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The decisions as the council's minutes record them. A plain-language summary follows once it has been written.
AGREED to note the contents of the report.
AGREED to: • note the monitoring position for 2024/25 and the forecast surplus; • determine the estimated 2025/26 costs for the Archives Service as £1,162,784; • note the resultant constituent authority contributions as set out in the table shown at paragraph 5.6 of the report; • note the assumption around employers national insurance contributions as a result of the Autumn Budget Statement; • note that the estimates for the costs of the service had been forwarded by the Treasurer of the Host Authority to the Joint Councils; • note that, in accordance with the Joint Agreement, the estimates would be deemed to have been approved by each of the participating Councils unless notification was received by the Treasurer of the Joint Committee before the commencement of the financial year 2025/26; • consider the medium term financial forecast.
AGREED a 5% increase in charges and the proposed fees and charges for 2025-2026.
AGREED the request continue to fund a part time, temporary, Preservation Assistant from the Reserves for a further 12 months.
AGREED to approve the request for a £10,000 contingency fund, should it be required, from the Reserves to support the enlargement of the existing Workroom.
AGREED to note the information in the report.
1.1 Apologies were received from Councillors Fay Bromfield (Monmouthshire CC), Julian Simmonds (Caerphilly CBC) and Lucy Williams (Torfaen CBC).
3.1 There were no declarations of interest.
4.1 The minutes of the meeting held on 20 September 2024 were confirmed as a true and accurate record.
Decision as recorded
AGREED to note the contents of the report.
5.1 The CA presented her report, pulling out key points. Following, she responded to questions from the Joint Committee as follows: • The use of technology would be vital in going forwards. They had thought about hosting virtual archive days and utilising chat bots. She was keen to work with Torfaen through their digital flooding programme. They needed time to consider what help might be available and what ideas could be used. • In relation to issues with the building, they varied by quarter depending on what the weather had been like. There were some issues that they were aware of and others that had surprised them. The issues related mostly to heating and leaks, but they were working with colleagues in Blaenau Gwent CBC to progress them. • All options would be looked at including opening up during the hour they were closed at lunch. Options would be report back to Committee for a decision. She was aware that people still needed to visit the Archive, but they also needed to make sure the remote access service was as good as it could be as most people were using that. • They would consult with researchers, Welsh Government and other stakeholders when looking at options to bring to Committee. 5.2 The Joint Committee AGREED to note the contents of the report.
Decision as recorded
AGREED to: • note the monitoring position for 2024/25 and the forecast surplus; • determine the estimated 2025/26 costs for the Archives Service as £1,162,784; • note the resultant constituent authority contributions as set out in the table shown at paragraph 5.6 of the report; • note the assumption around employers national insurance contributions as a result of the Autumn Budget Statement; • note that the estimates for the costs of the service had been forwarded by the Treasurer of the Host Authority to the Joint Councils; • note that, in accordance with the Joint Agreement, the estimates would be deemed to have been approved by each of the participating Councils unless notification was received by the Treasurer of the Joint Committee before the commencement of the financial year 2025/26; • consider the medium term financial forecast.
6.1 The LFO presented the report and following, responded to a question from a Joint Committee member by saying that the report had been circulated to each authorities’ Section 151 Officer, but that within the Agreement it said that the Committee should state whether it agreed with the proposed estimates which are then sent to each Treasurer, who could respond by 31 March as to whether their local authority agreed with the proposal. 6.2 The Joint Committee AGREED to: • note the monitoring position for 2024/25 and the forecast surplus; • determine the estimated 2025/26 costs for the Archives Service as £1,162,784; • note the resultant constituent authority contributions as set out in the table shown at paragraph 5.6 of the report; • note the assumption around employers national insurance contributions as a result of the Autumn Budget Statement; • note that the estimates for the costs of the service had been forwarded by the Treasurer of the Host Authority to the Joint Councils; • note that, in accordance with the Joint Agreement, the estimates would be deemed to have been approved by each of the participating Councils unless notification was received by the Treasurer of the Joint Committee before the commencement of the financial year 2025/26; • consider the medium term financial forecast.
Decision as recorded
AGREED a 5% increase in charges and the proposed fees and charges for 2025-2026.
7.1 The CA presented her report, highlighting key points. Following, she outlined for the new Co-Opted Members that the fees and charges were benchmarked. They reviewed them annually against what other similar services were charging and she reported that Gwent Archives was set around an average. Some services were charging a lot more and some were less. They tended to look at Wales and its borders, which was what most customers would also compare. There needed to be a balance of being paid for the services provided and staff time. However, they did not want to create barriers. 7.2 A discussion took place and the Joint Committee were in agreement that a 5% increase was very modest and would not see a huge increase for customers. 7.3 The Joint Committee AGREED a 5% increase in charges and the proposed fees and charges for 2025-2026.
Decision as recorded
AGREED the request continue to fund a part time, temporary, Preservation Assistant from the Reserves for a further 12 months.
8.1 The CA presented her report and following, there were no questions. 8.2 The Joint Committee AGREED the request continue to fund a part time, temporary, Preservation Assistant from the Reserves for a further 12 months.
Decision as recorded
AGREED to approve the request for a £10,000 contingency fund, should it be required, from the Reserves to support the enlargement of the existing Workroom.
9.1 The CA presented the report, highlighting key points. 9.2 There were no questions, however, the Joint Committee commended the CA for her forward planning and agreed that it was a very sensible way forward. 9.3 The Joint Committee AGREED to approve the request for a £10,000 contingency fund, should it be required, from the Reserves to support the enlargement of the existing Workroom.
Decision as recorded
AGREED to note the information in the report.
10.1 The CA presented her report. Following, there were questions. 10.2 The Joint Committee AGREED to note the information in the report.
11.1 There was no other business discussed.
12.1 The date of the next meeting was confirmed as 21 March 2025. 12.2 The Chair wished everyone a Merry Christmas and a peaceful New Year, and thanked everyone for their hard work and dedication to the Archives. 12.3 The meeting ended at 11.26am.
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