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The decisions as the council's minutes record them. A plain-language summary follows once it has been written.
AGREED – That, subject to the aforementioned, the work programme be agreed.
AGREED – (i) That the feasibility study into the development of the Groves as an ‘anchor’ site for a new Contemporary Art Gallery be circulated to Members of the Committee. (ii) To recommend to the Executive Board – · That any new funding from the flexible revenue support grant be directed towards schools. · That the capital receipt from any disposals of school assets be ringfenced to support the 21st Century Schools Programme (now Sustainable Communities for Learning). (iii) That a further detailed progress report on the delivery of Phase 1 of the Sustainable Communities for Learning Programme and outline development of Phases 2 and 3 be submitted to a future meeting of the Committee. (iv) That the School Organisation Framework Review is submitted to this Committee within 12 months. (v) That a Workshop Session is arranged for Members of the Committee to receive information regarding the multi-agency provision at Noddfa and to recommend to the Chief Officer Education and Early Intervention that information regarding the services delivered at Noddfa are circulated to School Governors.
AGREED – (i) To recommend that the Chief Officer Education and Early Intervention write to BCUHB regarding the effect of CAMHS’ waiting lists on Education. (ii) That a further report be submitted on the evaluation of the impact of services provided to support pupils’ emotional and mental well-being include the following – · Any emerging trends and response, and opportunities to feed these into the Curriculum for Wales (year on year comparisons to be made with the same co-hort of pupils) · How priorities for pupil well-being and mental health are being resourced · How support for pupils is continued throughout the transition phase from primary to secondary
Apologies for absence were submitted on behalf of Councillors Corin Jarvis, Alison Tynan and Debbie Wallice.
AGREED – That the Minutes of the Meeting held on 31 January 2024 be signed as a correct record.
Members were reminded of their responsibility, under Paragraph 11 of the Members’ Code of Conduct, to declare the existence and nature of any personal interest in respect of any of the business to be transacted at this meeting. The following declarations were made: Agenda Item 5 – Councillors Dana Davies, Becca Martin, Stella Matthews and Ross Shepherd all declared a personal and prejudicial interest in this matter (as an LEA school governor). They all claimed the exemption set out in paragraphs 12 (2) (a) (iii) of the Member Code of Conduct and remained in the meeting for the discussion and voting thereon. Councillor Martin also declared a personal interest (as a family member attended Ysgol Llan y Pwll).
Decision as recorded
AGREED – That, subject to the aforementioned, the work programme be agreed.
The Chief Officer Governance & Customer submitted a report (COGC/15/24s) to consider the work programme of the Lifelong Learning Scrutiny Committee. Presenting the report the Scrutiny Facilitator drew Members’ attention to the following: · A further progress update in respect of Universal Primary School Meals would be scheduled for the September 2024 meeting. · Impact of Education Budget on Pupil Outcomes. Noted that attendance and exclusion data will continue to be included in Well-being and Transition Reports. · The following additional reports would be scheduled – - Licenced deficit budgets and staffing issues – June 2024 - An update report on the above and also any reduction in choices at GCSE level – October/November 2024 - Provisional examination results and teacher assessments (Summer 2025) – October/November 2025 Members supported the proposed schedule for reports and requested that a report in respect of ALN provision be scheduled. The Scrutiny Facilitator drew the Committee’s attention to the letter received from Estyn at Appendix 2 setting out the steps taken by Estyn in respect of support for the mental health and well-being of school staff. Finally, Committee were informed that Council had made the following appointments to the Lifelong Learning Scrutiny Committee at the February meeting – - Mrs Alison Fisher – appointed as an ordinary non-voting co-opted member - Mrs Lyn Tracey Roberts – appointed as a statutory voting parent governor co-opted member. Committee were informed that unfortunately Mrs Lyn Tracey Roberts had since stepped down as a parent governor. Consequently there remained two vacancies for the statutory voting co-opted members on the committee. It was noted that nominations would be sought again within 12 months. - The ALN representative had been changed from statutory voting parent governor co-opted member to non-voting school governor co-opted member. AGREED – That, subject to the aforementioned, the work programme be agreed.
Decision as recorded
AGREED – (i) That the feasibility study into the development of the Groves as an ‘anchor’ site for a new Contemporary Art Gallery be circulated to Members of the Committee. (ii) To recommend to the Executive Board – · That any new funding from the flexible revenue support grant be directed towards schools. · That the capital receipt from any disposals of school assets be ringfenced to support the 21st Century Schools Programme (now Sustainable Communities for Learning). (iii) That a further detailed progress report on the delivery of Phase 1 of the Sustainable Communities for Learning Programme and outline development of Phases 2 and 3 be submitted to a future meeting of the Committee. (iv) That the School Organisation Framework Review is submitted to this Committee within 12 months. (v) That a Workshop Session is arranged for Members of the Committee to receive information regarding the multi-agency provision at Noddfa and to recommend to the Chief Officer Education and Early Intervention that information regarding the services delivered at Noddfa are circulated to School Governors.
(Declarations of interest in respect of this matter are set out under Minute 75 above) The Lead Member for Education submitted a report (COEEI/03/24s) to consider progress against the Education Estate Capital Investment programme of works and the latest data available on condition and capacities of schools. Presenting the report to Committee the Lead Member referred to the recently completed Band B projects at Ysgol Llan y Pwll and Ysgol y Hafod, the remaining Band B projects to be delivered and budgetary implications in planning future projects. During debate the following matters in particular were highlighted: · The timescales for the delivery of Community Access Grant projects listed in Appendix 3. Officers provided Members with a verbal update on the programme which ran up to March 2025. · Noting the potential shortfall identified in match funding capital, referred to in paragraph 5.2 of the report, clarity was sought on methods of securing the required funding. The Lead Member drew Members’ attention to the funding assumptions outlined in the report and advised that consideration could also be given to exploring funding from the disposal of assets in the Education Department. · Concern regarding the potential impact on the delivery of the programme following a change to the Council’s capital receipts policy to support the delivery of revenue savings in 2024/25. The Lead Member confirmed that the £4.1m funding from capital receipts was not at risk. · Noted that the projects from the 21st Century for Schools Programme would transfer into the new Sustainable Communities for Learning Programme which was a 9 year rolling programme of works. · An update was provided in respect of the status and projected completion dates for the remaining Band B projects, as outlined in the report. · Noted that a report outlining the proposed rolling programme and capital plan will be presented to Executive Board in April 2024. · Acknowledgement of competing Council priorities and funding pressures. · Recognition of the excellent quality of the schemes delivered under the programme to date. · The unsuitability of the Groves building to accommodate a new school. A brief update on the work in progressing the development of the Groves building was provided by the Lead Member. Further detail to be circulated to committee members. · Condition of the school estate. Members were pleased to note that through the use of major capital funding and repairs and maintenance budgets, progress had continued to be made in improving the overall condition of the school estate. · Noted that at present the Welsh Government was providing 100% funding for additional costs for current Band B projects arising from the new regulation requiring all new projects to be Net Zero Carbon. Officers advised that at present there was no indication that this funding would be time limited. · Referring to the significant refurbishment and renovation to support young people with additional learning needs (ALN) at the newly renamed Noddfa, assurance was sought that the model of specialist provision was sustainable in light of school budget issues. · The Chief Officer provided the Committee with an overview of the provision which provided multi agency assessment and intervention in addition to supporting pupils with autism and social communication difficulties. Consideration must be given to the most appropriate way to support the transformation agenda whilst meeting the needs of the service. It was important to prevent the need for children to be placed in expensive out of county specialist provision. · The information in respect of Section 106 agreements and the process and timescales regarding updating supplementary planning guidance contained in the report was noted. AGREED – (i) That the feasibility study into the development of the Groves as an ‘anchor’ site for a new Contemporary Art Gallery be circulated to Members of the Committee. (ii) To recommend to the Executive Board – · That any new funding from the flexible revenue support grant be directed towards schools. · That the capital receipt from any disposals of school assets be ringfenced to support the 21st Century Schools Programme (now Sustainable Communities for Learning). (iii) That a further detailed progress report on the delivery of Phase 1 of the Sustainable Communities for Learning Programme and outline development of Phases 2 and 3 be submitted to a future meeting of the Committee. (iv) That the School Organisation Framework Review is submitted to this Committee within 12 months. (v) That a Workshop Session is arranged for Members of the Committee to receive information regarding the multi-agency provision at Noddfa and to recommend to the Chief Officer Education and Early Intervention that information regarding the services delivered at Noddfa are circulated to School Governors.
Decision as recorded
AGREED – (i) To recommend that the Chief Officer Education and Early Intervention write to BCUHB regarding the effect of CAMHS’ waiting lists on Education. (ii) That a further report be submitted on the evaluation of the impact of services provided to support pupils’ emotional and mental well-being include the following – · Any emerging trends and response, and opportunities to feed these into the Curriculum for Wales (year on year comparisons to be made with the same co-hort of pupils) · How priorities for pupil well-being and mental health are being resourced · How support for pupils is continued throughout the transition phase from primary to secondary
The Lead Member for Education submitted a report (COEEI/02/24s) to consider the arrangements to support the well-being of children and young people and how the Education and Early Intervention Department works with key partners to co-ordinate this support. Presenting the report the Health and Well-being Lead referred to the impact on pupil well-being since the pandemic and the partnership approach to managing the increasing demand. Members’ attention was drawn to the Primary School interventions, the use of PASS data and the example contained in the report at Appendix 1, progress on the work of the multi-agency well-being group, adaptions made to some services and the new My Happy Mind programme which was taught to every child in school from Early Years to Year 6, in partnership with CAMHS. During debate the following matters were highlighted: · Recognition of the excellent work going on as outlined in the report. · The reasons for increase in numbers of pupils exhibiting more challenging behaviours, particularly post pandemic were varied and complex. · The impact of budget cuts to schools and concern regarding the impact they may have on early interventions. Members noted that Education officers were very mindful of the pressure that schools and school staff were under and were committed to working closely with schools to support them. · The importance of ensuring that there was appropriate support in place for school staff. The officer reported that school staff had access to Human Resources, Care First and an Education Support group and Health and Well-being bulletins were shared with schools signposting to support available. · The use of Curriculum for Wales to develop and support resilience and online safety. Whilst work had been undertaken in this area, this remained an area which would continue to evolve as technology developed. · The opportunity to develop performance measures in schools for pupil well-being. · The impact of CAMHS’ waiting lists in respect of counselling and diagnostic services. It was recognised that the waiting times in respect of mental health were lower (weeks) but significant waiting lists for assessment and diagnosis remained (years). · The support for pupil transition from Primary to Secondary was being strengthened and was comprehensive. · Feedback from PASS and SHRN data and how this was used in a targeted way to support pupils and to identify emerging trends. AGREED – (i) To recommend that the Chief Officer Education and Early Intervention write to BCUHB regarding the effect of CAMHS’ waiting lists on Education. (ii) That a further report be submitted on the evaluation of the impact of services provided to support pupils’ emotional and mental well-being include the following – · Any emerging trends and response, and opportunities to feed these into the Curriculum for Wales (year on year comparisons to be made with the same co-hort of pupils) · How priorities for pupil well-being and mental health are being resourced · How support for pupils is continued throughout the transition phase from primary to secondary
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.
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