure the appropriate scrutiny was given. In response to a question from Councillor Mike James regarding an update from the Citizens Advice Bureau Pembrokeshire in 2026, the Chair agreed that Citizens Advice Bureau Ceredigion would also be included as they provided a lot of support to the North of the County. This would also include an understanding of how money is spent and how people were using the service. In response to a question from Councillor Maureen Bowen regarding the Domestic Violence and Abuse item in 2026, the Chair agreed that a date would be fixed for January 2026. The Chair requested that all Members of the Committee review the last 12 months of the work undertaken by the Committee and advise of any updates or additional items for scrutiny. Moved by Councillor Claire George; Seconded by Councillor Steve Alderman. The vote, undertaken by way of a show of hands, was carried. RESOLVED That the Forward Work Programme be approved with the following amendments noted: a) That the update from Citizens Advice Bureau – Pembrokeshire also include Ceredigion due to the support provided in the North of the County: and b) That the Domestic Violence/Abuse update be presented in January 2026.
Decision as recorded
RESOLVED That the report on the work undertaken be noted.
The Chair welcomed the Llais Regional Director, West Wales Region to the meeting to present an update on the work of Llais to the Committee. She advised that this was their second year of operations following the dissolution of the Community Health Councils in April 2023. The Regional Director explained that they were working hard to engage everyone; however, noted that the three Counties all had a very different approach. Llais were actively visiting as many communities as possible attending community events and cafes to reach as many as possible to understand their experiences of Social Care. The Regional Director discussed their recent visit to a GP Surgery in Pembrokeshire following discussions within the community highlighting the difficulties in obtaining appointments. They had now visited patients in the surgery and were arranging a meeting with the Surgery to discuss the concerns and to work on a way to resolve this. It was noted that the Health Board had advised of changes in nine key clinical services with drop-in meetings and the Regional Director advised of their attendance at these meetings to ensure engagement and consultation with residents. She highlighted that engagement and direct participation was paramount to collect the information and view of residents. The Committee then discussed the report and the following key points were noted. Councillor David Bryan noted the excellent presentation highlighting his work as a volunteer with Llais and formerly the Community Health Council. In response to a question from Councillor Claire George regarding how the learning is influencing change, the Regional Director advised that change took time. They were actively listening to residents and making representations to relevant bodies presenting the concerns of residents. The Regional Director referred to a case of change that had come about when a homeless patient with a speech defect was struggling to get access to GP Services. Reception staff thought he was agitated or drunk; however, following discussions with the Health Borad, a working group was put together and there were now 80+ trained staff ensuring those with speech difficulties are supported. The Regional Director highlighted that many residents were not aware of the Health Board’s consultation and the Chair requested that all Members promote the consultation as much as possible. The Chair then thanked the Llais Regional Director, West Wales Region for their excellent report and thanked all of their team and volunteers. Moved by Councillor Mike James; Seconded by Councillor Claire George. The vote, undertaken by way of a show of hands, was carried. RESOLVED That the report on the work undertaken be noted.
Decision as recorded
RESOLVED That the report and the transition that had been undertaken following the closure of the Anchorage Day Centre be noted.
The Chair presented the visit report highlighting the recent visit of the Committee to Pembroke Dock Library to meet with service users following the closure of Anchorage House. He noted the excellent attendance of Members and highlighted the only concern that had been raised which was regarding the temperature of St Johns Hall during the Winter. He emphasised that the dedication was clearly evident from the staff and expressed the thanks of the Committee. The Cabinet Member for Social Care and Safeguarding echoed the Chair’s comments and thanked the team for their time and dedication and for the discussions that had taken place. It was evident that the service users were very settled and content with the transition that had taken place. Councillor Steve Alderman highlighted the issue of transportation and acknowledged the incredible support the third sector provide to the service users and their families. In response to a comment from the Chair regarding the planning of the visit to the VC Gallery, the Director of Social Care and Housing advised of a recent visit he had undertaken noting that it had been very inclusive and did not feel like a day centre. He explained that a number of activities were taking place with the service users naturally joining in. The Director acknowledged the power and support that the Committee site visits allowed and advised that ongoing visits would be built into the Forward Work Programme. Moved by Councillor Steve Alderman; Seconded by Councillor Claire George. The vote, undertaken by way of a show of hands, was carried. RESOLVED That the report and the transition that had been undertaken following the closure of the Anchorage Day Centre be noted.
Decision as recorded
RESOLVED That the current position in relation to residential placements for Pembrokeshire children, and the pressures associated with the demand for these placements, along with plans in place to try and mitigate for these pressures, particularly in light of Welsh Government’s ‘not for profit’ agenda be noted.
The Chair welcomed the Service Manager / Responsible Individual (R.I.) Resources, Children’s Services to the meeting to present the report on the review of Children’s residential placements, including Children’s Out of County placements to the Committee. He advised Members that the first residential facility recruitment was now being completed and thanked the Commissioning Service for the work they had undertaken. The Committee discussed the report and the following key points were noted. In response to a question from Councillor Mike James regarding the two new residential buildings that were planned, the Service Manager advised that they had learnt a lot of lessons from the recruitment of the first building and that one of the new buildings had previously been a children’s home. He highlighted the ‘step-down’ facility that would be providing life skills for independent living post 18. The Director of Social Care and Housing acknowledged the recruitment difficulties that they had experienced and advised that there would be no benefit in building further residential homes if they were unable to staff them. He highlighted the golden hello payments which had supported recruitment and improved Terms and Conditions to attract more staff. In response to a concern raised by Councillor Alec Cormack regarding three residents in a four bed property, the Service Manager advised that they had been at capacity at certain points however, having the right fit for other residents had to be considered as it was a specialist field. The Cabinet Member for Young Persons, Community, Well-being and Future Generations highlighted that whilst he was new in post, at the last meeting of Cabinet, £260K funding had been agreed for due diligence and feasibility to continue to review further residential home acquisitions. He further highlighted the ability to build on the experience from West Lodge One. The Director of Social Care and Housing advised that he would feedback to the Committee regarding the proportion of in County placements highlighting the target to move to a ‘not for profit’ model by 2030. The Chair thanked the Director of Social Care and Housing and Service Manager/ Responsible Individual (R.I.) Resources, Children’s Services for their report. Moved by Councillor Steve Alderman; Seconded by Councillor Maureen Bowen. The vote, undertaken by way of a show of hands, was carried. RESOLVED That the current position in relation to residential placements for Pembrokeshire children, and the pressures associated with the demand for these placements, along with plans in place to try and mitigate for these pressures, particularly in light of Welsh Government’s ‘not for profit’ agenda be noted.
Decision as recorded
RESOLVED That the work and activities taking place related to homelessness and housing support in fulfilment of the Council’s statutory functions contained within the Housing (Wales) Act 2014 (Part 2), and Housing Support Programme activities aimed at preventing homelessness be noted.
The Chair invited the Head of Housing and Public Protection, the Service Manager / Responsible Individual (R.I.) Resources, Childrens Services and welcomed the Commissioning Manager to the meeting to present the progress report for Homelessness Rapid Rehousing Transition and Housing Support Programme for 2025 to the Committee. The Committee discussed the report and the following key points were noted. In response to a question from Councillor Alec Cormack regarding the impact of mediation and conflict resolution, the Commissioning Manager explained that they were seeing successes with a lot of referrals from the Family Placement Panel who met weekly. She advised that they were working with Public Protection to identify challenges and provide support to families from age 14 to prevent homelessness. The Head of Housing further highlighted that they have Homelessness Advice Officers working with Landlords and Tenants; however, the number of cases had been unsustainable. They were working towards the prevention agenda to provide mediation and support to prevent homelessness where possible. Where young people were in temporary accommodation, they were reviewing how additional support was provided to ensure individuals have the skills to move on. The Service Manager noted the close relationship between Housing Advice and the Housing Commissioning Teams. They advised that there were a number of issues that could lead to homelessness such as parental exclusion and relationship breakdown and the team were working hard to strengthen this area. The Service Manager advised Members of the Homelessness and Housing Bill which will inform how they move forward, including a change from the 56-day timescale to six months reflecting changes in the Renting Homes Act Wales. This had provided an opportunity to remodel a number of services including the discharge of duty to Local Authorities to keep in contact for up to 12 months following the discharge of the homeless duty which would allow the prevention agenda to flag up any issues to prevent homelessness repeating. She advised that, whilst the number of cases was reducing, the complexity was increasing. In response to a concern raised by Councillor Claire George regarding the allocation of housing, the Service Manager advised that houses were allocated based on housing need with homelessness generally being placed in the top band with priority cards. However, the new Bill and Allocations policy will be more challenging as it removed the local connections requirement, meaning a connection to Wales, rather than the specific Authority. Additionally, it may mean that some already registered may no longer be eligible. In response to a further question from Councillor George regarding the timescales of implementation, the Service Manager clarified that the process would move to the next Phase in October 2025 with the Minister keen to see changes being implemented prior to the next election. The Cabinet Member with responsibility for Housing highlighted that, as Members, they frequently receive correspondence from those who are on the housing register and acknowledged their frustrations. The Head of Housing and Public Protection emphasised that they were already working within the spirit of the legislation and had fed back their concerns to Welsh Government, particularly around the speed of housing supply. Welsh Government had taken this on board and were now looking to phase in the implementation. In response to a concern from Councillor Mike James regarding housing for prison leavers, the Head of Housing explained that they had received enquiries from people selling properties but highlighted that the condition of the properties had to be reviewed. She further highlighted that the majority of flats offered to the Authority were leasehold and the Authority would only consider purchasing freehold. She further advised Members that the Authority had seen an increase in the number of rough sleepers; however, they had a contract with Wallich Hoarding Support which had proven successful in identifying more rough sleepers than previously. The Service Manager advised that the Authority had not been significantly impacted with the support of early release from Prisons; however, prisons in England were not governed in the same way as in Wales and that many prison leavers have complex issues. In response to a concern raised by Councillor Maureen Bowen regarding the consideration of the street where individuals were housed, the Head of Housing explained that they operated a Transparent Needs Led Policy with a Tenant Management Policy and they work together to avoid potential community tensions where possible. In response to a question from the Chair regarding the rise from approximately 400 to 700 homeless people and then a drop back to approximately 400, the Service Manager explained that they had experienced a large increase during the Pandemic due to the ‘no one left out’ open doors approach. Additionally, an increase in case management and initiative funding had supported the avoidance of using temporary accommodation where possible. A number of new developments had taken place and the team remain vigilant due to the complexity of cases and how this may change over the next 12-18 months. The Chair commented on the number of units to be completed over the next 12 months and the Head of Housing advised that, whilst 60% of the housing register required one-bed accommodation, they do not request that 60% of any development contains 60% of one-bed properties. They look to ensure a tenure of mixed size properties in all developments whilst ensuring a balance of properties meets the local need for that area. In response to a concern raised by the Chair regarding the need to reapply to the housing register as had recently happened in Ceredigion, the Head of Housing explained that they were implementing the first phase of the revised policy which reviews how the list is managed and rebuilding the database on the Northgate System. She emphasised that it was likely that the Authority would be in a similar position to Ceredigion and they were mindful of a number of applicants who were not connected on IT and they were undertaking outreach work to address that. The Cabinet Member for Housing gave assurance that they would work closely with all Members to ensure that lessons were learnt from Ceredigion. The Chair highlighted the excellent work being undertaken to support homelessness and thanked the Head of Housing, Service Manager and Commissioning Manager for their attendance at the meeting. Moved by Councillor David Bryan; Seconded by Councillor Steve Alderman. The vote, undertaken by way of a show of hands, was carried. RESOLVED That the work and activities taking place related to homelessness and housing support in fulfilment of the Council’s statutory functions contained within the Housing (Wales) Act 2014 (Part 2), and Housing Support Programme activities aimed at preventing homelessness be noted.
Decision as recorded
RESOLVED That the current and planned activity taking place within Children’s Services along with current demand and resource pressures on the service be noted.
The Chair invited the Director of Social Care and Housing and the Service Manager / Responsible Individual (R.I.) Resources, Children’s Services to present the update report on Operation SALUS, Phase 2. The Service Manager advised Members that the team were receiving 50-60 Multi Agency referrals on a daily basis emphasising that no referral was deemed as low risk with decision making being undertaken on a case-by-case basis. The Service Manager highlighted the development of a number of programmes including the Parent and Baby programme set up in September 2024 which interacted with pregnant mothers early on to prevent the likelihood of the child entering the childcare or adoption system. The Director of Social Care and Housing explained that they were developing a relationship-based approach together with the 0-25 Prevention Agenda. He advised that some reserve funding had been utilised to support the increase in capacity on the edge of care resource working with families at an earlier stage to support them remaining together. The Chair highlighted that the financial element would be discussed at the September meeting together with Operation SALUS 1 and 2. The Committee discussed the report and the following key points were noted. In response to a question from Councillor Alec Cormack regarding unaccompanied asylum seeking children, the Director advised that they were working closely with Children’s Services and the Business migration and support teams to provide more appropriately costed housing. In response to a question from Councillor Mike James regarding the Step-Up, Step-Down funding which was due to end in 2026, the Director advised that further detail would be provided at the next meeting; however, there was an exit strategy which had proven successful. The Chair requested a breakdown of successful applications to allow recognition of the work undertaken. In response to a comment from Councillor Maureen Bowen regarding trained volunteers providing support by befriending families experiencing difficulties, the Director emphasised that they cannot underestimate the importance of peer support and the parental advocacy that had taken place in Neath Port Talbot. He highlighted there were continuing discussions to provide ongoing support following the securing of funding through the 0-25 Prevention Agenda for adults with experience of the Child Protection Services throughout the Authority. The Chair thanked the Director of Social Care and Housing and the Service Manager / Responsible Individual (R.I.) Resources, Children’s Services for the report. Moved by Councillor Mike James; Seconded by Councillor David Bryan. The vote, undertaken by way of a show of hands, was carried. RESOLVED That the current and planned activity taking place within Children’s Services along with current demand and resource pressures on the service be noted.
Decision as recorded
RESOLVED That the Overview and Scrutiny Annual Report 2024-25 be endorsed, prior to consideration by Council. The Chair thanked everyone for taking part in the meeting and continuing to conduct the meeting through the medium of Welsh.
The Chair welcomed the Head of Democratic Services to the meeting to present the Overview and Scrutiny Annual Report 2024-25. The Head of Democratic Services highlighted the positive increase in the number of viewings of scrutiny meetings and advised that, as previously requested, the training attendance and site visit attendance had been included in the report. The Chair highlighted the unwavering resilience and compassion from the teams who do a tremendous job in supporting the vulnerable people of Pembrokeshire and thanked the Head of Democratic Services for her report. Moved by Councillor Steve Alderman; Seconded by Councillor Claire George. The vote, undertaken by way of a show of hands, was carried. RESOLVED That the Overview and Scrutiny Annual Report 2024-25 be endorsed, prior to consideration by Council. The Chair thanked everyone for taking part in the meeting and continuing to conduct the meeting through the medium of Welsh.
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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