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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 Governance and Audit Committee meeting held on 16th September 2025 as an accurate record. There were no matters arising to report.
RESOLVED: • To note the finalised Audit Wales national report issued to the Council and seek clarity and further information, as required, from Audit Wales on the content of the report. • To note the Council’s response to the recommendations reported by Audit Wales and seek clarity and further information, as required, from the Council. • To consider whether there are any matters of a governance, internal control or risk management nature that require further action or attention by the Governance and Audit Committee. • To consider whether there are any matters of a performance nature that require referral to the Council’s Scrutiny Committees.
RESOLVED: 1. To note the update.
RESOLVED: • To note and consider the Council’s quarter 1 Strategic Risk Register position statement (Appendix 1) for the 2025/26 financial year. • To review the specific risk management arrangements in place for Strategic Risk 11 (Regenerating our Communities) and determine whether they provide the required level of assurance on the arrangements in place.
RESOLVED: • To note the Global Internal Audit Standards in the UK Public Sector and seek further clarity and assurance, as required, on the arrangements in place within Rhondda Cynon Taf County Borough Council. Note: Having previously notified the Chair, County Borough Councillor A Ellis left the meeting following consideration of this item.
RESOLVED: • To note the changes to the responsibilities of the Head of Internal Audit, as set out in Section 4.8 of the Internal Audit Charter. • To consider and approve the updated Internal Audit Charter 2025/26 as attached as Appendix A to the report, in accordance with the Committee’s Terms of Reference and the ‘Global Internal Audit Standards in the UK Public Sector’
RESOLVED: 1. To note the content of the report, the Social Services Representations, Compliments and Complaints Procedures Annual Report 2024/25 and the Customer Feedback Scheme (CFS) Annual Report 2024/25, alongside the work undertaken by the Customer Feedback, Engagement and Complaints Team. 2. To consider whether they wish to scrutinise in greater depth any matters contained in the report; and To form a view on the Authority’s ability to handle complaints effectively.
RESOLVED: 1. To consider and note the 2024-2025 Public Services Ombudsman for Wales’ Annual Report and Annual Letter to this Council.
The Chair welcomed attendees to the Governance and Audit Committee meeting and an apology for absence was received from County Borough Councillor R Bevan. The Chair took the opportunity to thank the Vice-Chair for chairing the last meeting of the Committee in his absence.
In accordance with the Council’s Code of Conduct, there were no declarations made pertaining to the agenda.
Decision as recorded
RESOLVED to approve the minutes of the Governance and Audit Committee meeting held on 16th September 2025 as an accurate record. There were no matters arising to report.
It was RESOLVED to approve the minutes of the Governance and Audit Committee meeting held on 16th September 2025 as an accurate record. There were no matters arising to report.
Decision as recorded
RESOLVED: • To note the finalised Audit Wales national report issued to the Council and seek clarity and further information, as required, from Audit Wales on the content of the report. • To note the Council’s response to the recommendations reported by Audit Wales and seek clarity and further information, as required, from the Council. • To consider whether there are any matters of a governance, internal control or risk management nature that require further action or attention by the Governance and Audit Committee. • To consider whether there are any matters of a performance nature that require referral to the Council’s Scrutiny Committees.
Audit Wales provided the Governance and Audit Committee with an overview of the finalised Audit Wales national report issued to the Council on ‘Temporary Accommodation, long-term crisis?’. The audit was carried out in respect of the 22 Local Authorities to identify opportunities to improve the value for money of councils’ approaches in responding to the demand for temporary accommodation and, in particular, how councils measure and improve the value for money of what they spend on temporary accommodation. It was noted that the report set out 3 recommendations for local authorities to take in account covering: value for money; planning for prevention; and partnership working. Following Audit Wales presenting the report, the Council’s Director – Financial Services and Transformation confirmed that the Council had carefully considered the report and accepted the recommendations, and provided Members with an overview of the actions to be taken by the Council to address the recommendations, as set out at Appendix B. The Director went on to feedback that Audit Wales has also considered the Council’s response and fed back that the actions would adequately address the recommendations. The Director added that the actions would now be incorporated into the Council’s service delivery planning arrangements to allow progress to be monitored and that a year-end position statement would be presented to the Governance and Audit Committee. Referring to the first recommendation set out by Audit Wales in respect of Value for Money, the Vice-Chair questioned what key drivers were impacting on temporary accommodation costs and what information would the service be using to measure the value for money. The Director for Community Services advised that the demand for temporary accommodation experienced in recent years was symptomatic of the pressures existing within the housing system and society more generally. The Director explained that housing shortages were driven by changes to the demographic profile of the community, with an increase of single person households in RCT, and as such, the housing market supply had to adapt to the drivers. Members were informed that this was a key element within the Council’s Housing Strategy and a focus of investment priorities, in terms of where social housing grant is used to support housing association partners to increase supply in line with need. Another issue was the complexity of need amongst some of the clients, in that many individuals had lived experience of the criminal justice system and substance abuse. The Director explained that an understanding of the correct type of the housing solutions for those individuals was needed, whilst ensuring the correct form of support. There was also increased costs linked to the length of stay at temporary accommodation. The Director stated that whilst it was the aim for an individual to stay at temporary accommodation for as short a length of time as possible, some clients were having to stay for longer periods whilst a permanent housing solution is sought, due to pressures in the wider housing system. As a result, there were challenges in terms of maintaining the supply of temporary housing across the County Borough. The Director also spoke of issues with planning for demand of temporary accommodation, which can change seasonally, and result in costs incurred by the Council in trying to maintain bookings for accommodation. The Director went on to provide assurance to the Committee that prevention performance in RCT was in the upper quartile of Local Authority performance and advised that in quarter 4 of 2024-2025, 77% of cases that were presented as at risk of homelessness were prevented. The Director added that due to the robust use of data in RCT, progress had been made to reduce reliance on temporary accommodation and that steps had been made to reduce the associated costs. The Vice-Chair noted that the Council’s response to the first recommendation made reference to collaboration with external partners and questioned what arrangements were in place to support such collaboration. The Director advised that the prevention of homelessness was not only a responsibility of the Council as a whole, but also the responsibility of all partners across the housing sector. The Director stated that there were many examples of good partnership arrangements across RCT, which were ensuring targeted activity to those at greatest risk of experiencing homelessness or those who present the greatest demand for temporary accommodation. An example provided was the Built for Zero project, in partnership with Crisis, which was a groundbreaking international model, which seeks to understand the experiences of prison leavers to ensure robust prevention plans for those prisoners due to be released. Members were informed that there was already a reduction in the need for prison leavers requiring temporary accommodation due to the partnership work. The Director advised that RCT were the only Local Authority in Wales to take part in this project and that the project was viewed as good practice by Welsh Government. One Member acknowledged the ongoing pressures and complexities experienced within the housing sector and questioned whether housing solution staff have enough resources to deal with the recommendations set out by Audit Wales. The Director agreed that it was a challenging area to work in and advised the Member that based on the current legislation, the Council’s priority was to use an intelligence led approach to maximise the resources available to target those most at risk of becoming homeless or those who are homeless. As such, it was explained that both core funding and grant funding from Welsh Government were utilised and that services had been configured to have a team whose focus was primarily on the prevention of families experiencing homelessness and a separate team whose focus was on prevention and support for single person households. The Director added that based on the current prevention approach and performance, the Council were performing as well as possible and that the approach would be refined in line with its new Strategy. The Director also noted that the forthcoming legislation from Welsh Government would change the responsibility on Local Authorities from 56 days duty to prevent homelessness to a 6-month duty, and Members were assured that the Council would use a partnership approach and strategic planning to reduce the anticipated burden on homelessness services. It was explained that, to date, it was not clear whether any additional funding would be provided from Welsh Government in terms of the new responsibilities placed on Local Authorities but that representations were being made. In terms of Audit Wales’ second recommendation in respect of Planning for Prevention, one Member acknowledged that forecasting demand was a challenging exercise with many variables to consider and questioned how accurate the Council’s forecasting had been in the past and if there were opportunities to improve it further. The Member was also pleased to note the focus on preventative activities and the emerging impacts and questioned if there was more work to be done in further developing the preventative approaches. The Director advised that the Council relied on information such as demographic profiles and population forecasts, which informs projections for emerging housing need. This provides the Council with a sound understanding as to whether the housing market is equipped to meet the need and allows steps to be taken to plan for the future. It was explained that the Council were guided by Welsh Government policy and that projections were as accurate as possible. The Director also noted that there was always more that the Council can do to improve and that its greatest challenge was changing the housing market to meet the emerging demand. The Director spoke of the need for rented accommodation for young people who were not in a position to buy and of the increase in single person households. From a data perspective, the Director for Housing and Regeneration advised that the Council undertake a housing needs assessment on a bi-annual basis, which provides the Council with a holistic view of housing need across the County Borough and informs the work going forward. It was explained that along with the strategic approach, the team were collecting real-time data on the ground, in terms of homelessness and the need for temporary accommodation, which contributed to an accurate picture of the challenges faced. From a more strategic level, it was explained that policies around housing within the Council’s new LDP would need to be updated to reflect the complexities around housing need, along with the Social Housing Grant programme. One Member highlighted the rate in which homelessness had risen across Wales and that despite the rising costs incurred by Local Authorities, individuals were not seeing value for money or outcomes. The Member also noted that RCT’s responses were considered appropriate to address the recommendations set out by Audit Wales. The Member questioned how closely the service link with Social Services to meet the needs of vulnerable young people leaving care and sought further information in respect of the capacity in refuges across RCT. The Member placed particular emphasis on the importance of good quality accommodation and spoke of the rise in HMO applications within the County Borough. In terms of the support provided to children and young people leaving children’s services, the Director of Community Services assured the Member that there was a close relationship between the two service areas and that grant funding from Welsh Government was utilised to fund specific activities to support young people leaving care to live independently when the time is right. The Director advised that a review was currently being undertaken to ensure the initiatives are as effective as possible in gaining the best outcomes for those individuals. In addition, the Committee learned that there were processes in place to monitor and work with Children’s Services, should any of those young people present as homeless, to gain a better understanding as to the reasons why and to support them into permanent accommodation as quickly as possible. In terms of refuges in RCT, the Director advised that accommodation was used, when necessary, as part of the Council’s domestic abuse services but that, where appropriate and safe to do so, the Council attempt to prevent domestic abuse survivors from leaving their homes and to remain in their communities with their support networks. As such, the focus, through community safety, is placed on uprooting the perpetrators. The Director spoke of a data informed approach to the number of units of accommodation available in refuges and informed the Committee that the capacity was meeting current need. In terms of the quality of accommodation, the Director emphasised that all individuals had the right to live in accommodation which meets their needs. The Director stated that bed and breakfast or hotel rooms were not suitable and advised that the Council was committed to reducing its reliance on that type of accommodation. As a result of this, there is further reliance on the private rented sector due to the inadequate supply of social housing to meet need, but the Director advised of work through various initiatives with social housing landlords to ensure that the accommodation provided meets the standard. The Chair thanked the officers for the report and the Governance and Audit Committee RESOLVED: • To note the finalised Audit Wales national report issued to the Council and seek clarity and further information, as required, from Audit Wales on the content of the report. • To note the Council’s response to the recommendations reported by Audit Wales and seek clarity and further information, as required, from the Council. • To consider whether there are any matters of a governance, internal control or risk management nature that require further action or attention by the Governance and Audit Committee. • To consider whether there are any matters of a performance nature that require referral to the Council’s Scrutiny Committees.
Decision as recorded
RESOLVED: 1. To note the update.
The Service Director for Audit, Performance and Transformational Services provided Members with an update on the draft Annual Self-Assessment for 2024-25, which was presented to the Governance and Audit Committee on 16th September 2025 and then approved by full Council at its meeting on 24th September 2025. In line with the terms set out within the Local Government and Elections (Wales) Act 2021, the Council have four weeks to publish the final report on its website and confirmation was provided to Members that this had been complied with. The Governance and Audit Committee RESOLVED: 1. To note the update.
Decision as recorded
RESOLVED: • To note and consider the Council’s quarter 1 Strategic Risk Register position statement (Appendix 1) for the 2025/26 financial year. • To review the specific risk management arrangements in place for Strategic Risk 11 (Regenerating our Communities) and determine whether they provide the required level of assurance on the arrangements in place.
The Service Director for Audit, Performance and Transformational Services provided the Governance and Audit Committee with the Council’s quarter 1 Strategic Risk Register position statement for the 2025/26 financial year. The Service Director referred Members to the responsibilities of the Committee in respect of the Council’s risk management arrangements, as per its Terms of Reference: Review, scrutinise and issue reports and recommendations on the appropriateness of the Authority’s risk management, internal control and corporate governance arrangements, and providing the opportunity for direct discussion with the auditor(s) on these. Members were then referred to the Council’s Strategic Risk Register, which was attached as Appendix A to the report, and it was noted that at a previous meeting of the Governance and Audit Committee, Members had requested more detailed updates on specific risks, with these scheduled to be reported to Members during the 2025/26 municipal year in respect of the following: Strategic Risk 11 - Regenerating our Communities; Strategic Risk 24 - A carbon neutral Council; and Strategic Risk 30 - Supporting our young people with additional learning needs. In line with this, the Director for Regeneration and Housing was present to provide Members with a detailed update in respect of Strategic Risk 11 (Regenerating our Communities) as part of the Committee’s role to review and scrutinise the Council’s risk management arrangements. With the aid of a PowerPoint presentation, the Director provided the Committee with further detail in respect of the controls in place to ensure the successful delivery of strategic regeneration projects, key controls in place and examples of completed projects and their positive impacts on town centres across the County Borough. The Chair recognised that the Council’s Risk Register was a thorough document and thanked both officers for the update. The Chair questioned how often the Risk Register was subject to review and compared against the structure and format of other organisations. The Service Director for Audit, Performance and Transformational Services advised that the Risk Register is reviewed at the start of each financial year and reviewed and updated, where required, on an on-going basis during the year. In terms of the risk ratings, it was explained that these could be changed and updated as and when deemed necessary by the risk owner. In respect of comparing its format and structure against that of other organisations, the Service Director assured the Committee that the Council’s format and structure was appropriate and noted the minor amendments that had been made to the Risk Register in the previous year, whereby the actions to deliver the Council’s Wellbeing Objectives had been incorporated into the risk register. In terms of minor changes made to the risk register during the current year, the Service Director advised that a ‘concluding comments’ section for each quarter had been included for further transparency. To provide the Committee with a broader picture of other organisations, Audit Wales directed Members to a piece of work undertaken with several Local Authorities in respect of risk management, which was available on their website. Referring to the presentation received in respect of Risk 11, the Vice-Chair questioned what the future funding landscape was like, in terms of the Council accessing external funding and how the Council was positioning itself to maximise any such opportunities. The Director fed back that the Council has a positive track record of securing external funding and explained that this was due to having robust project planning and delivery arrangements in place. The Director went on to provide examples of the key role the Council plays across Wales, for example, in being the designated lead authority for all ten Councils in South-East Wales to manage the UK Shared Prosperity Fund and managing Welsh Government’s National Empty Homes Grant for the whole of Wales. The Director added that the Council has a strong pipeline of projects developed in anticipation of funding becoming available, this reflective of the proactive and forward-thinking approach within the Council. The Director went on to indicate that the current landscape was uncertain following Brexit and sought to provide assurance that with its positive track record and as the lead authority for regional external funding programme, the Council is well positioned to optimise external funding opportunities moving forward. The Vice-Chair sought clarity on how the robust arrangements in place took into account regeneration opportunities across all areas of the County Borough and requested examples. The Director emphasised that regeneration projects were not solely for the town centres and stated that support was given to businesses across the whole of RCT. The Director spoke of the Coed-ely Business Estate, which was referred to in the PowerPoint presentation. He also informed Members of the Business Growth Grant, which applies across the whole of RCT to support and grow small and medium enterprises and the Major Investment Grant, which was used to secure inward investment from companies such as Zip World in the Rhigos area. Note: Having previously notified the Chair, Mr J Roszkowski left during the discussion of this item. The Chair thanked the officers for the update and the Governance and Audit Committee RESOLVED: • To note and consider the Council’s quarter 1 Strategic Risk Register position statement (Appendix 1) for the 2025/26 financial year. • To review the specific risk management arrangements in place for Strategic Risk 11 (Regenerating our Communities) and determine whether they provide the required level of assurance on the arrangements in place.
Decision as recorded
RESOLVED: • To note the Global Internal Audit Standards in the UK Public Sector and seek further clarity and assurance, as required, on the arrangements in place within Rhondda Cynon Taf County Borough Council. Note: Having previously notified the Chair, County Borough Councillor A Ellis left the meeting following consideration of this item.
With the aid of a PowerPoint presentation, the Service Director for Audit, Performance and Transformational Services and the Internal Audit Manager provided the Governance and Audit Committee with an overview of the Global Internal Audit Standards in the UK Public Sector. It was explained that the Global Internal Audit Standards form the framework that should be followed by all Internal Audit Services across the world and apply to private and public sector organisations. Furthermore, the Standards provide the framework for managing and overseeing the delivery of an Internal Audit Service and aligns with relevant sections of the Governance and Audit Committee’s Terms of Reference. Officers provided Members with detail in respect of the framework, which consists of 5 Domains that are underpinned by 15 Principles. It was explained that each Principle is supported by a set of detailed Standards that contain requirements and considerations for implementation. The Council had committed to conform with all Standards, regardless of whether they were mandatory or recommendations and further detail was provided in respect of the arrangements in place within the Internal Audit Service and within the updated Internal Audit Charter to effectively carry out the new duties. One Member recognised the complexities that came with the new Standards and commended officers for their work to ensure satisfactory arrangements were in place within the Local Authority to comply. The Member sought further clarity in terms of the impact of the new Standards on the Internal Audit Charter. In response, the officer recognised that the Global Internal Audit Standards was a much larger framework in comparison to the previous Public Sector Internal Audit Standards and noted that following review, the Council was able to confirm conformance with the new Standards, this demonstrating the robust working arrangements already in place. The officer continued and explained that as part of demonstrating the Internal Audit Service’s conformance with the new Standards, there was a need to update the Internal Audit Charter for the current financial year. The Chair thanked the officers for the informative and detailed update. The Governance and Audit Committee RESOLVED: • To note the Global Internal Audit Standards in the UK Public Sector and seek further clarity and assurance, as required, on the arrangements in place within Rhondda Cynon Taf County Borough Council. Note: Having previously notified the Chair, County Borough Councillor A Ellis left the meeting following consideration of this item.
Decision as recorded
RESOLVED: • To note the changes to the responsibilities of the Head of Internal Audit, as set out in Section 4.8 of the Internal Audit Charter. • To consider and approve the updated Internal Audit Charter 2025/26 as attached as Appendix A to the report, in accordance with the Committee’s Terms of Reference and the ‘Global Internal Audit Standards in the UK Public Sector’
The Internal Audit Manager presented Members with the updated Internal Audit Charter for 2025/26, in conformance with the Global Internal Audit Standards in the UK Public Sector. As of 1st April 2025, the Global Internal Audit Standards replaced the Public Sector Internal Audit Standards. The Standards form the framework that should be followed by all Internal Audit Services across the world and apply to private and public sector organisations. The Standards require the Internal Audit Service to have in place an Internal Audit Charter. Members were firstly reminded that the new Internal Audit Charter for 2025/26 was presented to the Council’s Governance and Audit Committee on 31st March 2025 and that the purpose of today’s update was to provide the Committee with the revisions to section 4.8 of the Charter, which reflected recent changes to other functional responsibilities held by the Head of Internal Audit. Furthermore, it was explained that in order to safeguard the objectivity of the Internal Audit Service, and in accordance with the Standards, these are declared as conflicts of interest by the Head of Internal Audit. It was noted that arrangements are in place to ensure that the Head of Internal Audit is not included in the audit process or discussions relating to audits within these Service Areas. Note: Having previously notified the Chair, County Borough Councillor S Rees left the meeting, whilst this item was being discussed. The Chair thanked the officer for the update and commented that it was evident to see how the Internal Audit Charter had been structured to ensure that the Internal Audit Service can demonstrate conformance with the new standards. The Governance and Audit Committee RESOLVED: • To note the changes to the responsibilities of the Head of Internal Audit, as set out in Section 4.8 of the Internal Audit Charter. • To consider and approve the updated Internal Audit Charter 2025/26 as attached as Appendix A to the report, in accordance with the Committee’s Terms of Reference and the ‘Global Internal Audit Standards in the UK Public Sector’
Decision as recorded
RESOLVED: 1. To note the content of the report, the Social Services Representations, Compliments and Complaints Procedures Annual Report 2024/25 and the Customer Feedback Scheme (CFS) Annual Report 2024/25, alongside the work undertaken by the Customer Feedback, Engagement and Complaints Team. 2. To consider whether they wish to scrutinise in greater depth any matters contained in the report; and To form a view on the Authority’s ability to handle complaints effectively.
The Engagement and Complaints Manager provided the Governance and Audit Committee with an overview of the operation and effectiveness of the Council’s Statutory Social Services Complaints Procedure and also the Customer Feedback Scheme between 1st April 2024 and 31st March 2025. It was fed back that it is a requirement of the Social Services Complaints Procedure (Wales) Regulations Procedure 2014 that the Local Authority produce an annual report but that there was no statutory requirement for the Local Authority to produce an annual report on the Customer Feedback Scheme, noting that the production of such a report supports transparency and demonstrates robust governance in the delivery of services. In terms of the Social Services Complaints Procedure Annual Report, which was attached as Appendix 1 to the report, Members were provided with a summary of complaints by service area, what they were about and a comparison to the previous year. Members were also provided with detail in respect of the compliments made during the year. The officer advised that several recommendations for improvements had been identified following complaints made at both Stage 1 and Stage 2 of the complaints process. It was noted that some improvements had already been actioned and had resulted in service change, training for staff and was informing wider service planning. The recommendations were detailed on page 8 of the appendix for Members’ consideration. In terms of the Customer Feedback Annual Report, which was attached as Appendix 2 to the report, Members were provided with a summary of feedback for each service area, along with a breakdown of the key themes identified and examples of feedback received. Members were also provided with ‘You Said, We Did’ examples, which positively demonstrated the various service areas’ proactive consideration and response to residents’ feedback. The officer spoke of the improvement priorities for 2025/26, which included complaints process and training, data and insight and improved customer feedback. The Vice-Chair sought clarity in respect of the arrangements in place ‘in-year’ by the Customer Feedback, Engagement and Complaints Team to support services to manage social services related complaints. The officer advised of several mechanisms in place to support social services with complaint management, such as individual sessions with managers, induction training and regular service specific reports to assist managers in keeping track of complaints. The challenging operating environment within social services was also noted and Members were informed that performance data from the past two years had been analysed and that the team had met with managers within social services to gauge an understanding of the assistance they require in terms of the complaints process. As a result of the engagement, managers were provided with letter templates for responding to complaints and in order to manage the expectations of the complainant, managers were now more effectively using the ability to revise timescales, where appropriate to do so. The Chair thanked the officer for the report and the Governance and Audit Committee RESOLVED: 1. To note the content of the report, the Social Services Representations, Compliments and Complaints Procedures Annual Report 2024/25 and the Customer Feedback Scheme (CFS) Annual Report 2024/25, alongside the work undertaken by the Customer Feedback, Engagement and Complaints Team. 2. To consider whether they wish to scrutinise in greater depth any matters contained in the report; and To form a view on the Authority’s ability to handle complaints effectively.
Decision as recorded
RESOLVED: 1. To consider and note the 2024-2025 Public Services Ombudsman for Wales’ Annual Report and Annual Letter to this Council.
The Engagement and Complaints Manager provided the Governance and Audit Committee with the publication of the Public Services Ombudsman for Wales’ (‘PSOW’) Annual Report and Annual Letter to the Council for 2024-2025. It was noted that the report, along with any comments received by the Governance and Audit Committee, would be presented to Cabinet at the meeting on 24th November 2025. Members were informed that, during the year, 62 complaints were received by the PSOW relating to Rhondda Cynon Taf County Borough Council with regards to maladministration allegations, in comparison to the 64 received during 2023-2024. The total number of complaints equates to 0.26 complaints per 1000 residents, which places the Council in the top quartile for lowest number of complaints per 1000 residents out of the 22 local authorities in Wales. It was explained that the highest numbers of complaints for the Council, by subject, related to Children’s Social Services (26%), Planning and Building control (18%) and Adult Social Services (10%). Of the 60 complaints closed by the PSOW during the period, 26 were closed after initial consideration, 8 were considered to be out of jurisdiction and 20 premature. Those considered to have been premature related to cases where the complainant had not exhausted the Council’s complaints policy. 6 complaints were resolved through the PSOW ‘early resolution’ process, meaning that the Council agreed to undertake actions to resolve matters without the need for a formal PSOW investigation. In total 10% of the Council’s cases during the period required PSOW intervention, compared against 17% as reported in the previous period. The average intervention rate for local authorities was 13%. It was stated that the Authority complied with 20% of the PSOW recommendations within the target timescales agreed compared to 77% in 2023-2024; and Members were assured that work was underway to understand what had led to the reduction in meeting the target timescales during the reporting period. The Chair thanked the officer for the report and the Governance and Audit Committee RESOLVED: 1. To consider and note the 2024-2025 Public Services Ombudsman for Wales’ Annual Report and Annual Letter to this Council.
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