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There is no summary of this meeting yet. One is written once the council publishes the minutes. The agenda and papers are below.
Apologies were received from: Christine Harley (HM Prisons and Probation Service); Rhys Morris and Anne Watkin (Welsh Government); Claire Bryan (Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner); Hayley Thomas, Fiona Valentine and Chloe Barell (Powys Teaching Health Board) and Carolanne Butler (Powys County Council).
Proposed by Iwan Cray and seconded by Gavin Bown, the minutes of the previous meeting were agreed as a correct record.
Myra Hunt, CEO of the Centre for Digital Public Services (CDPS), delivered a presentation outlining the organisation's role and recent efforts in enhancing digital services across Wales. Challenges such as skills shortages, budget limitations, technological constraints, and issues with service ownership were highlighted. The CDPS aimed to address these challenges by building capacity in the public sector, offering several services to enhance capabilities, including communities of practice, leadership training, standards and guidance. The importance of artificial intelligence (AI) and data sharing in driving digital transformation was noted, with a recommendation for organisations to maintain oversight of AI projects through dedicated registers or working groups. Discussion points included: • confirmation of Powys County Council’s participation in the Planning Service improvement project; • potential for a digital transformation approach to help manage wildfires; • differences between the CDPS and other organisations such as Digital Health and Care Wales; • service user training opportunities relating to technology-aided community care, and • the need for better geospatial mapping and data sharing to inform climate and nature-related adaptation planning. The CDPS intended to follow up with Powys County Council and other PSB partner organisations to explore further collaboration opportunities.
Catherine James gave a quarterly progress update for the Evidence and Insight Step for quarter 4, outlining the Step’s key delivery updates, planned activities and risks. Key updates included: · Engagement with other PSBs via the Public Health Wales ‘Shaping Places for Well-being in Wales’ programme, through three established learning groups, focused on the following systems-of-interest: o Green skills for a just transition (climate and nature emergency theme) o Fair work (poverty and inequalities theme) o An inclusive approach to healthy travel (neighbourhood well-being theme) · Exploration of potential areas within the PSB’s workstreams to utilise systems thinking tools and techniques, such as the PSB Climate Action Plan, around procurement and food-related workstreams. · Participation in an advisory board workshop to identify barriers and necessary actions to improve impacts made by PSBs. · Collaboration with the Powys Community Safety Partnership to establish reporting links and improve the sharing of insights. · A session was held with Step Leads to review progress against the Well-being Plan, identifying areas of synergy among workstreams such as healthy foods and procurement. · A mid-point review of the Population Needs Assessment had been conducted, with a focus on areas of significant change. Several engagement initiatives were highlighted: · Attendance at an event celebrating 10 years of the Well-being of Future Generations Act, which explored future design techniques to inform decision-making. · Collaboration with the Powys Engagement and Insight Network to structure an online hub for hosting documents and citizen engagement materials relating to the PSB. · Launch of the six-monthly Engagement and Insight report, with a request for activity updates from October onwards to include in the draft report. o The report aimed to be an enabler of broader objectives, with a focus on assessing the impact of engagement activity. Plans were focused on identifying relevant data sets in readiness for the next Population Needs Assessment and Well-being Assessment. The Step’s forward work programme had been reviewed to identify and address gaps in data and reporting processes. Key risks were noted, including the potential impact on plans due to a lack of dedicated funding, requiring existing resource of officers; the other risk related to the potential impact on plans if sufficient data-sharing agreements were not in place. Discussion points included a recommendation to consider how the learning gained from the Engagement and Insight Report could be used to inform forward-looking engagement plans for the next 6–18 months, to maximise societal contributions to the PSB’s work.
Liz Hutchins, Responding to the Climate Emergency Step Lead, provided an update for quarter 4 with support from Melusi Moyo, Toby Pitts and Simone Lowthe-Thomas. An update on the first phase of work was provided, which included: • a Climate Risk Assessment for Powys, which indicated the key threats to people and nature in Powys. • A comprehensive carbon footprint analysis for Powys; the analysis informed a fair share decarbonisation trajectory, laying out emissions reduction targets and opportunities for carbon sequestration in Powys to achieve net-zero by 2050. • Completion of five feasibility studies . The research and analysis led to several important conclusions, such as that: · Powys faced direct climate threats and global climate shocks could impact the food system; more focus was needed on the food system transition and climate resilience in Powys. · Significant climate work was already underway in the public, private, and third sectors, but lacked coordination and visibility. · The benefits to adopting a mission-led approach to provide long-term direction. · The importance of community renewables and energy efficiency improvements to improve well-being and reduce carbon emissions. · Youth engagement could play a pivotal role in shaping future climate solutions. · Improved public sector coordination was essential to unlock cross-sectoral partnerships. · Substantial investment was needed to transform operations and achieve these goals. Eight transformational shifts were identified based on the findings in order to achieve net-zero and climate resilience for Powys, with further detail to be included in the finalised Climate Action Plan. Liz Hutchins presented proposed initiatives for the Board to consider, including: · Developing an online climate hub on the “Have Your Say Powys” engagement website to integrate, amplify, and coordinate public sector initiatives. · Organizing 13 community engagement events across Powys to promote awareness, gather input and enhance uptake of existing initiatives. · Supporting town and community councils in climate responses and ensuring ongoing collaboration with stakeholders. · Facilitating hackathons to address energy efficiency and retrofitting barriers. These initiatives aimed to leverage £100,000 in SPF funding for implementation between May and December 2025. Indicative support for the proposed plans was received from representatives from Powys County Council, Natural Resources Wales and Mid and West Wales Fire and Rescue Service. Next steps were discussed, with senior officers from the statutory partner organisations to review the proposed actions and provide feedback to Liz Hutchins to confirm their organisation’s position in agreeing to the proposed plans. ACTION
Anna Prothero provided a quarter 4 progress update for the Whole System Approach to Healthy Weight Step. Progress updates were provided for the four priority areas which had been identified following stakeholder engagement, which included: • Breastfeeding • Introduction to solid foods • Cooking skills, and • Affordability of healthy food. Each area was supported by a dedicated working group that reported to the strategic steering group overseeing the Step’s activity. Breastfeeding • Efforts were being made to promote and sustain breastfeeding through the Breastfeeding Friendly Scheme. • Approximately 250 businesses across Powys had signed up to the Scheme, a significant increase from previous counts. • Improvements to workplace policies were also being addressed to promote a positive breastfeeding culture. • Key milestones for the year included targeted initiatives in deprived areas. Insight work was also planned to understand barriers and facilitators to breastfeeding. Introduction to Solid Foods • Parental confidence and knowledge in introducing solid foods had increased through training provided to health visitors and nursery nurses. • Early years and childcare settings were engaged in training around the Healthy Snack Award Scheme, which promoted healthy eating environments. • Work was ongoing to address challenges faced by preschool settings and to integrate data on weaning practices. Cooking Skills • The Cooking Counts program had been effective, combining cooking classes with literacy and numeracy skills, supported by funding from the UK Shared Prosperity Fund. • Plans for further coordination included evidence-based nutrition training and creating a centralized resource for cooking classes across Powys. • A promotional video had been produced to showcase the impact of the programme on families. Affordability of Healthy Food • The Healthy Start Scheme continued to be promoted, with a key milestone to advocate for the ability to use the Healthy Start cards to pay for food ordered online. • A pilot project with Bwyd Powys Food, a local grower and a Flying Start nursery setting was in development, to explore the potential to supply locally grown food. • Evaluation frameworks were being developed to monitor the project’s outcomes. Moving forward, the intention was to focus on mobilising and managing activities while revisiting the system engagement undertaken initially. Public consultations were planned to validate stakeholder insights and to ensure alignment between proposed actions and community needs. Discussions included: • The innovative use of Multiply funding and the strong partnership efforts driving the initiatives. • Collaborative work across organisations was commended for effectively addressing the Step’s priorities, despite limited funding.
· Tuesday 15th July 2025 · Thursday 25th September 2025 · Thursday 11th December 2025
The Board noted the forward work programme and future dates of meetings.
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