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The decisions as the council's minutes record them. A plain-language summary follows once it has been written.
RESOLVED to approve the minutes of the 24th April 2024 as an accurate reflection of the meeting
RESOLVED to note the content of the report and express views on the performance of the RCT Community Wardens and the RCT funded PCSOs.
RESOLVED to note the proposals made by the task and finish group in readiness for the merged Community Safety Partnership (CSP) and make recommendations to support the creation of the regional Community Safety Partnership based on the review of CSP arrangements.
The Chair welcomed Members and Officers to the meeting and also extended a warm welcome to guests in the meeting from South Wales Police, Chief Superintendent Stephen Jones and Chief Inspector Tony Moyle. Apologies for absence were received from County Borough Councillor J Bonetto and D Evans.
In accordance with the Code of Conduct, there were no declarations made.
Decision as recorded
RESOLVED to approve the minutes of the 24th April 2024 as an accurate reflection of the meeting
It was RESOLVED to approve the minutes of the 24th April 2024 as an accurate reflection of the meeting
Decision as recorded
RESOLVED to note the content of the report and express views on the performance of the RCT Community Wardens and the RCT funded PCSOs.
The Community Safety and Strategic Partnerships Service Manager presented the report to Members which provided an update Elected Members on the performance of the RCT Community Wardens and RCT funded PCSOs. Members were taken through the detail of the report and the Community Safety and Strategic Partnerships Service Manager highlighted there is a cohesive arrangement between Community Wardens and PCSOs. With the emphasis on transparency, accountability, and a commitment to continuous improvement, this will undoubtedly contribute to the ongoing efforts to foster safe and secure communities within Rhondda Cynon Taf. Following conclusion of the presentation of the report the Chair thanked all involved in the success of the Community Outreach Team in Pontypridd and congratulated the team on their success at the South Wales Police 2023 Force Awards ceremony where RCT Community Wardens and Taff PCSOs were honoured with the Police and Crime Commissioners Exceptional Problem-Solving Award for their involvement in the multi-agency Outreach project. Members recognised the work that has been undertaken by the partnership between the Council and South Wales Police and provided positive examples of results seen within Town Centre’s tackling local issues. Members also praised the increased visibility of the Community Wardens within key locations across the County Borough. A Member queried uniform standards of Community Wardens and the need to present a professional appearance to the Community. The Head of Streetcare confirmed there were uniforms issued to Community Wardens and confirmed the image portrayed by Community Wardens is a key part of their success and any deviations from this would be resolved. Members discussed at length concerns with the process of residents contacting 101 to report non-emergency issues. It was acknowledged through the discussions that the best way for the Police to obtain local intelligence is through reports being made to 101 but there was acknowledgement that to date there have been challenges in calls being answered in a timely manner, particularly during peak times. The Chief Inspector assured Members that the 101 call-handling process is operating effectively and there have been improvements made to the service. Members raising raised further concerns about the ability to contact 101 when needed and the loss of local intelligence as a result. The Community Safety and Strategic Partnerships Service Manager highlighted to Members that intelligence is gathered through a multi-agency approach through weekly review meetings but also daily reviews of incidences which influence the response of Community Wardens and through the Police, the actions of the PCSOs. The Community Safety and Strategic Partnerships Service Manager also shared with Members the importance of ensuring local issues are logged through the 101 service and highlighted the methods of reporting issues to 101 via Social Media as well as through the phone service. A Member referenced local anti-social behaviour occurrences and requested increased patrols from Community Wardens in out-of-town areas to tackle issues. The Head of Streetcare shared with Members that the role of Community Wardens is not to respond to crime and emphasised that they are unable to attend in response to crimes being committed. Members were reminded the role of the Community Wardens is to support local Communities and as a visible presence within Communities but that instances of crime should always be reported to the Police. Members also discussed the shift patterns of Community Wardens and the benefits of ensuring that shift patterns are co-ordinated between Wardens and PCSO’s to ensure maximum visibility. A Member also queried the process of ensuring Wardens are invited to local PACT meetings. The Environmental Enforcement & Awareness Manager acknowledged Members point and confirmed that shift patterns will be reviewed with supervisors to co-ordinate more effectively. Members were also provided with information regarding the usual working patterns of Community Wardens including bank holidays. Members were also advised that notifications of PACT meetings can be shared with the Service Area and the availability of Wardens to attend can be co-ordinated centrally. Members queried of the 118 issued FPN’s how many have been paid. The Environmental Enforcement & Awareness Manager informed Members the exact number was not known although it is a small number. Members were informed of the challenges involved in ensuring the FPN’s were paid due to the nature of the incidences that lead to them being issued. However, Members were also informed that each FPN that is not paid is referred to the Courts system to be dealt with and Court results were expected soon. A Member also asked how the Council are measuring value for money with the funding that is provided by RCT for the PCSOs resource outlined within the report. The Director of Public Health, Protection and Community Services responded that there is a contractual agreement between the Council and South Wales Police (SWP) and within that there is an obligation on the Police to demonstrate the extra investment is providing additionality rather than supporting the core service SWP have in place for RCT communities. Members were also informed that the agreement is subject to quarterly monitoring and performance being demonstrated. Of the 5-year agreement with the Police, it is currently 8 months into the agreement. Indications are its providing value for money although the Director welcomed further opportunities for Members to scrutinise the performance as the partnership develops including the provision of data for Members to scrutinise. A Member queried the data relating to breach of FPN’s as outlined in the report and the Community Safety and Strategic Partnerships Service Manager confirmed that the data for period January-March appears lower than previous months due to the report being completed mid-January. The expectation is that for the full period the figures would reflect previous trends. A Member requested to have the data in the report broken down to individual wards. The Community Safety and Strategic Partnerships Service Manager confirmed acknowledged this request and confirmed that work will be undertaken with Council Officers and South Wales Police to identify data that could be provided on a ward basis. Following scrutinisation it was RESOLVED to note the content of the report and express views on the performance of the RCT Community Wardens and the RCT funded PCSOs.
Decision as recorded
RESOLVED to note the proposals made by the task and finish group in readiness for the merged Community Safety Partnership (CSP) and make recommendations to support the creation of the regional Community Safety Partnership based on the review of CSP arrangements.
The Community Safety and Strategic Partnerships Service Manager presented the report to Members which provided an update on the on the findings of the review of Community Safety Partnership (CSP) arrangements in the Cwm Taf Morgannwg region and the work done to take these recommendations forward. Members were reminded of the background and taken through the current situation as outlined in the report. Members were reminded of the commitment for the regional board to be operational by April 2024 and details of the Task and Finish Group set up were provided. Members were taken through the proposed structure for the regional strategic CSP to adopt. Members were reassured that no local delivery will be lost as a result of the new regional strategic model and scrutiny of the local delivery will continue to remain with Community Services Scrutiny Committee (Crime & Disorder) from an RCT perspective. The Community Safety and Strategic Partnerships Service Manager highlighted to Members the proposed Membership as contained within the report and detailed the proposed scrutiny arrangements for scrutiny of the regional Cwm Taf Morgannwg CSP board to be undertaken by Joint Overview and Scrutiny Committee Public Services Board (JOSC PSB). Members raised concern that the proposed Membership information within the report does not contain elected Member representation and discussed the importance of having equal representation across the Local Authorities. The Community Safety and Strategic Partnerships Service Manager noted Members feedback and highlighted that the table contained within the report is not a full list of Membership and how the Terms of Reference (ToR) for the merged CSP board has not been completed. The ToR will outline the Chairing arrangements and swapping of Chair. The Director Public Health, Protection and Community Services also highlighted to Members that the proposals are for a merge of 2 CSP’s which to date have not had representation of elected Members. The new regional board would be accountable to JOSC PSB which has elected Members representation and elected members, through the crime and disorder scrutiny Committee and JOSC PSB can hold CSP and partnership to account in terms of how it’s performing. A Member queried the representation from South Wales Fire and Rescue noting there are numerous Station Commanders. There was a concern that the number would be too great. The Community Safety and Strategic Partnerships Service Manager clarified that it would be one representative from the Fire Service. There were also discussions in relation to concern about the regionalisation enabling larger partners to dominate. Members asked whether there was any evidence in the already regionalised activities that this is occurring and what measures are in place to ensure this doesn’t happen. The Community Safety and Strategic Partnerships Service Manager confirmed that these concerns were demonstrated in the original review as detailed in the previous reports and were not concerns raised by RCT. It was acknowledged that the concerns were raised by other Local Authorities (LA) that they would be engulfed by RCT. The Community Safety and Strategic Partnerships Service Manager assured Members that mitigations are being put in place around this including having Bridgend LA chairing the Task and Finish group and ensuring equal representation on the board. The Community Safety and Strategic Partnerships Service Manager felt confident that there is no opportunity for the larger LA’s to dominate. A Member raised the representation of the Third sector noting this encompasses a wide range of organisations. The Members asked how it will be ensured that important partners in third sector are heard. The Community Safety and Strategic Partnerships Service Manager acknowledged this point and shared that it is vital to have third sector representation on board. The challenge is how to ensure right regional representation for the board which may mean multiple representatives, but it’s about ensuring it’s the right and appropriate representation on the board. The Director also reassured Committee that the regional board would be the overarching board and beneath this is a whole network of other groups with established third sector representation currently as well as strong service user involvement. Following scrutinization of the report it was RESOLVED to note the proposals made by the task and finish group in readiness for the merged Community Safety Partnership (CSP) and make recommendations to support the creation of the regional Community Safety Partnership based on the review of CSP arrangements.
The Chair thanked all Members, Officers and guests for their attendance at the meeting. The Chair also thanked Members for their contributions to the discussions at the meeting noting that the reports received contained detailed information that prompted effective questioning from Committee.
None.
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